Osaka 大阪府

The merchant capital of western Japan, built on canals and the rice trade, and still the city the country goes to eat in: takoyaki, okonomiyaki and kushikatsu belong to its streets. Osaka Castle, the boat processions of the Tenjin Matsuri in July and the bunraku puppet theatre carry the older city. South of it, in Sakai, lie the keyhole-shaped burial mounds of the fifth century, the largest tombs in Japan.

Osaka CastleThe keep rebuilt in 1931 with citizens’ donations, on the stone base of the Tokugawa castle

Seasonal calendar

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC

Cherry blossom 27 MAR – 15 APR

Autumn foliage 15 NOV – 05 DEC

Notable places

Notable place	Why
造幣局桜の通り抜け 09–15 APR · Nature · Cherry blossom Cherry blossom — Japan Mint cherry passage 造幣局桜の通り抜け Osaka For one week in April the Japan Mint opens the 560 m riverside path through its grounds: 331 trees of 140 varieties, most of them late double-flowered cherries that bloom after the rest of Osaka has finished. The custom dates from 1883. The week is set each winter; in 2026 it was 9–15 April. Dates 09–15 APR Where OsakaGoogle Maps Open One week in mid-April, dates announced in winter · free, online reservation required Survive Heavy. Free, but entry is by timed online reservation only, first come first served; in 2026 booking opened on 18 March at 9:00. Seven days a year: fix this date first and build the trip around it. Access Temmabashi Stn on the Keihan and Tanimachi lines, about 15 min on foot to the south gate. The path is one-way, south to north. Source Official site Cherry blossom page · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0 1 h · Open in Google Maps	For one week in April the Japan Mint opens the 560 m riverside path through its grounds: 331 trees of 140 varieties, most of them late double-flowered cherries that bloom after the rest of Osaka has finished. The custom dates from 1883. The week is set each winter; in 2026 it was 9–15 April.	Photo · Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0
箕面公園 15 NOV – 05 DEC · Nature · Autumn foliage Autumn foliage — Minoo Park 箕面公園 Osaka A 2.8 km paved path up a wooded gorge, from the Hankyu station to a 33 m waterfall, about 40 minutes each way and closed to all vehicles. The maples along the river colour from mid-November to early December, and the shops on the path sell momiji tempura, maple leaves fried in sweet batter. Dates 15 NOV – 05 DEC Where OsakaGoogle Maps Open Open at all hours, free Survive Heavy. No parking, and no cars, motorbikes or bicycles on the path. Weekends in late November are shoulder to shoulder by late morning: start before 9:00. Do not feed the wild monkeys. Holidays Labour Thanksgiving Day · long weekend: expect full trains and hotels Access Hankyu Minoo Stn, about 30 min from Osaka-Umeda with a change at Ishibashi; the park gate is 5 min on foot from the station. Heritage Place of Scenic Beauty · Mount Minoo, 1956 箕面山名勝 Source Official site Autumn foliage page · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits lumoplank · CC0 lumoplank · CC0 2–3 h · Open in Google Maps	A 2.8 km paved path up a wooded gorge, from the Hankyu station to a 33 m waterfall, about 40 minutes each way and closed to all vehicles. The maples along the river colour from mid-November to early December, and the shops on the path sell momiji tempura, maple leaves fried in sweet batter. Place of Scenic Beauty · Mount Minoo, 1956	Photo · lumoplank · CC0
