An endoscope apparatus (100) includes an endoscope insertion portion (13), an operation portion (11) provided at the side of the base end of the endoscope insertion portion, an operating wire (57) for transmitting an operation of the operation portion (11) with a tensile force, and a bending portion (19) provided at a distal-end side of the endoscope insertion portion to be subjected to a bending operation performed with the operating wire (57). The bending portion (19) is such that, when a bending-portion cross-section defined by a plane perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the endoscope insertion portion (13) is divided into two regions (63,65) by a straight line (61) passing through the center (59) of the bend-portion cross-section, the bend-portion cross-section is dividable into a first region (63) in which a cross-section of the operating wire (57) is present and a second region (65) in which the cross-section of the operating wire (57) is not present. A distal-end projection domain is obtained by projecting the first region (63) in which the cross-section of the operating wire (57) is present onto a distal-end surface (37) at a distal-end of the endoscope insertion portion (13). The distal-end projection domain is protruded from the distal-end of the endoscope insertion portion outward in a direction of the longitudinal axis of the endoscope insertion portion (13). An observation window (39) for observing an object is arranged in the protruded distal-end projection domain.
