Similar to in the Moon Nursery, in the Star Nursery I also saw a mixed set of pandas – mums with cubs, older cubs alone, and also adults alone. First up, those adults! The Star Nursery has 4 inside and 8 outside yards, I did take a quick look inside but there were only pandas in the outdoor yards on this visit. Over the 2 days in these 8 yards I saw 4 mums with cubs, a pair of ‘toddler’ cubs alone, and 5 adults alone (1 of whom I didn’t end up seeing at all, this was Fu Wa, and I only saw a small glimpse of Ao Ao). Overall I really like the yards in this area, they are quite mixed with different terrains, levels of planting, and climbing options, so you do get a variety even though they’re all at one house. And for the most part, viewing is easy at all the yards, there is plenty of space, sometimes 2 levels for viewing, and most have a clear view i.e. not through glass.

The final pavilion of the Panda Reception Hall – Reflecting Sun Pavilion. Again, it’s a 2 indoor-5 outdoor set up, and again I had mixed success seeing the pandas. Last year across my 2 days at the base I saw 5 of the 6 listed pandas living in this pavilion, this time I saw 4 of the 6 listed, and had luck getting photos of Run Yue and Ai Jiu who I didn’t get good pictures of last time. I was also happy to see Cheng Lan again, although the photos look much the same as last time XD This was one of the busier pavilions in this area, but by no means was it super crowded, I was still able to get in and get photos from all the angles that I wanted.

Sticking with the Panda Reception Hall, next is the Rising Sun Pavilion, which again has 2 indoor spaces and 5 outdoor yards. Much like the Cloud Sun Pavilion, I had mixed successes seeing pandas here – I think I really just got there at the wrong times, but did try and visit in both the morning and afternoon. Last time I saw Cheng Lan, Chong Yang and Fu Shuang – this time Chong Yang and Fu Shuang are still living here but I didn’t really see them. Also here are Er Qiao (also didn’t see), Ni Xiao and her 2023-born cub and the Madrid Zoo-born twins Jiu Jiu and You You! After being sad that I didn’t see them last year, I was so excited to see them outside this time^

Next up is the Cloud Sun Pavilion in the Panda Reception Hall – here there are 2 indoor homes and 5 outdoor yards. Last time I saw Jing Liang and Fu Shun living in the indoor spaces, this time there were only pandas outside, and I saw Jing Liang again! The 5 pandas listed as living in the yards were Jing Liang, He Qi, Ya Yun, Yun Wen and Zhao Mei – I didn’t see any of Zhao Mei, I’m a little sad about this because she looks absolutely adorable in the photos I’ve seen online, maybe next time! The others I didn’t see a lot of, however I had good luck with Jing Liang^

This was by far the most quiet area of the base, there were only a handful of other visitors around the viewing paths of this pavilion at any time I was around here.

I saw Ji Ran, Ke Nian and Bei Xia last year on my visit and had such a great experience watching them – I was so excited to see they are still living together and even more excited to have seen them outside this time, so much better than before! These 3 are so playful and up to mischief, and I saw exactly that on both days. They were a popular trio with lots of people waiting to see them. Luckily their outdoor yard is huge and has a path around the edge so there are plenty of viewing opportunities for everyone to see them. I really like their yard, it’s good a good mix of hillside with trees and frames to climb on, along with a water feature and a range of terrains. The plants didn’t fare too well on these two days because the 3 of them were running around and bolstering through them all! There wasn’t a lot of downtime for these guys, they were honestly moving around the whole time I was at their yard on both days. The best time to see them seemed to be just before/around lunchtime, but I suspect they were also active first thing in the morning, I just didn’t get there before approx. 11AM on either day. They are still only 2.5 years old, so very young and full of energy – it’s all about the playtime! I’m hoping they can stay a trio for a few more years and that I can see them again on my next visit =)

While Bei Xia was moving a bit slower than the other 2, he wasn’t hugely hindered in getting involved in the rough play or running around the whole of the yard – his partial front paw doesn’t seem to be holding him back at all and I just loved watching him getting involved in all the fun. He really has a special place in my heart^