Atlanta, November 7, 2026 – Zoo Atlanta’s newest giant pandas munched on bamboo and lounged in their new home Friday as crowds lined up to see them, bringing back one of the city’s best-loved attractions after a two-year gap.
Ping Ping, a male, and Fu Shuang, a female, both 6, greeted visitors for the first time at the newly renovated Arthur M. Blank Panda Grove. They arrived from Chengdu, China, on Sept. 27 on a FedEx flight nicknamed the “Panda Express.” They spent several weeks in a routine quarantine and getting used to the habitat before the debut.
The morning started with a VIP ceremony featuring speeches and a ribbon-cutting, attended by nearly 100 guests from the United States and China. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Ping Ping seemed unimpressed by the fuss going on behind him.
Zoo Atlanta President and CEO Raymond B. King said pandas have “a unique ability to inspire curiosity, instill passion, evoke joy and unite people” around the world. He called Ping Ping “a goofball” with a lot of personality. Fu Shuang is quieter and more cautious about trying new things, he said, but both have adapted very well.
Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng told the audience that the pandas’ arrival “marks the renewal of a decade-long bond between China and Zoo Atlanta.” Xie also joked that although he is China’s only ambassador in Washington, Atlanta now has two panda envoys, “who are both much weightier than me.”
Xie explained the meaning of the names: Ping means peace, and Fu Shuang means double blessing. He said the names carry the warm wishes of the Chinese people.
A diplomatic delivery
Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the pandas’ arrival date on Sept. 24 at the White House, in opening remarks before talks with President Donald Trump. He called it “a piece of good news” and said the panda program was an example of friendship between the Chinese and American people. China and the zoo had first announced the agreement in April.
The pandas are on a 10-year loan. They came under a cooperative research agreement on giant panda conservation between Zoo Atlanta and the China Wildlife Conservation Association, so they are not a permanent gift.
Ping Ping was born on March 17, 2020, and Fu Shuang on Oct. 18, 2020. Both were born at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. The zoo hopes the pair will eventually breed.
A $6 million new home
The Arthur M. Blank Panda Grove cost $6 million and was paid for by a grant from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation. The renovation enlarged the indoor dayrooms and upgraded the outdoor habitats. Each dayroom now has climbing structures and its own pool, and there are new water features and a central panda sculpture.
The grove is named for Arthur M. Blank, the Atlanta businessman and philanthropist who has supported the zoo’s panda program since it began. Blank said the habitat will let generations of visitors see giant pandas up close while supporting conservation research.
The zoo has arranged a steady supply of locally grown bamboo. Officials note that Atlanta’s climate is similar to Chengdu’s.
Picking up a 25-year legacy
Zoo Atlanta’s panda program started in 1999 with Lun Lun and Yang Yang. The pair had seven cubs at the zoo between 2006 and 2016, and all of them now live in China. In October 2024, when the 25-year agreement ran out, Lun Lun, Yang Yang and their two youngest offspring, Ya Lun and Xi Lun, went back to China. That left the habitat empty, amid strained relations between Washington and Beijing.
With the new pair, Zoo Atlanta is again one of only three zoos in the United States with giant pandas. The others are the San Diego Zoo and the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington.
Large crowds are expected all through the pandas’ first weekend on public view.
