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Compared to Kyoto & Hokkaido, Tokyo has always been deemed as a terrible mess of trains, pedestrians and cars that even Google Map got confused. Thankfully, your urban experience in the Japanese Capital can be redeemed by a trip to Akiba Fukurou Owl Cafe Tokyo located in a quiet alley in Akihabara district of Tokyo, Japan. Although it is called a cafe, no food is served but you get to play with these adorable owls.
A date with these lovely birds is highly coveted by both the locals and tourists hence it is important that you secure your reservations a few days in advance. Once confirmed, the diligent staff from the cafe will email you a day before to confirm your attendance. We advise that you do not risk a last-minute walk-in.
On the day of your reservation, make sure you arrive at least 15 minutes early to read an informative book for basic information on the owls, how to handle them and the common FAQs.
Each one hour session would allow you to get up close and personal with 2 owls. While waiting to enter the cafes, you can check these adorable birds out on the Owl Family Tree.
Once we enter the cafe, the staff got us to sterilised our hands and shared in details the correct way to pet and handle an owl on our arms.
They also explained to us that we should only interact with owls without the pink round stickers. This is to allow owls to get adequate rest time during their ‘breaks’.
After all the briefing, we are free to walk around to interact with the owls. Remember to keep your volume down and avoid using flash photography so as not to startle the birds.
There is no rush to select your owls. Take your time and choose one which resonates best with your personality. The largest owl in the house would be a true trophy on the arms but he can be a little grouchy if you rub him the wrong way.
Some of them are extremely curious about who you are
This fellow is still trying to wake up for his shift but the petite Mr Yamashita is all ready to roll!
Mr Yamashita, I choose you! You need to request the staff to transfer them to your hands or arms (depending on the size of the owl).
It’s not easy managing Mr Yamashita. He is restless and full of energy. In fact, if not for the string, he would have flown off twice. Despite his small size, his wings pack a lot of thrust in them. It is important to hold on to the string because if he accidentally flew into contact with a larger owl, they might not survive the attack.
My friend’s Cherry Tomato was a lot more well-behaved but still, I like the cheeky Mr Yamashita more.
I wanted to go for the gorgeous white barn owl for my second owl but it was a pity she was on break.
I decided to go for one of these two lovey-dovey lovebirds instead.
At the end of the one hour session, everyone returned their owls so that the staff can have them ready for the next batch of customers who were already waiting outside.
Overall, petting and interacting with these predatory birds was an amazing PetLovesBest experience. In fact, I loved the sessions so much that I returned to the cafe again with my Mom & Brother during our family trip in October 2017!
My brother enjoyed the session without a doubt.
But it was a surprise that Mom daringly chose a pretty big owl and was absolutely comfortable with it!
No matter the age of your friends or family, Akiba Fukurou Owl Cafe Tokyo would leave wonderful memories for your next trip to the Japanese Capital. If you are keen to visit it, here are the full details of the cafe:
Address: 67 Kanda Neribeicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo 101-0022, Japan
Opening Hours: 12pm – 7pm Daily (Closed on Tuesday). We must emphasise that you must check the calendar on their website and make a reservation in advance to avoid disappointment.
Price: $2,000 Yen per one-hour session
Website: akiba2960.com
Email: [email protected]
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