We have a full day for Osaka!
 

Hi Guys,

We have a full day set aside for Osaka...anyone have any suggestions on what to see? There are six of us (all adults) and would like to check out and sight see around Osaka. We are staying in Kyoto and will be taking the JR into Osaka in late October this year. One thing we would like to see is the Osaka Castle. We'll be there around 10 am to around 8 pm before we head back to Kyoto.

Cheers and thanks in advance!

The castle is a good idea. I went there in late November last year and the autumn leaves were perfect... October might be good too, but I think it might be a little bit early for those post card esque colors. There's a big park there that you can walk around for a while. I remember looking for a place to eat and being dissapointed though! So if you go there make sure you time it so you aren't starving looking for a place to eat right after you're done.

Something that is really iconic is the Guriko sign in downtown Osaka. It's kind of a cool place to get a picture if you have the chance. It's right next to a river... and if I remember correctly there is a don kiyote (I think that was the place...) that has a passageway to a ferris wheel that you can ride, which I think would be quite nice at nighttime (it was out of order when I went though).

If you like Okonomiyaki or Takoyaki you definitely don`t wanna miss out on eating some while you're there. I'm not an expert on the area, so maybe someone else could tell you a good place to eat at (I'm sure a google search might give you a start).

If it rains, you could always go to the aquarium, which is indoors. I had a pretty good time there when I went, but it's one of those things that you can kind of see anywhere if you know what I mean. They had some interesting fish there though!

By the way, sometimes taking a couple of taxi cabs might be cheaper than taking the train. It might help to plan out a route before you go if you're looking to save money and time that way.

What are you interested in? What kind of stuff do you wanna see/don't wanna see? That might help other people help you.

Hey Steven,

Thanks for your reply :ywave:

The Guriko sign looks interesting. I think I would like to check that out. Definitely would like to take many pictures, as I am a real avid photographer. I like to shoot people, landscapes, architecture etc. Any suggestions for some great photo opportunities would be awesome!

I am looking forward to some great food! Not much into the real expensive fine dining....just would love to go where the regular local people eat. I am actually salivating already and I am not even in Japan yet :)

You mention about possibly taking cabs instead of the train. Are you talking about when we are in Osaka? or taking a cab from Kyoto? We will have a 2 week JR pass, so for sure we will take the train into Osaka and back.

Cheers.

To be clear it is the Glico sign (if you are searching for it) in the Namba/Shinsaibashi area of minami (south) Osaka. If you only have one day, this is a good district to shop, explore and eat in. The walking bridge the sign can be seen from is full of people and the exterior of the club that Michael Douglas enters in "Black Rain" was filmed at the north end of the short bridge, although it has since been torn down (a real shame).

Ame-mura might be an interesting cultural walk on the other side of Midosuji (the major North-South street through Osaka) if you want to see young, alternative culture. Great vintage stores, toy stores, music shops, and clothes clothes clothes.

Tell me what are you hoping to find in Osaka, and I can give more detailed advice. I lived in the area for a few years.

Hahahaha, excuse me. I totally assumed you were already in Japan so I made a couple assumptions.

Taking a cab from Kyoto to Osaka would cost a fortune!! If you have a JR pass, go ahead and take trains. If you were already living in Japan you couldn't use a JR pass, so you'd have to buy every train ticket thus making cab travelling a little more economical at times.

I'm having a hard time remembering what I did in Osaka when I was there, but I am willing to bet your best photo opportunity will be at the park where the castle is. Hopefully you'll get to see some fall colors because that will make it even better to take pictures. My favorite shot that I have is of the castle-- I remember I was standing outside of the hall that is in the park (which I think should be a straight shot from the train station... maybe a little bit to your left). I can't remember the name of the hall exactly, but I'm sure it's something like Osakajo koen --something something--. Maybe bunkakaikan or something like that. It's a fantastic place for pictures. If you have a lense that is able to take stable pictures at night, I'd try taking some pictures of the small river near the guriko sign.

For me, though a lot of Osaka was just a big city, so there wasn't a whole lot I was interested in taking pictures of, although I'm sure if you look hard enough there are endless shots you can take.

Okonomiyaki and Takyoyaki aren't even close to fine dining. I have to warn you, though, that some people don't like those very much. I think most Japanese do, though. It is really popular in that region and especially in Osaka.

Takoyaki's main ingredient is octopus, so if you're not into that then maybe just getting some on the street would be a good idea (instead of parkin' it in a restaraunt filled with the aroma of something you might not like).

