Summer Splash Zone
Visitor Experience
The Summer Splash Zone is a concept developed during a 2-day design thinking workshop focused on reimagining visitor engagement at Fukuoka City Zoo. The project explores how water-based interactive experiences can reduce the emotional and physical distance between children and animals during the hot summer season. The concept was developed through rapid field observation, collaborative ideation, and low-fidelity prototyping.
Client:
Fukuoka Zoo
Role:
Design Strategist
Year:
2025
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Challenge
During field observations at the zoo, we identified several key issues affecting the visitor experience. Animals were often inactive or difficult to observe due to extreme summer heat. Enclosures created a strong physical and emotional distance between visitors and animals, making interaction feel limited to passive observation. Children, especially elementary school students, arrived with high expectations but often struggled to meaningfully engage with the animals. In some cases, visibility was also limited due to enclosure design and environmental conditions. As a result, the overall experience sometimes felt disconnected despite strong visitor interest.
Objective
The project aimed to address the question of how we might create a more engaging and emotionally connected zoo experience for children during summer while still respecting animal wellbeing. The intention was to increase emotional engagement between children and animals, improve visibility and interaction during hot weather conditions, design experiences that encourage repeat visits, and explore how environmental elements such as water could be used as a shared interaction medium.
Results
The final concept, Summer Splash Zone, proposes a seasonal experiential zone at Fukuoka City Zoo that uses water as a shared medium for interaction between visitors and animals. The experience introduces a transparent water pool environment where visitors can experience a sense of proximity to animals such as penguins and otters through safely separated structures. It also includes water-based enrichment activities for animals, staff-assisted interaction moments, and seasonal splash play areas for children. Educational elements are integrated into the experience through interactive storytelling and participation-based learning, encouraging engagement beyond passive observation. The concept is designed to adapt across seasons, offering water-based cooling and play experiences in summer while transitioning into alternative environmental experiences during winter. Out of three nominated groups, our team received the Best Idea (アイディア賞) award, with feedback highlighting the clarity of the concept, strong visual communication, and how easily the experience could be understood and visualized.