大阪城公園 01 FEB – 10 MAR · Nature · Plum blossom Plum blossom — Osaka Castle Park 大阪城公園 Osaka Two windows inside one moat. The plum grove east of the inner moat has about 1,245 trees of 105 varieties, from wintersweet in January to the late Bungo plums in March, free and always open. Then Nishinomaru Garden, the lawn west of the keep, flowers with about 300 cherry trees under the castle tower, and stays open after dark in the blossom weeks. Normal first flowering in Osaka is 13 February for plum and 27 March for cherry, with full bloom on 4 April. Dates 01 FEB – 10 MAR Where OsakaGoogle Maps Open Plum grove always open, free · Nishinomaru Garden 9:00–17:00, to 16:30 November–February, closed Mondays, ¥200 Survive The plum grove is at its best from mid-February to early March. In the cherry weeks of 2026 Nishinomaru charged ¥350 and stayed open until 21:00, lit from 18:00: go at opening time for the lawn without the crowd. Holidays National Foundation Day, Emperor's Birthday · long weekend: expect full trains and hotels Access Osakajokoen Stn on the JR Loop Line or Tanimachi 4-chome on the metro, each 10 min on foot to Nishinomaru Garden; the plum grove is on the far, eastern side of the keep. Heritage Special Historic Site · 1953 大坂城跡特別史跡 Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 4 photos · credits Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Midori · Public domain Reginald Pentinio · CC BY 2.0 27 MAR – 10 APR · Nature · Cherry blossom Cherry blossom — Osaka Castle Park 大阪城公園 Osaka Two windows inside one moat. The plum grove east of the inner moat has about 1,245 trees of 105 varieties, from wintersweet in January to the late Bungo plums in March, free and always open. Then Nishinomaru Garden, the lawn west of the keep, flowers with about 300 cherry trees under the castle tower, and stays open after dark in the blossom weeks. Normal first flowering in Osaka is 13 February for plum and 27 March for cherry, with full bloom on 4 April. Dates 27 MAR – 10 APR Where OsakaGoogle Maps Open Plum grove always open, free · Nishinomaru Garden 9:00–17:00, to 16:30 November–February, closed Mondays, ¥200 Survive Heavy. The plum grove is at its best from mid-February to early March. In the cherry weeks of 2026 Nishinomaru charged ¥350 and stayed open until 21:00, lit from 18:00: go at opening time for the lawn without the crowd. Access Osakajokoen Stn on the JR Loop Line or Tanimachi 4-chome on the metro, each 10 min on foot to Nishinomaru Garden; the plum grove is on the far, eastern side of the keep. Heritage Special Historic Site · 1953 大坂城跡特別史跡 Source Official site Cherry blossom page · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 4 photos · credits Midori · Public domain Reginald Pentinio · CC BY 2.0 Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0 2 h · Open in Google Maps	Two windows inside one moat. The plum grove east of the inner moat has about 1,245 trees of 105 varieties, from wintersweet in January to the late Bungo plums in March, free and always open. Then Nishinomaru Garden, the lawn west of the keep, flowers with about 300 cherry trees under the castle tower, and stays open after dark in the blossom weeks. Normal first flowering in Osaka is 13 February for plum and 27 March for cherry, with full bloom on 4 April. Special Historic Site · 1953	Photo · Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0
住吉大社 25 SEP · Nature · Moon-viewing Moon-viewing — Sumiyoshi Taisha 住吉大社 Osaka On the night of the harvest moon the shrine holds its Kangetsu-sai on the Sorihashi, the steep arched bridge over its pond. From 18:00 priests chant the winning poems of a national contest in the old court manner, and then bugaku court dance and the Sumiyoshi-odori are performed on the bridge. In 2026 the harvest moon is on 25 September. Dates 25 SEP Where OsakaGoogle Maps Open Precinct open daily, free · Kangetsu-sai from 18:00 on the night of the harvest moon Survive Free and unreserved: come by 17:30 for a place with a view of the bridge. Access Sumiyoshitaisha Stn on the Nankai Main Line, 3 min on foot; the Hankai tram stops at the gate. Source Official site Moon-viewing page · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits chiron3636 · CC BY 2.0 そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 1–2 h · Open in Google Maps	On the night of the harvest moon the shrine holds its Kangetsu-sai on the Sorihashi, the steep arched bridge over its pond. From 18:00 priests chant the winning poems of a national contest in the old court manner, and then bugaku court dance and the Sumiyoshi-odori are performed on the bridge. In 2026 the harvest moon is on 25 September.	Photo · chiron3636 · CC BY 2.0

