Author's Note
Introducing Real Osaka
How to make the most of Real Osaka
Unforgettable scenes from my Osaka trip

PART 01 Osaka at a Glance
Osaka by the Numbers
Basic information about Japan at a glance
Osaka Weather and Clothing
Osaka festivals
Japanese public holidays
Osaka, meet each district
A Look Inside Osaka's Different Areas
Top 10 Must-See Spots
Top 10 SNS Hot Spots

Choose a course that suits your taste
Basic course 3 nights 4 days
3 nights and 4 days with children
3 nights and 4 days using the gas pass
Top 10 Must-Do Experiences for 4 Nights and 5 Days
2 nights and 3 days hot spot tour
One-day cherry blossom viewing course
One-day fall foliage viewing course
Top 10 Most Asked Questions
Enjoy smart travel using AI

PART 02 How to Travel Osaka in the Most Exciting Way
Osaka's four seasons
Osaka from the sky
Ferris wheel & cruise ship with a cool view
Osaka's representative experiences & activities
Jewel-like alleyways
Kansai cuisine that will delight your palate
Kansai sushi, with a variety of flavors and shapes
The world of ramen is as diverse as the number of shops.
Udon for texture vs. soba for flavor
A classic restaurant passed down through generations
A restaurant with a long line
Osaka Food Hall Collection
Indoor food stalls are a trend these days
A cafe that will make you addicted to its space and taste
Bread that tastes better than rice & desserts that will make your mouth happy
Japanese food menu
Best bars in Osaka
Japanese sake collection
Osaka-exclusive hot shopping items
Interior & Sundries Shopping
Everyone's favorite character shop
Don Quijote Best Items
Best Items at 100 Yen Shops
Best Drugstore Items
Best Supermarket Items
Best Items from Japan's Top 3 Convenience Stores

PART 03 Time to meet the real Osaka
Osaka Transportation Preview
Osaka's Major Stations Travelers Should Remember
The automatic transfer system is easy once you know it
Find the right transit pass for you
Key points for each transportation pass

Kita
A Umeda
B Tenjinbashi
C Nakanoshima & Honmachi
Northern Osaka
Minami
A Namba
B Shinsaibashi & Dotonbori
Osaka Castle
Tennoji
Southern Osaka
Bay Area

REAL GUIDE
ICOCA, a transportation card that lets you travel and shop all in one place
If you're looking for the most unique cafes in Osaka, head to Nakazakicho Cafe Street.
Tsuruhashi Market with Koreatown
Dotonbori's funny signs
Universal Studios Japan: Step into Hollywood Movies

REAL PLUS
Minoh Park & ​​Asahi Beer Suita Factory
302 Hoshinoburanko
304 Jinai-machi
329 Rinku Premium Outlets

PART 04
Time to experience the real Kansai

Kyoto
Getting from the airport to downtown Kyoto
Moving from Osaka to Kyoto
Getting around Kyoto City
Recommended Kyoto Courses
Key passes required for traveling to Kyoto
Kyoto by District
A Kiyomizu-dera
B temperature
C Ginkakuji
D Kinkakuji
E Arashiyama

Kobe
Getting from Osaka to Kobe City
Getting around Kobe City
Recommended 1-day Kobe itinerary
A Sannomiya
B Motomachi Shopping Street
C Harborland
D Himeji Castle

country
How to get there from Osaka
How to get there from Kyoto
Main usage pass
Recommended 1-day course in the country

REAL GUIDE
A must-do when visiting Kyoto! A must-do experience in Kyoto
A long-established store in Kyoto that has been around for generations
Kyoto Bread Pilgrimage Bakery
When you think of Kyoto, you think of coffee! Cafes & Roasteries
A shining travel destination with a night light-up
The best way to enjoy Arashiyama! Hozugawa River

REAL PLUS
Fushimi Inari Shrine
Ohara
Woozi
Arima Onsen
Horyuji Temple

PART 05 Preparing for a Fun and Exciting Trip
Essential Courses for Travel Preparation: Travel Preparation Calendar
Kansai International Airport, the starting point of your Osaka trip
Top 4 Ways to Get from the Airport to the City
Popular accommodation areas in Osaka
Important regional characteristics when choosing accommodation
Tips for buying cheap airline tickets
How to use the Internet while traveling?
Filling out a declaration form on board
Take full advantage of Japan's duty-free system
Information needed in case of emergency
Study in advance and go! Real Japanese travel conversation

INDEX

The truth is here! The most accurate and up-to-date information available.

