The Jodo Buddhism temple built in 17th century is trimmed with a number of paper lanterns and is located in a relatively quiet neighborhood. The main hall was demolished during the World War II and only Konpira Fudo and Mizukake Fudo remain on the compound. Mizukake Fudo covered by moss is a popular statue at the temple and visitors come to this temple enjoy praying for fortunes as they pour some water over the statue. The Hozenji Alley (Hozenji Yokocho) lining out side of the temple is paved with stones and has old-style Japanese restaurants and bars on both sides. The alley has managed to preserve its traditional and friendly atmosphere that offers you appearance of old-time Osaka, Naniwa.
Address: Around 1-chome, Namba, Chuo-ku Access: 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Subway Midosuji Line 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Nankai Main Line
Named after Yasui Doton who constructed this canal from a river, Dotonbori was originally built for river transportation. Once there were many theaters like Broadway in New York, and restaurants and cafe were built to accommodate people coming to the theaters. Although some theaters have closed down, countless restaurants remaining in the area are traces of the old time. Today, numerous restaurants, stores, and entertainment facilities housed in buildings are crowdedly located at sides of the canal. When all the neon signs of those buildings begin to glitter and the lights are reflected on the surface of the Dotonbori at night, as you walk around, you will be able to see what makes this place one of the most popular symbols of Osaka.
Address: Dotonbori, Chuo-ku Access: 10 min. walk from Namba Station on Subway Midosuji Line 10 min. walk from Namba Station on Subway Sennichimae Line
This relatively new private museum is located near the Hozenji Temple in a quiet area in Minami. Kamigata Ukiyoe Museum is the first and only one museum in the world to present permanent exhibitions of Kamigata Ukiyoe, local woodblock prints. Kamigata is the classic name of the region including Osaka and Kyoto used during the Edo Period. The woodblock prints developed in this Kamigata area show some different features compared to the ones in Edo (Tokyo) area. Kamigata Ukiyoe seeks to captures reality and details of the objects and portraits the character. Most of the prints are portraits of Kabuki actors. The museum has a collection of some 50 items displayed regularly and also schedules seasonal exhibitions all year around to attract visitors.
Provided by Kamigata Ukiyoe Museum
Address: 12-7 Namba-Sennichimae Chuo-ku Tel: 06-6631-0884 Access: 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Subway Midosuji Line 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Kintetsu Osaka Line 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Nankai Main Line Open Hours: 11:00 - 19:00(Entrance closes at 18:30), Closed on Wednesdays Admission Fee: Adults 400 yen Students(High school and college students): 250 yen Children(Elementary school children and junior high school students): 120 yen
America Mura (American Village) was established during 1970s. As the American style fashion and culture began to catch on young people, the western part of Shinbashi with the Sankaku-koen (Triangle Park) located at the center was developed with stores owned by westerners. As the name implies, many shops in this area sell imported goods from "America" and other western countries; moreover, a miniature of the Statue of Liberty placed on top of a building can also be found in the district. With more than 3000 shops, you can find almost everything from something cheap such as small knickknacks, accessories, casual clothing, and secondhand items to something very expensive such as vintage clothes. This area is particularly a popular spot for younger generations, and many of funky and unique fashion trends are said to set in this area. On weekend, you can also come and enjoy some live music, street performances, and flea market.
Address: Shinsaibashi 1-chome (and 2-chome), Chuo-ku, Osaka City Access: Subway: Shinsaibashi Station on Midosuji or Nagahori-tsurumi-ryokuchi Line
The famous roofed shopping street located in Minami, Osaka was established during the Edo Period, over 300 years ago. By the mid-18th century, there had been an established shopping district in Shinsaibashi area and it played an important role in retail sales. By the Taisho and Meiji Period, Shinsaibashi area flourished along with Osaka's development was promoted and the place was recognized as a developed city in western part of Japan while Ginza was the one for the east. As "gin-bura" means strolling through Ginza, "shin-bura" means browsing around the Shinsaibashi area. Shinsaibashi-suji Shopping Street is running east of the Mido-suji Boulevard. On both side of 580 meters long roofed arcade, many amusement facilities stores are lined up and you can find all kinds of goods, including traditional costume, shoes, food, clothes, and others as you stroll through the street.