There are a ton of different kinds of okonomiyaki... even if you don't like most of it there is probably one that you will like, but finding one that suits you in a big old menu might pove difficult. You can get seafood, shellfish, pork, beef, or a mix. It's hard to explain... I think it would be a good idea to check it out on youtube and read up on it. It's hard to compare it to things that we're used to eating. Think of it as pancake batter with a ton of junk in it like cabbage, meat, green onion type things, and a bunch of other stuff. Then you grill it (and it won't get brown like a pancake will). When you have grilled it you top it with a sweet sauce (that is dark) and mayonaise and maybe some bonita flakes or dried ground seaweed like stuff. I've even seen some with mustard on it. Even if it doesn't sound appealing to you, you could be pleasantly surprised. The word "okonomiyaki" basically means like "grill it to your liking" or something to that effect. You pretty much just mix a bunch of junk together and put it in pancake mix and grill it up and put whatever sauce you like on it. You can cook it yourself or have the cooks cook it for you. It is a very social thing, actually. It goes good with a cold beer or soda, in my experience. I've had sake with it and, no offense to okonomiyaki, but it felt like a waste to drink sake with it haha. (I love okonomiyaki and sake, so don't get me wrong).

Edit: Thanks for clearing that up MMM! Sometimes I get worried that I'm completely disregarding English in my everyday life... I never noticed that that sign said "glico", I always just saw the red "グリコ" haha. Also I forgot what Ame-mura was called! I went there but couldn't recall the name.

Hey MMM, thanks for your input...always appreciated!

I looked up Ame-mura and that looks to be an interesting area. I love to people watch and take in the culture.

With respect to what I am hoping to find in Osaka...to be honest, I am going with an open mind and just really take in the culture, young and old.

Prior to Osaka I will have seen about 5 days of Tokyo, which also includes Kamakura and Yokohama. I will most likely see more of the modern world of Tokyo, throwing in the wild side of the youth culture of the Harajuku district. I will also take in Ueno, Asakusa, Shibuya, Akihabara (I love anything electronics) and Shinjuku.

I will concentrate more of the old culture and heritage of seeing the temples and shrines in Kyoto.

I would love to see anything that may be unique to Osaka, that I may not see elsewhere. Any help there would be appreciated.

Cheers!

Hey Steven, thanks for the photo op tips near the castle in the park. I hope to see some fall colors if I'm lucky, however I think it gets better in November from what I hear. I'll be equipped with my DSLR and tripod so I will try and get some night exposure pics.

I love takoyaki! My wife and I first experienced it for the first time about 8-9 years ago at our local Japanese festival we have every year in Vancouver, Canada. We try and go every year to take in the festivities and get a hold of some takoyaki. Now, I haven't tried Okonomiyaki, but now I want to! It looks kind of weird and delicious at the same time :confused: I'll be on it for sure when we're in Japan.

Thanks again!

There is great takoyaki stand at Sankaku Kouen (Triangle Park) in Ame-Mura. Looking at a map of Ame-mura, you can find the triangle shaped mini-"park" pretty easily.

Did someone say takoyaki:) I found the triangle park on Google Earth. What is the best way to get to Ame-mura from the Osaka Castle. It doesn't look too far...is it a long walk? or is there a subway that can get us there?

Hmmm. You ask a good question.

It really isn't THAT far...about a mile, give or take.

As far as I know, there is no direct line from Osaka Castle to Shinsaibashi or Namba (on the Midosuji Subway Line). If you take JR it would be two changes, which is a little over the top. I think you can take the Chuo line to Honmachi, then Honmachi is one stop from Shinsaibashi (you could even walk that, too).

there is , the station from Osaka Castle is "Osaka Business Park Station".

Take the Subway NagahoriTsurumi Line : Osaka Business Park Station -> Shinsaibashi

Aha! Good call, Samokan!

yeah but it will also depend which exit they go out to. if its in the Business park area, then the Nagohori is convenient but if its on the exit near NHK then its another subway ( forgot ) and walking towards the honmachi avenue would be faster and free :D

and if its on the other side, its just the JR Loop LIne there..

Thanks samokan, I appreciate the help!:)

When I lived in Japan I visited Osaka about once every 5 or 6 weeks, as it was the closest large city. My train went right into Namba station in the southern part of the city, and I would typically wander around the covered shopping area just outside Namba, and then head out to one or more of the following: American mura, Den Den town, Dotunburi, or take the subway to the shopping area around Osaka station in the north. Osaka castle really isn't one of the best castles Japan has to offer, but you could see that. The Osaka aquarium is nice if you like aquariums. For eating, there are tons of restaurants around Dotunburi, or you can go down to the basement level of Namba station which has a lot of restaurants. (My favorite place down there had huge tonkatsu for a very reasonable price... either pork or chicken. No idea if they are still there or not.)

