Overview

The city of Osaka is located on the Japanese island of Honshu on Osaka Bay. It is known for its high quality Japanese and Asian cuisine and is popularly known as the Gourmet capital of Japan. Osaka is the capital of the Osaka Prefecture and was the commercial capital of Japan in the past. The name "Osaka" means a "large hill or slope," in Japanese.

Activities & Attractions

One of the main attractions in Osaka is its museums. The museum of Oriental Ceramics has over 2,000 different pieces of ceramics. It also displays a large Korean celadon pottery collection. The Modern Transportation Museum, the Osaka Museum of History, the Museum of Art and the Osaka Museum of Natural History are quite interesting places with detailed exhibits.

Several seasonal events are held every year in Osaka. New Years Day is a national holiday in Japan with most businesses and shops closed until January 4. During the eve, people visit the local Shinto shrine to pray for a happy and prosperous year and spend time with their families. Coming of Age Ceremony is celebrated in January to recognize and honor the youth reaching their 20s with inspiring speeches and remarks at the local town halls. April 29 to May 5 is known as the Golden Week of holidays, comprising a number of national holidays that are celebrated with colorful streamers and fireworks. The main festival of Osaka is the Tenjin Matsuri Festival, which is held annually near Temmabashi. Many booths are put up that serve a variety of food and drink. It begins at night and goes on for two days. After 8 pm on the second night, number of boats line up on the river for an amazing fireworks display. All the residents and tourists join the celebrations.

You can also visit the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan. This is the world's second largest aquarium tank that has a large variety of aquatic animals including whale sharks. Make sure you visit the Shin-Umeda City, which is an innovative structure that has a floating garden observatory 170 m from the ground. Tempozan harbor village ferris wheel, Tennoji Zoo, Universal Studios, and Umeda Joypolis Sega are other attractions in the city.

Lodging

Hotels and accommodations in Osaka are fairly expensive. Some of the hotels in Osaka are Hotel New Otani, Imperial Hotel, Hilton, and Cross Hotel. A large number of bed and breakfast hotels are also available in Osaka that are less expensive.

Transportation

Most of the domestic flights arrive and depart from the Itami Airport, which is the oldest airport of the city. Besides planes, trains are a convenient option to travel into nearby Osaka locations, with its perfect connectivity. You can hire taxis or rent cars to go sightseeing around the city. Use the subways to travel faster in Osaka.