Address: 1 & 2-chome Shinsaibashi-suji, Chuo-ku, Osaka City Tel: 06-6211-1114 Access: Subway: Shinsaibashi Station on Midosuji Line and Nagahori-tsurumi-ryokuchi Line
Opened in 1984, the National Bunraku Theater of Japan was established to promote and preserve Japanese traditional arts and performances, especially Ningyo Joruri Bunraku - a sort of puppet play, but in much larger scale and the puppets are almost as big as life size. The essence of Edo style is weaved into the conventional and contemporary design of this theater, and one of the contemporary features, advanced technology is providing assistance to the performances on the stage. Other than the regular performances of Bunraku, the theater also presents other traditional arts and performances such as Kabuki, traditional music, and dances, which have strong association in Kamigata region. Historical materials related to Bunraku as well as other traditional arts are presented at the theater.
Provided by National Bunraku Theatre
Address: 1-12-10, Nipponbashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka City Tel: 06-6212-2531 Access: Subway: Nipponbashi Station on Sennichi-mae or Sakaisuji Line or Kintetsu Railway: Nipponbashi Station, a one-minute walk from Exit No. 7 Open Hours: 10:00-18:00 URL: http://www.ntj.jac.go.jp/english/index.html Note: https://www.ntj.jac.go.jp/goiken/mail.html
Ever since one naturalist took out literature from the Genroku period and described Osaka as the place for food during the late Edo period, Osaka has been known as a city of "Kuidaore," which literally means "ruining oneself by one's extravagance in food" and describes how much people in Osaka are enthusiastic about foods. Kuidaore can also be translated as "you eat till you drop" and used to imply how much delicious food Osaka can offer. In fact, there are various local specialties in Osaka and those can be enjoyed at a low price. Today, this Kuidaore culture still remains strong in Osaka as can be seen in many different kinds of foods offered at the countless restaurants lined up throughout the city.
Address: 1-8-25 Dotonbori, Chuo-ku, Osaka Tel: 06-6211-5300 Access: 5 mins walk from Namba Sta. on each Line
A long narrow alley adjoining the Tenryu-yama Hozenji Temple grew out of the street strolls on the temple compound. The alley, Hozenji Yokocho located in a district where many theaters are, flourished as a place for drink and food during Meiji and early Showa era. Stores on the alley, along with the main hall of the Hozenji shrine, were destroyed by air attacks during wartime; however, they were restored again as a place where people gather and hang out. Paved with stones and lined up with some 60 restaurants, bars, and pubs on both sides, the narrow alley preserves traditional and friendly atmosphere with its appearance being typical of Naniwa, old-time Osaka. Oda Sakunosuke wrote his famous novel "Meoto Zenzai" that takes place in this area, and there's an old restaurant serving Osaka's popular desert, zenzai (sweet red bean with rice cake). Hozenji Yokocho is a place where you can see, hear, feel, and taste the essence of Naniwa.
Address: 1-chome, Namba, Chuo-ku, Osaka Access: 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Subway Midosuji Line 5 min. walk from Namba Station on Nankai Main Line
Wahha Kamigata (Osaka Prefectural Museum of Kamigata Performing Arts)
Wahha Kamigata is one of a kind museum presenting Osaka's popular culture, "owarai" (comedy), including Rakugo (comic story telling) and Manzai (comic dialogue) developed as part of the Kamigata culture (the area around Kyoto and Osaka). Located in Nanba-sennichimae where Kamigata performing arts has strong association with, the museum is dedicated to promote and preserve such unique culture originated in Kamigata. The museum houses an exhibition hall displaying great collections of performing arts, the Wahha Hall providing a leading performance hall, a lesson room that can be used as a small theater, and the Kamigatatei that is a small theater equipped with conventional style. Enriching the video library and displays by collecting and saving materials related to Kamigata performing is a part of efforts made by the museum not only to preserve this unique culture is passed down the generations, but also to create new Kamigata performing arts appropriate for the generation.
Address: 12-7, Namba Sennichimae, Chuo-ku, Osaka Tel: 06-6631-0884 Access: 3 mins walk from Namba Sta. on Nankai Railway 5 mins walk from Namba Sta. on Kintetsu Railway 10 mins walk from Namba Sta. on JR 5 mins walk from Namba Sta. on Subway Open Hours: 10:00-21:30 hours vary by performance, closed on Wed. 2nd and 4th Mon.
More Namba sightseeing spots are coming soon!! OCAT(Osaka City Air Terminal), Namba Grand Kagetsu, Shin Kabukiza