ATLANTA — Atlanta’s newest celebrities are finally home.
After a 16-hour journey from China aboard the so-called “Panda Express,” giant pandas Ping Ping and Fu Shuang are settling into their new habitat at Zoo Atlanta, where veterinarians from both the United States and China are closely monitoring their adjustment.
Channel 2’s Karyn Greer was the only local reporter inside Zoo Atlanta as the pandas arrived, and now new video from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is offering a rare look at their trip halfway around the world.
The pair landed Sunday at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport aboard a dedicated FedEx Boeing 777 before making the trip to Zoo Atlanta under an Atlanta police escort.
“They’ve had a good night’s sleep,” zoo officials said Monday, adding that both bears appear to be adjusting well to their new surroundings.
For now, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang remain inside a biosecure area of Zoo Atlanta’s newly renovated panda complex. As part of standard animal health procedures, they will spend about a month in quarantine before they are introduced to the public.
Zoo Atlanta has not yet announced an opening date for visitors.
“It’s also just as exciting to see how Atlanta is reacting,” said Raymond B. King, president and CEO of Zoo Atlanta. “It’s a point of civic pride to be one of only three zoos in the country that can host them.”
The excitement is already building among visitors.
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“We remember taking our kids 20 to 25 years ago to see the pandas,” said zoo visitor Danette Betts. “I’m glad that our granddaughter will get to experience this.”
Another visitor, Brian Cohen, said pandas have long been one of the zoo’s biggest attractions.
“The pandas have always been a staple here, and Zoo Atlanta does a great job of offering a great experience, and the pandas just take it up another notch,” Cohen said.
The arrival of Ping Ping and Fu Shuang also marks the beginning of a new conservation and research partnership between Zoo Atlanta and the China Wildlife Conservation Association.
The agreement restores Atlanta’s giant panda program after the zoo’s previous pandas returned to China in 2024, ending a 25-year partnership that made the bears a beloved part of generations of Atlanta families’ zoo visits.
King said preparations for the pandas’ arrival have been underway for months and involved close coordination between teams in both countries.
“It’s really a seamless process,” King said. “Our team’s been over there in advance of them coming, and their team’s over here. They’ll be here for several months probably. And it’s a very collaborative relationship.”
Zoo officials say they will announce a public debut date in the coming weeks. They also plan to share details about when fans can begin watching the bears on the zoo’s panda cam.
Until then, Atlanta’s newest ambassadors are getting settled into their new home while the city eagerly waits for its first glimpse.
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