Panda fans, rejoice: San Diego Zoo’s Yuan Chuan and Xin Bao go on public view Thursday

Pro tip: If you are going to see San Diego Zoo’s newest giant pandas, look up — way up.

That’s where you’ll see a terraced hillside that’s perfect for pandas to climb and explore. Xin Bao regularly lumbers up the steep hill.

“She is a very curious bear. She’s done a lot of exploring on the hillside,” noted Megan Owen, vice president of wildlife conservation science for San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.

After flying in from China and spending six weeks out of view, giant pandas Xin Bao and Yun Chuan will make their public debut at noon Thursday.

This is the first time since 2019 the zoo has cared for pandas, and interest is high. Tickets for morning walking tours to see the bears quickly sold out for most of August, and the mayor is warning panda watchers to be wary of traffic jams heading into Balboa Park.

The bears are in a new habitat called Panda Ridge that’s four times bigger than the zoo’s previous panda space. It features pools and misters to keep the bears cool and boasts rock outcroppings, lush trees and bushes inspired by Chinese forests where wild pandas roam.

Zoo officials say they’re excited about giving visitors a chance to see pandas for the first time since they bade farewell to 6-year-old panda Xiao Liwu and his mother Bai Yun, who had lived at the zoo for 23 years.