The Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna, Austria was the first European zoo that I saw pandas in after my home zoo of Edinburgh way back in 2017 (when the last born cubs there were just tiny lil babies^). In 2018 the twins left Vienna for China, and in 2023 mama Yang Yang and her new partner Yuan Yuan (who I didn’t see) left for their return to China. Finally in April 2025, a brand new pair of pandas moved to Vienna! As soon as I heard the news, I booked myself a trip – welcome to Lan Yun and He Feng 🎉
The panda house is the same physical building as in my previous visit but has had some renovations. There are still two separate indoor and outdoor spaces, one of each for each panda. The whole space does seem much brighter and if I’m remembering correctly the viewing area has also changed, as there was a seat/ledge along the viewing window before whereas now the windows in most sections go right down to the floor which is good and definitely opens up the space – plus both pandas liked to sit right at the window so you get a full view of them. I also think the indoor spaces seemed bigger than I remember, but I don’t have enough pictures from my first visit to know if this is true or not! To the right of the main line of windows, there was an additional room to that indoor house, I’m pretty sure this wasn’t here before, and it gives both extra space for the panda and another viewing space. The wall between the two indoor spaces is completely glass but with a theme-fitting square pattern, I like this because it gives the pandas a visual of each other. This visual is maintained in their outdoor yards as well. The outdoor yards do seem much bigger than before, however the pandas were inside last time I was here so I didn’t see them use the yards. However they have gained some space, because previously the red pandas were at a yard near the far end of the panda yards (the opposite end of the building), and now this space has been taken over for the pandas, so they have gained some room. I like the outdoor yards here, there are enough clear areas to get a good view of the pandas, but also plenty of tree coverage for a more natural forest feel. There is viewing both open and through glass at both yards, but the open space was bigger at Lan Yun‘s yard, while there was more glass viewing space at He Feng‘s yard. The only thing I felt was missing was signage saying which panda was which – as someone who has seen a lot of pandas and has seen Lan Yun previously, for me it was easy, but for the average zoo visitor, there was nothing to indicate who was who or any specific information about them (like birthdays, personality, identifying features etc). But overall, I like it.
The viewing space inside has also been upgraded, I like the red design, it’s very classic for panda houses, and also the ‘roof’ design above the viewing window. There was also plenty of panda education information in here, which was in both German and English. And there was also information outside at the outdoor viewing areas.
There was of course a big panda section in the giftshop, however it was just very standard panda merch that you can get in many places. They did have some magnets, however these were of the previous panda family that were here and not of these two new pandas – so I did get to pick up one of Yang Yang and the twins, but would love a new updated option.
He Feng 荷风
First up it’s He Feng 荷风, and he was the first of the pair that I saw on my visit, the male. He Feng (with original name Ke Yuan 科源) was born on the 20th August 2020, making him 5 years old when I saw him. I can’t find out very much information about his family or his history in China and I’m pretty sure I haven’t seen him before. He was outside sleeping up on a platform when I arrived, so it was mostly a view of his bum! Here you could also only really see him through the glass, so it wasn’t optimal. He ended up sleeping for most of the morning on my first day, but patience payed off and eventually he did get up and I saw him make use of both his indoor and outdoor spaces across the two days of my visit. When he was outside he was either sleeping or eating, and he generally got his bamboo in two different spaces, one was at the foot of a platform with a good ‘panda seat’ at it, and the other was at the glass-less viewing area which was quite close to where viewers could stand so it was a really good view. Outside I also saw him with one of his keepers, she had just opened the door to let him out and then gave him a carrot through the fence, the angle was a little awkward for photos but I still think they’re cute^ On the inside he made use of all of the space, and I saw him both eating and sleeping on his main platform. And he often ate quite near the front right at the window, it was amazing to be so close to him through the glass. He also got a treat from a keeper one time through the bars on their entry door which was also sweet to see, and it was adorable seeing him looking out of his windows! I have seen this previously with Tian Tian at Edinburgh Zoo but these full-size windows are perfect for a good view outside. He was very keen to watch his keepers when they were cleaning and replenishing the bamboo in his outside space! He really gave me Tian Tian vibes in his looks, so perhaps they are related somewhere along the genetic line.
Lan Yun 兰韵
Then we have Lan Yun 兰韵 the female of the pair. And her I have seen before! She is also known as Dou Ban 豆伴 or Dun Dun 顿顿, I saw her on my May 2024 trip to China at the Dujiangyan Base. She was born on the 29th of July 2020, making her 5 years old, and she is the first born cub of famous Bao Bao, who was the second born cub of Mei Xiang and Tian Tian at the Smithsonian National Zoo in DC! She was very much loved in China so I think it was a bit of mixed emotions with Chinese fans not wanting her to leave, and international fans happy to get to see her outside of China. Nonetheless, this is a great opportunity for seeing the family expand further and I’m so pleased to have the chance to see her many times as she’s such a cutie^ She was in the back inside when I first arrived, but after a few hours she came outside! So precious to see her outside and she seemed to enjoy her treats and also her fantastic wooden climbing frame – it’s extensive with lots of options. She spent a lot of time outside on the first day and only came inside later in the afternoon where she enjoyed sleeping on one of the platforms in here. On the second day she didn’t make an appearance again for quite a few hours then made her way outside for carrots and treats – patience was key with waiting for this! It was also nice to see her looking out the window from her inside to outside space too, super cute. While she did spend quite a lot of time outside, she did seem a little more hesitant about it than He Feng, but they’ve not been living in Vienna too long, so it definitely takes some getting used to living in a new space. Very excited to see her again because who can resist her pretty features =)
