Osaka Castle & Dotonbori Lively One-Day Walking Tour
Description
In this tour, we offer you the most impressive and efficient itinerary so that you can make the best use of your stay in Osaka. Firstly you will experience the living history of the samurai warriors and the common people in Osaka by visiting museums and the castle. Secondly, you will explore Japan’s longest shopping street that is being loved by local people. Then you will visit and explore Dotonbori and find out why Osaka is called Japan’s food capital. Our guide will pick you up at your hotel in Osaka. Transportation and admission fees are all included and you don’t have to wait in a long queue at Osaka Castle on this tour.
Tour Options
Itinerary
The Osaka History Museum is located in front of Osaka Castle and is built on the site of an ancient palace. The 10th floor of this museum is a great spot to overlook Osaka Castle. Through the windows, you can command a panoramic view of the beautiful castle and get a good understanding of its huge size and the whole structure of the castle. In addition, the informative exhibits enable you to understand the origin and real history of Osaka deeply. In particular, the diorama of the ancient court and the busy merchants’ town are impressive.
Osaka Castle, built in the 17th century by the Tokugawa Shogunate, was a solid castle protected by double moats, tall stone walls, turrets, etc and originally was the home of the samurai leader of the Toyotomi family. The castle is now widely used by Osaka citizens as a park. After looking at the view from the observation deck of the main tower, you will learn about Osaka and Japan's history centered on samurai through the exhibits on each floor. At the facilities in MIRAIZA on the castle grounds, you can also experience ninja knife throwing!
Tenjinbashisuji Shopping Street is Japan’s longest one at 2.6 km containing 600 shops, and it is always bustling with a large number of local citizens. It's fun just looking around the shops, and as there are a lot of restaurants, we recommend you choose your favorite restaurant here for lunch.
The townscape of Osaka about 180 years ago is reproduced in full size, and you can actually walk in it. You will see, touch, and experience old time Japan, the structure of the houses, the products sold at that time, the utilities and the living habits of the common people. Why don’t you get a feel for the citizens’ life which is so different from the samurais?
Osaka's food culture has developed because of its people who are extremely fond of delicious things since ancient times, and Osaka has come to be called the Food Capital of Japan. In this market, many shops are lined up, and seafood such as crabs, pufferfish, sea urchin, meat such as Wagyu (Japanese beef) and Kobe beef and also various sweets are prepared at the stores. A large number of customers visit here to enjoy all kinds of food while strolling around. Try to find your very favorite food item, too!
Now Dotonbori is the most popular tourist attraction in Osaka. Originally, this area was loved by the locals as entertainment area with a row of theaters along the canal. Currently, restaurants with colorful billboards line both sides of the canal including, of course, shops selling takoyaki, the octopus balls that originated in Osaka, and famous ramen shops. Take a photo in front of the well-known Glico-man signboard and enjoy exploring the surroundings. If you are looking for souvenirs, Don Quiote is also nearby.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Reviews(18)
My tour guide was Chuji. This is a walking, guided tour that focuses on the history and also the most visited places in the city of Osaka. If you are going take this tour, be sure to wear comfy walking shoes and not boots like I did. Chuji was very knowledgeable about the city's local history, from the many years of the shogunate up to present time. Starting with the museums, they were a great introduction into life of the people as Japanese society evolved and changed over time. Great views of the city center from the museum and from Osaka Castle. We also went through the different markets and were able to sample some of food from stall vendors and restaurants. Great food choices. Great way to experience Dotonbori and many parts of the city on foot. Thanks for such a good tour despite having to stop and let my aching feet and legs take a rest! Good way to start your visit in Osaka!
Thank you very much for your thoughtful and detailed review. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed exploring Osaka with Chuji and that the tour gave you such a rich and memorable introduction to the city. We truly appreciate your kind words and hope to welcome you again in the future.
A great tour learning about the history of Osaka with a variety of places to visit. Our tour guide Tomoko was awesome. She was easy to understand and helped us with anything we needed or wanted to know and she was very well organised. She knew where the crowds would be and worked our itinerary to avoid them which was very much appreciated. Highly recommend this tour. Thanks for a great day out.
Thank you very much for your wonderful review. We’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed learning about Osaka’s history and appreciated Tomoko’s guiding and thoughtful planning. We truly appreciate your recommendation.
Our day tour of Osaka with Tomoko was wonderful! She is incredibly knowledgeable and personable, and built a good schedule for us seeing the highlights of the city. Would absolutely recommend her tour!
Thank you very much for your kind feedback about your day tour in Osaka with Tomoko. We're delighted to hear that you had a wonderful experience and that Tomoko’s knowledge and warm personality made the tour enjoyable. We truly appreciate your recommendation!
Tour guide was amazing. Professional and personable. She ensured that all the members of our party were happy with the tour. Effective and efficient. Couldn’t have been better.
We’re delighted to hear that you had a great time and that our guide made the experience enjoyable for everyone in your group. Your feedback means a lot to us, and we truly appreciate you taking the time to share it.
Our guide Noriko picked us up at our hotel lobby which eliminated the stress of finding the meeting spot. We then used the subway to get around Osaka which really gave us a feel for the city. The best part of this tour was the way our guide Noriko was able to make the day easier for us. For example, had we done this tour ourselves, we wouldn't have known to take the electric car into Osaka Castle or the best photo spots or had line bypass. The tour guide was thoughtful, efficient and knowledgeable. The itinerary for this tour is intense and a lot of Osaka is covered in one day.
Thank you so much for your kind review! We’re delighted to hear that Noriko made your day in Osaka smooth and enjoyable. We appreciate your feedback！
This experience was organized and well planned. The guide, Taka Sakai was great company, knowledgeable, and funny! My husband and I felt so comfortable around him. He allowed room to appreciate and sight see. Taka was positive and great conversationalist.
Thank you for leaving such a wonderful review! We're thrilled to know that you had a great time sightseeing in Osaka with Taka.
Yoko-san was very very nice as a tour guide. Showing many places that Osaka has to offer in a private setting made the tour very awesome. She was very knowledgable that added to my experience. Nothing but praise and thank you.
Thank you for your kind words and positive review! So wonderful to know that you had an informative and enjoyable day in Osaka with Yoko.
A wonderful tour. The guide met us right at the ship. We went to some very interesting places with public transportation. He arranged for everything and we walked right into all of the venues that we visited.
Thank you so much for taking the time to write a review! We’re delighted to know that you enjoyed your tour in Osaka and got to see some interesting places.
Ms. Mizuho is an excellent tour guide. Very knowledgeable about Japan & Osaka. Our family enjoyed the private tour. She went above & beyond expectations. She even made sure we found the souvenir we wanted & made sure we made it back to the right train station. She has inside knowledge where to have the best pictures, details about Osaka Castle that were very interesting. She is very professional & accommodating with our goals & interests for the tour. We highly recommend her & we can’t thank her enough for her tour guide service!
Your positive feedback has made our day! Thank you for your generous review. We are delighted that you enjoyed the tour and got lots of insights and information from your guide. Enjoy the rest of your stay in Japan!
We actually thought we were going on a vehicle tour so we were thrown off when we were told we were going on a walking tour but our guide mask was amazing friendly and informative.
Sorry to hear that you were expecting a car to take you on the tour! We'll try to make it clearer on Viator that public transportation is used. Happy to know that you were satisfied with your guide.
