2024 Sumida Aquarium: Meet the Penguin Family Next to Tokyo Skytree – Enhanced Happiness Inside

📍 Tokyo · 👁 1564 reads

Did you know a whole family of penguins lives right next to Tokyo Skytree? The penguin family at Sumida Aquarium has won great acclaim, and the annually updated 'family tree' has become a reason for many to visit year after year. In recent years, the facility has been renovated, adding more dreamlike jellyfish pools and other areas, further enhancing the sense of happiness.

A Large Ocean Family in the Downtown Area – An Aquarium That Feels Like a Park

Located next to Tokyo Skytree, Sumida Aquarium is one of Tokyo's classic aquariums, always surprising visitors with creative projects. The large penguin family living there is very popular, with over fifty members including both blood-related and non-blood-related individuals, living leisurely in spacious tanks every day. Interestingly, the aquarium's keepers update their family tree every year, and these penguins have become like 'influencers' – not only serving as Sumida Aquarium's 'star attraction' but also once serving as tourism ambassadors for Sumida Ward.

Of course, Sumida Aquarium is not just home to a family of penguins; it also houses jellyfish, sea lions, garden eels, and many other marine creatures, making it a 'downtown big family' next to Skytree. All tanks in the aquarium use a special artificial seawater system, providing a more oxygen-rich living environment for the animals to live comfortably. Additionally, the aquarium offers a free-flowing visitor route with many seating areas for guests to rest. Even though light snacks, desserts, drinks, and alcoholic beverages are sold on site, visitors are also allowed to bring their own food into the aquarium, making it feel like an indoor marine park – exceptionally free and pleasant, as if visiting friends.

Now, let's take you inside this 'big residence' for a look.

Sumida Aquarium (すみだ水族館)

Address: 5F & 6F, Tokyo Skytree Town Soramachi, 1-1-2 Oshiage, Sumida-ku, Tokyo

Weekdays: 10:00–20:00

Saturdays, Sundays, and national holidays: 9:00–21:00

* Last admission: 1 hour before closing

Closed: Open year-round; may close temporarily for maintenance, so please check the official website before visiting.

A short walk from Tokyo Skytree Station on the Tobu Skytree Line.

A 5-minute walk from Oshiage (Skytree Front) Station on the Tobu Skytree Line, Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line, Keisei Oshiage Line, and Toei Asakusa Line.

Official website (Simplified Chinese)

① Penguin Home: Penguins Swimming in Water – Observing the Penguin Family from Multiple Angles

Sumida Aquarium's penguin tank holds 350 tons of water and is deep and spacious. The penguins living there gather in groups or enjoy solo time, climbing ashore and diving, floating and swimming fast or slow – full of vitality and leisurely, exceptionally cute. This penguin tank is located in the center of the 5th floor of the aquarium but can be viewed from multiple angles on both the 6th and 5th floors, allowing both distant views and close observation.

The family tree that keepers compile for the penguins each year is regularly displayed on the 5th floor and can also be seen on the official website. It includes the penguins' names, personalities, social relationships among them, and their interactions with keepers – charming little life stories like a continuing drama series, very popular. Recently, an English version of this family tree has been released, allowing foreign visitors who don't understand Japanese to learn the stories of the aquarium's penguins through English.

② Jellyfish Home: Ethereal Underwater Beauty – A Sense of Tranquility You Can Visually Feel

Unlike the cuteness of penguins, appreciating the graceful movements of jellyfish drifting in water is another pleasure of visiting an aquarium. The jellyfish area at Sumida Aquarium was renovated in 2020, featuring large, painting-like displays of red jellyfish and Pacific golden jellyfish, as well as an elliptical pool with a diameter of 7 meters, home to about 500 translucent moon jellyfish. The changing underwater lighting creates an especially serene and beautiful atmosphere. Above the pool, a path resembling a small bridge features a viewing area with transparent reinforced glass flooring, allowing visitors to observe the jellyfish from unusual angles.

In addition to the jellyfish area, a 'Kaleidoscope Tunnel' was added in 2020, using multi-mirror space design with lighting to create a dreamy feel. Inside, there is a jellyfish projection wall for magnified observation of their movements, shadow play for photos, and multiple jellyfish tanks along one wall, like a jellyfish gallery. Rows of seats are placed in front of the tanks, allowing visitors to sit quietly and watch the jellyfish drift.

All jellyfish at Sumida Aquarium are bred and raised on-site. In the Lab area, visitors can observe keepers caring for the jellyfish and see jellyfish at different growth stages – very interesting. If you want to know more secrets or stories about the jellyfish or other animals, you can also ask the keepers directly – they are always happy to share little stories about the aquarium's animals, as this is one of Sumida Aquarium's major features.

