Cat Cafes in Tokyo

Hino, Tokyo

Hogoneko Hiroba LoveHappy is an NPO-run rescue cat shelter in Hodokubo, Hino, about four minutes on foot from Tama-Dobutsukoen Station on the Keio line. It moved here from Minamidaira, where it previously ran a cafe-style adoption space, and now opens the shelter to the public every Sunday afternoon. No reservation is needed; visitors are asked for a donation on entry and must wear socks, and numbers may be limited when it is busy. The shelter houses many kittens and adult cats rescued in and around Hino, all looking for adoptive homes. The Sunday session is cancelled when the group takes part in outside adoption events, which it also holds regularly at venues in Fuchu, Hino and Takahatafudo.

• Adoptable cats

Ome, Tokyo

NEKOZATO Satooyakai is a weekly cat adoption gathering held at the group's own premises in Tomioka, Ome, a rural spot surrounded by rice fields. It is linked to the local volunteer groups Inochi wo Kangaeru Kai Ome and Ome Sakura Neko Club, which carry out trap-neuter-return work and take in kittens and cats that cannot be returned outdoors. Every Sunday afternoon, visitors can walk in and interact freely with the cats in a relaxed, cat-cafe-like setting while finding out about adoption. Some weeks are skipped, so the calendar on the group's website should be checked first. The site has its own parking, and the nearest bus stop is Iwaido, on the bus routes between Hanno and Higashi-Ome stations.

• Adoptable cats

Hachioji, Tokyo

Moff animal cafe Iias Takao is a multi-animal cafe on the first floor of the Iias Takao shopping centre in Higashiasakawa, Hachioji, about six minutes on foot from JR and Keio Takao Station and five minutes from Keio Hazama Station. Alongside owls, parrots, reptiles, rabbits, hedgehogs, prairie dogs, guinea pigs and dogs, it keeps around a dozen pedigree cats, including Norwegian Forest Cats, British and American Shorthairs, a Munchkin, a Ragdoll, an American Curl, Selkirk Rexes, Scottish Folds and a Russian Blue. Entry is a single unlimited-time charge plus a mandatory drink bar, children aged 3 and under enter free, and children of elementary school age or younger must come with a paying adult. No reservation is needed, though entry may switch to timed sessions when busy, and animals cannot be held. The cafe opens daily and follows the mall's closing days.

• Walk-ins welcome