Hotels in Namba or Umeda HotelBoth on main rail lines.
3Days
11Stops
3Meal tips
About £90-150 a day, mid-range, flights excludedBudget
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Three days in Japan's kitchen: Dotonbori's neon, Osaka Castle, takoyaki and okonomiyaki, and a day trip to Nara or Himeji. A Kansai travel pass or an ICOCA card makes trains simple.
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Where TripSora Editors stayed and what to book
Osaka food tour TourGuided tasting of street food.
Day by day
Dotonbori and Namba
10:00
Osaka Castle and park
A reconstructed 16th-century castle with a museum inside and a moat-ringed park.
View on map ↗💡 Go in the morning; the park is free.
13:00
Kuromon Market
A covered market with grilled seafood, wagyu skewers and fruit.
View on map ↗💡 Many stalls close by mid-afternoon.
16:00
19:00
Dotonbori at night
Neon signs, the Glico runner and street food such as takoyaki and okonomiyaki.
View on map ↗💡 Choose stalls with queues of locals.
🍽 Where to eat
dinnerOkonomiyakiJapanese · $$
🎟 Book ahead for day 1Tickets and tours: Osaka Castle and park 🏨 Find a hotel
Umeda and Tennoji
10:00
Umeda Sky Building
A twin-tower building with an open-air rooftop walk.
View on map ↗💡 Best at sunset.
12:30
15:00
Shinsekai and Tsutenkaku Tower
A retro district known for kushikatsu (deep-fried skewers).
View on map ↗💡 Do not double-dip in the shared sauce.
19:00
🍽 Where to eat
lunchKushikatsuJapanese · $
🎟 Book ahead for day 2Tickets and tours: Umeda Sky Building
Himeji or Nara day trip
09:00
Himeji Castle
Japan's best-preserved original castle, about 1 hour by shinkaisen from Shin-Osaka.
View on map ↗💡 Closed only on a few days a year.
14:00
17:00
🍽 Where to eat
lunchAnago (conger eel) riceJapanese · $$
🎟 Book ahead for day 3Tickets and tours: Himeji Castle
Good to know
✈️ Getting thereKansai Airport connects by Nankai or JR Haruka trains in about 40-50 minutes.
🚆 Getting aroundSubways and JR trains; use an ICOCA card.
💷 CurrencyJapanese yen (JPY). Carry cash.
🗣 LanguageJapanese. English signage is common on transport.
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Photos: Bruna Santos, Jaysee Chan, Salvador Chinchilla, Vinny Anugraha on Pexels.