Osaka has been dazzlingly transformed in preparation for the Osaka Expo 2025.
“Real Osaka” captured these changes most vividly through continuous on-site reporting and meticulous information gathering.
In "Real Osaka," you can experience all the "that place" you've seen on social media, including the Time Out Market, the first of its kind in Asia, which opened in 2025, the trendiest indoor food stalls & food halls, the latest interactive aquarium, a cafe street with a vintage feel, restaurants with the longest lines, and must-visit shops and shopping lists.


Whether you're a first-time visitor or a repeat visitor, "Real Osaka" is the answer!

There is no other guidebook as focused on Osaka as “Real Osaka.”
Osaka, Japan's second largest city and the center of Kansai, boasts a diverse and rich array of attractions, making it one of the most exciting cities in Japan.
Because it presents different scenery in each season and in each neighborhood you visit, it is a place where new charms suddenly appear no matter how many times you visit.
This book is divided into 10 districts, allowing you to fully experience Osaka's charms. It focuses on the sights, food, and shopping that truly reflect each district's unique character.
We also suggest must-see experiences at checkpoints in each area, and have also prepared a detailed walking course along the neighborhood.
This is a slim, lightweight, and practical guidebook filled with essential tips for travelers, including a day trip to the outskirts of Osaka.


Complete coverage of the Kansai region, including the surrounding areas that you won't want to miss.

For those who want to enjoy a more colorful trip, we also provide detailed information on the Kansai region outside of Osaka.
We'll guide you through the must-see destinations in the Kansai region, including Kyoto, the millennium-old capital and one of Japan's most quaint cities; Kobe, with its breathtaking nightscape of a new city and harbor; Nara, where deer frolic in front of one of the world's largest wooden buildings; Himeji Castle, considered Japan's finest castle; and Arima, a hot spring resort renowned for its health benefits.
We've carefully selected key attractions along with recommended courses, so you don't need to research them in advance. Just take the subway and follow along.
In particular, Kyoto is Japan's largest tourist destination, so it is introduced in greater detail, making it perfect for those who want to enjoy and compare the unique characteristics and atmosphere of Kansai's top two cities, along with Osaka.

The ultimate pleasure of traveling in Osaka: eating and drinking!

‘Experience a variety of tastes’ is also the part that the author, who is known as an ‘Osaka food expert’ and goes around recommending delicious restaurants to people in Osaka, puts the most effort into.
From must-visit Osaka restaurants and popular spots to the author's secret favorites, we introduce over 230 restaurants across Kansai.
Directly directed by the global media content group Time Out, Asia's first Time Out Market, various food halls where you can find the best restaurants in one place, and even indoor food stalls where you can drink as much as you want from the first to the third round by simply moving to a different seat, all of the hottest trends in Kansai cuisine are included.
Whether it's a restaurant famous for its delicious food and lines forming daily, a cafe with a great atmosphere that's perfect for Instagram, or an izakaya filled with Japanese sensibility, you can conquer it all with this book.

It couldn't be easier! A guidebook designed with the traveler in mind.

Osaka is the largest city in Kansai and can be a confusing travel destination for first-time visitors.
The trains operated by various companies centered around Osaka are notoriously complex and numerous, and transportation passes, in particular, offer benefits beyond transportation and free admission to major tourist attractions, so the cost of your trip can vary depending on how you use them.
To address these difficulties for travelers, "Real Osaka" is structured from a beginner's perspective and provides detailed explanations of the most efficient transportation methods.
In the transportation pass section, we focus on 'how to use the pass with the best value' by considering both transportation and tourism, so there is absolutely no need to search and use a calculator.


No more questions! Just follow along and you'll complete the optimal course.

"Real Osaka" is a travel guide that saves time and money, incorporating the author's expertise from consulting on thousands of travel courses in the travel community.
This course was created with consideration for general travel duration, travel group, popular tourist destinations, restaurants and shopping spots, optimal transportation and routes, and even departure times, so don't worry and follow along.
In addition, we have included a cherry blossom course to enjoy the spring and fall scenery, a fall foliage course, and a 1-day to 1-night 2-day course for Kyoto, Kobe, and Nara, making it perfect for those who want to extend their trip by an additional day or two from the recommended course.
For those who want to design a completely new course based on their preferences, we've even put together some tips for using AI more intelligently. You can refer to these tips and try out generative AI.