I don't know what your full itinerary is like, but are you visiting many temples or traditional sites, or do you just prefer bigger cities? A trip to Nikko when you are in Tokyo might be a good idea, and in the Kansai area, Nara or Koya-san may be more interesting and memorable than Osaka, IMO.

Thanks samurai007 for your input, I appreciate it! The Namba Station looks to be a good starting point for wandering thru the streets of Ame-Mura, Den Den town etc. Okay, I'm also a fan of Tonkatsu dishes as well...thanks for the recommendation on that as well.

With respect to my itinerary, I will get in temples and traditional sites in Kyoto and Nara. I'll be seeing Hiroshima for the day as well as a visit to Miyajima Island.

You mentioned Koya-san, I never heard of this place. It looks interesting when I looked it up on google. Is it worth checking out? It looks pretty close to Nara. I think Nara would be a solid day trip from Kyoto, however If I could fit in Koyo san I would.

Cheers.

Koya-san is one of my favorite places in all of Japan. The cemetery is incredible, there's tons of temples, and you can stay overnight in a temple to experience temple life (eating the vegetarian cuisine the monks eat, etc) For this reason, if you are able to spend the night there to experience a temple stay, that's best. But even as a day trip it's nice.

You can get to it from either Nara or Osaka's Namba station. From Namba, take the Nankai-Koya line directly to Koya-san (which is the last stop on the train line, and the ticket price includes the tram ride to the top of the mountain.) From Nara, take the train line that heads for Wakayama and change trains in Hashimoto City, getting on the Nankai Koya line there. It's faster and easier to head out from Namba, but the scenery of the train ride is nicer from Nara. Note that the Nankai-Koya line is not a JR train, so you can't use your rail pass on it if you have one. However, the train from Nara to Hashimoto is a JR train, which will get you halfway there.

Here's some pictures I took of of Koyasan:








The bottom pictures are the temple I stayed at and a monk serving us dinner.

[quote=samurai007;822956]Koya-san is one of my favorite places in all of Japan. The cemetery is incredible, there's tons of temples, and you can stay overnight in a temple to experience temple life (eating the vegetarian cuisine the monks eat, etc) For this reason, if you are able to spend the night there to experience a temple stay, that's best. But even as a day trip it's nice.

You can get to it from either Nara or Osaka's Namba station. From Namba, take the Nankai-Koya line directly to Koya-san (which is the last stop on the train line, and the ticket price includes the tram ride to the top of the mountain.) From Nara, take the train line that heads for Wakayama and change trains in Hashimoto City, getting on the Nankai Koya line there. It's faster and easier to head out from Namba, but the scenery of the train ride is nicer from Nara. Note that the Nankai-Koya line is not a JR train, so you can't use your rail pass on it if you have one. However, the train from Nara to Hashimoto is a JR train, which will get you halfway there.

Here's some pictures I took of of Koyasan:


Thank you samurai007 for sharing your wonderful pictures of Koya-san, it really looks beautiful there!

Thanks for the info regarding the trains. I personally would like to visit Koyasan, however, I have to check with the rest of the family members if that would work for them. I wonder if seeing Koyasan is feasible in a day trip including Nara? I somehow think it wouldn't be enough time as we have to get back to Kyoto later in the evening, as we have rented out an apartment there.

[quote=atan64;822997]You might be able to do it if you really hurried, but IMO that's too much for 1 day. What you could do is see Nara, then travel on to Koya san, spend the night in a temple, look around town the next day, and head back to Kyoto that afternoon/evening. But that's a waste paying for both the place in Kyoto and temple lodgings.

You could spend 1 day seeing Nara, return to Kyoto, then next day travel to Koya san as a day trip and back to Kyoto that evening. That's a lot of extra time riding trains, though, so much so that it might not be worthwhile. I'd estimate Kyoto to Koya san is about 3 hours each way by train, perhaps a bit more because of the need to change trains.... so that's 6 hours of train travel in 1 day. That's a lot.

[quote=samurai007;823033]Yes I agree, I don't want to spend for extra lodging. Definitely would be better to make a separate day trip to Koya san. I still would love to go, it looks so awesome there!