Have Fun Nights and Days in Osaka
From the Pirates of Osaka Bay to the Giant Sea Monsters of Dotonbori
Osaka has it all: rollercoaster rides and relaxation by day and revelry by night. A trip to Japan's second city promises twenty-four hour entertainment.
Osaka Bay
By day Osaka Bay is a great place to head for. The whole area has a spacious and relaxed feel to it rarely found elsewhere in this crowded and bustling city. Dominated by an enormous colourful ferris wheel a large wooden decked precinct opens out from the Tempozan Harbour Village (for souvenirs and snacks) to the Osaka Aquarium, the Suntory Museum and an IMAX theatre with a twenty metre high screen. The aquarium is said to be the best in Japan and visitors work their way down fourteen very deep tanks recreating various aquatic environments. The alcohol and drinks manufacturer Suntory commissioned its eponymous museum at Osaka Bay but it’s really a gallery exhibiting twentieth century graphic art and well worth a look. If the aquarium isn’t enough a trip around the bay aboard a faux pirate ship sets off from the waterfront behind the ferris -wheel.
Shinsaibashi & Tenno-ji
In the south of Osaka Tenno-ji and Shinsaibashi near Namba offer a number of distractions by day. Walk down Dotonbori-dori parallel to a canal of the same name for a stimulating experience if only for a collection of giant automated sea creatures mounted on the shop fronts. Cross the canal at Ebisu Bashi and enter the Shinsaibashi area and the illusion continues into Amerika-mura where a giant Uncle Sam gazes down on the tourist crowds. This is also a great place to sample Osaka street food too especially tako-yaki, small wheat flour dumplings containing a chunk of octopus.
Just south of Namba, Tenno-ji continues the artifice with Spa World and the miniature amusement park at the Festival Gate centre, a slightly odd combination of shops, restaurants and roller-coasters. Spa World next door offers a retreat into a calmer world. This massive complex devotes entire floors to a dazzling array of Asian and European themed baths and saunas, massage and beauty therapies not to mention a leisure pool on the top floor.
For more serious thrill seekers, Universal Studios Japan to the West of the city offers the usual state-of-the-art rides and shows that people expect from this global brand.
Bars and Clubs
At night smaller bars and restaurants in Japan can seem intimidating and secretive while larger, more inviting venues like Izakayas are often above street level and hard to find. The latter are great places to start an evening with small cheap dishes and beers ordered from picture menus. Izakayas are found all over Osaka but for general atmosphere areas like Shinsaibashi, Dotonbori and Amerika-mura are best. Gaijin or foreigner bars also tend to be concentrated here, especially in Amerika-mura, including many western themed pubs like the Pig & Whistle and Irish Murphys. Clubs and some classier bars will demand a cover charge which usually includes a ‘free’ drink.
The area around Dotonbori-dori and Midosuji-dori is also Osaka’s red-light district and love hotel centre but these architecturally fascinating buildings can be seen all over the city.
Karaoke
Japanese nights out tend to be conducted in phases and one phase will inevitably be karaoke. Unlike Western karaoke bars, groups in Japan will hire a private room for several hours, or even all night. The rooms are comfortable, prices are very reasonable and food and drink can be ordered over an intercom system and is brought to the room.
