The Surprising Truth About OSAKA Nobody Tells You 🇯🇵

The Surprising Truth About OSAKA Nobody Tells You 🇯🇵

Everyone raves about Kyoto and everyone wants to see Tokyo, but what about Asaka? Is it just a day trip filler or does Japan’s second city deserve a spot at the top of your travel list? Today, we’re cutting through the noise to tell you if Asaka is really worth it. For our time in Asaka, we stayed at the Namba Oriental Hotel. The hotel was undergoing renovations at the time we were staying there, so not all amenities were available. The room we stayed in was definitely in a need of a refresh, but it was comfortable enough and incredibly close to Dottenburi and Nambber station. That night we headed out to Dottenburi and it was super busy for a Sunday night. Even in the time since we visited in April 2023, a lot has changed in the area. Several of the small food vendors are now gone, but it was still good to wander around and enjoy the atmosphere. For our festival full day in Aaka, we headed to Universal Studios Japan. Originally, we were not going to go to USJ for this trip, but had heard that Donkey Kong Country may be opening mid- November, so we booked our park tickets. Unfortunately, it opened in December, so we missed it, and we could see the buildings when we went around the park. It was just teasing us. We got to try some of the limited time Christmas food, and that was amazing. Unlike last time, we decided to purchase the Universal Express Pass. Unlike Tokyo Disney Resort, where you can purchase fast passes for individual rides, USJ sells them in a pack of four, and it’s fairly rigid on what rides are in the fourack. So, we picked one of the Mario Kart themed ones. This came with timed entry to Super Nintendo World as well as other rides such as Jaws, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, and the Demon Slayer 4D experience. Unfortunately, with Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and Demon Slayer, unfortunately, Ben was too tall and broad for both rides. And whilst I could have gone on both rides by myself, it would have absolutely sucked for Ben to wait around for me. So, keep in mind if you’re going to USJ and are over 6 foot or have long legs or are quite broad in the shoulders, you are probably not going to be able to ride a lot of the rides. [Music] We then moved on to Asaka Castle and this was easily the highlight of the day. Asaka Castle was originally built in 1583, but was destroyed in 1615 by Tokugawa’s troops. It was rebuilt in 1931 and did sustain some damage during the World War II bombings. It was renovated again in 1997 and made more accessible by the installation of an elevator. It was wonderful to walk around the grounds and enjoy the atmosphere as the sun went down. On our way out, there was some illuminations that were going on in the castle’s grounds, which was pretty cool to see. For our second full day in Asaka, it was time to head to Uda. We got to Uda Sky Building just after it opened. If you are planning to visit the Yuma Sky Building, I highly recommend getting there early and trying to visit midweek as there wasn’t too many people there. And it was just nice to sit by the cafe and watch the world go by. We also made a detour to the Paul McCartney exhibition Eyes of the Storm, which is an exhibition of photos that he took during 1963 and 1964 at the height of Beetle Mania. We couldn’t film in the exhibition, but if you’re a Beetle fan and you find out it’s coming to an exhibition space near you, definitely check it out. We then made our way to Tanagi Station where I discovered I lost my speaker card, which I uh had only just put 9,000 yen on. definitely don’t recommend doing, but the station staff were incredibly helpful. I paid the fair and went and got another card. We then headed to Kirby Cafe Petite near Tonogji Station, which helped me feel a little bit better before heading to Shinsukai. We visited Shinsukai late in the afternoon and at this time of day, it was not as overwhelmed with people as Doten Bori can be. There is a lot of smaller restaurants, but a lot of these were closed on the day that we went. The closer you get to Suten Kaku Tower, the more you see chains like McDonald’s and Kurushi, so it begins to feel a little bit more gentrified. If you want to get a feel for Shinsukai before you head there, definitely check out our walking video, which I’ll link below in the pinned post. [Music] For our final morning in Asaka, we decided that before we headed to Kyoto, we would head to Daltton Buri one last time to see what it’s like during the early morning. There is not a lot of people around, but a lot of the signs are still running. So, if one of the reasons you’re going to do Buri or if it’s the main reason is the signage, go during the day, especially earlier in the day. [Music] You can tell that a lot of time and effort has gone into refreshing Osaka for Expo 2025, but some areas such as Donburi have lost some of their spark because of it. Osaka is still absolutely worth visiting if it’s your first time there or if you are returning after a number of years. I hope that this video has given you some inspiration for your trip to Osaka. If it has, let me know in the comments below. We have more Japan videos coming out, so make sure you subscribe to see them. And thanks for watching. [Music]

Everyone raves about Tokyo’s futurism and Kyoto’s traditions, but what about Osaka? We spent a few days exploring Japan’s vibrant “second city” to find out if it’s truly worth a spot on your Japan itinerary or if it’s just a day-trip filler.

Osaka is currently holding Osaka Expo 2025, but outside of the event, is it actually worth the time and money to travel to Osaka? We spent three days in Osaka in November 2024 and here is what we found has changed in the lead up to the Osaka Expo 2025.

TIMESTAMPS / WHAT’S IN THIS VIDEO:
0:00 – Is Osaka Worth Visiting?
0:19 – Namba Oriental Hotel Tour
0:37 – Dotonbori at Night (Glico Running Man)
0:58 – Universal Studios Japan (USJ)
1:22 – Super Nintendo World!
2:12 – Exploring Osaka Castle at Sunset
2:52 – Umeda Sky Building Views
3:26 – Paul McCartney Exhibition Detour
4:01 – Kirby Cafe!
4:09 – Exploring Shinsekai & Tsutenkaku Tower
4:47 – Dotonbori in the Morning
5:16 – Our Final Verdict on Osaka

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