③ Ogasawara Family Home: Encountering a World Natural Heritage Site in Tokyo

When visiting an aquarium, the large tank is a must-see. Sumida Aquarium's large tank is themed around the marine ecosystem of the Ogasawara Islands, a group of remote islands southeast of Tokyo. It houses up to 45 species and about 450 animals from that area. The Ogasawara Islands include Japan's easternmost inhabited island, which takes 24 hours by boat from Tokyo, yet it is still part of Tokyo. Due to their distance from the Japanese mainland, the Ogasawara Islands boast many unique and beautiful island landscapes and ecosystems, officially registered as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in 2011.

Not only does Sumida Aquarium recreate the marine ecosystem of the Ogasawara Islands in its large tank, but in 2023 it added the 'Ogasawara Space' – a river-like tank display area inviting more small animals from the land and rivers of the Ogasawara Islands, including the endangered green sea turtle. This allows people to learn about these natural ecosystems, appreciate the beauty of the ocean, and become more aware of the importance of marine conservation.

Since the aquarium's opening in 2012, Sumida Aquarium has maintained ongoing exchanges with Ogasawara Village, collaborating on special projects such as large tank displays, sea turtle conservation assistance, and selling earrings made from marine waste. If interested, you can check their official website.

Additionally, Sumida Aquarium features a 'Nature Aquarium' designed by the renowned Japanese aquarium design team Aqua Design AMANO. Based on aquatic plant cultivation, it creates a more oxygen-rich, natural ecosystem for fish and other aquatic life to thrive, while also paying attention to visual design. Aqua Design AMANO's aquarium designs are internationally recognized, and overseas aquarium teams occasionally visit for inspiration.

④ Coral Reef Home: Nemo's Friends and Garden Eels

Coral reefs are important habitats for many marine creatures. For instance, clownfish like Nemo and blue tang like Dory from 'Finding Nemo' are fish that heavily rely on coral reefs. In the coral reef area at Sumida Aquarium, you can see fish that inhabit coral reefs, including red clownfish that look a bit like Nemo, and garden eels that live in sandy areas with strong currents at the edges of reefs.

Sumida Aquarium's garden eels are also popular favorites. During the pandemic, the aquarium held a 'video call with garden eels' event that had many people eagerly calling in, hoping that the naturally shy garden eels wouldn't 'shut themselves away' because of the pandemic.

Now that restrictions have lifted, the garden eels at Sumida Aquarium have resumed their 'social life,' welcoming visitors from all over every day. However, garden eels hide in their sandy burrows to sleep at night. If you visit early when the aquarium opens, they've just woken up and may only have a short part of their bodies sticking out. The picture above shows what they look like in the early morning. (Laughs)

⑤ Goldfish Home: Plenty of Edo-style Charm

Since it's an aquarium in Tokyo, Sumida Aquarium has a goldfish area full of Edo-style charm, displaying all kinds of cute and beautiful goldfish, along with a row of adorable goldfish lanterns. Each tank is like a Japanese-style painting that changes with every moment as the goldfish dance, making it a delight to watch.

PLUS Penguin Café: Cute Animal-shaped Snacks and Drinks

Sumida Aquarium allows outside food inside. The on-site 'Penguin Café' also offers many cute and delicious light snacks and drinks, such as doughnuts shaped like penguins and sea lions, penguin rice balls, penguin ocean-blue soda, sea lion iced cocoa, and even specialty cocktails. Ordering a small snack or coffee drink and sitting in front of the aquarium watching the animals swim leisurely is quite pleasant and atmospheric.

PLUS Aquarium Souvenirs: Original Merchandise That Catches the Eye

After visiting the aquarium, it's a good idea to take home a souvenir or gift. Sumida Aquarium's souvenir area is spacious, offering a wide variety of cute ocean-themed merchandise, from snacks and daily necessities to picture books. Among them, the aquarium's own original merchandise is a must-see, such as original tote bags, magnets, and acrylic earrings – all very popular. As mentioned earlier, the sea turtle-shaped earrings made in collaboration with the Ogasawara Islands, each with a unique pattern, attract particular attention.

If you like Japanese crafts, you can also find products created in collaboration between Sumida Aquarium and Tokyo artisans, such as Edo cut glass cups and cute penguin ornaments made using traditional wooden doll craftsmanship. Additionally, the souvenir shop offers unique items like penguin-shaped ice makers from the Penguin Café and marine animal-shaped mochi, making great souvenirs or gifts.

Sumida Aquarium – The Closer You Get, the More You Love It

I really like Sumida Aquarium's tagline: 'The closer you get, the more you love it.' Because it truly is that kind of aquarium. Even if we've described everything inside with thousands of words, even if you've heard reviews from friends who have visited, don't forget to make time to go yourself – maybe you'll finally feel the 'affection' hidden in that tagline.