All places in Osaka

Events

Event	What it is
岸和田だんじり祭十月祭礼 In 16 days · 10–11 Oct Matsuri 10–11 Oct · Matsuri Kishiwada Danjiri Matsuri, October festival 岸和田だんじり祭十月祭礼 Hill-side districts of Kishiwada, Osaka Teams of several hundred pull a four-tonne carved wooden danjiri through the streets at a run and swing it round right-angle corners without slowing, the yarimawashi, with a carpenter dancing on the roof. The famous September festival by the castle is over for this year; in October the districts towards the hills hold theirs, with the same kind of float, the same corners and a thinner crowd. Dates 10–11 Oct Where Hill-side districts of Kishiwada, OsakaGoogle Maps Open Sat 10 Oct · Eve festival: floats run 6:00–22:00Sun 11 Oct · Main festival: floats run 7:00–22:00 Tickets Free. Stand well back from the outside of a corner: floats do run wide. A trial run is held on 4 October, 13:00–17:00. Pulling times differ by district. Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits Kounosu · CC BY-SA 3.0 Kounosu · CC BY-SA 3.0	Four-tonne wooden floats taken round street corners at a run	Photo · Kounosu · CC BY-SA 3.0
なにわ淀川花火大会 In 23 days · 17 Oct Fireworks 17 Oct · Fireworks Naniwa Yodogawa Fireworks なにわ淀川花火大会 Yodogawa riverbank, Juso, Osaka An hour of fireworks set to music over the Yodo river, launched between the Shin-Midosuji bridge and Route 2, within walking distance of Umeda. The 38th edition; an August event until 2024, it moved to October in 2025. More than 450,000 people line the banks in a usual year. Dates 17 Oct Where Yodogawa riverbank, Juso, OsakaGoogle Maps Open 19:00–20:00 Tickets The banks are free and fill from mid-afternoon. Paid seats are sold on the official site. Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits jetsun · CC BY-SA 3.0 inoue-hiro · CC BY-SA 3.0	Osaka’s big fireworks, an August event until 2024 and now held in October	Photo · jetsun · CC BY-SA 3.0
錦秋文楽公演 In 37 days · 31 Oct – 23 Nov Show 31 Oct – 23 Nov · Show Bunraku, autumn programme 錦秋文楽公演 National Bunraku Theatre, Nipponbashi, Osaka Bunraku was born in Osaka and this is its home stage: puppets worked by three men each, with a chanter and a shamisen player seated to the side. Three separately ticketed programmes a day. This autumn: Shinju Yoi Goshin, the last of Chikamatsu’s love-suicide plays, at 11:00; acts from Imoseyama Onna Teikin at 14:15; and Honcho Nijushiko, with its fox-fire scene, at 17:45. Dates 31 Oct – 23 Nov Where National Bunraku Theatre, Nipponbashi, OsakaGoogle Maps Open Programmes at 11:00, 14:15 and 17:45, each about two and a half to three hours · Closed 6 Nov and 16 Nov Tickets ¥6,500 per programme, students ¥4,600; all three for ¥18,000. Booking by phone and online opens on 8 October at 10:00. Surtitles are shown; the theatre does not say in which language. On sale from 8 Oct · in 14 daysBuy tickets Holidays Culture Day, Labour Thanksgiving Day · long weekend: expect full trains and hotels Heritage UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage · 2008 人形浄瑠璃文楽（ユネスコ無形文化遺産代表一覧表） Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits Ivan Fourie · CC BY 2.0 Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0	Puppet theatre on its home stage, three programmes a day	Photo · Ivan Fourie · CC BY 2.0
初春文楽公演 In 101 days · 3–24 Jan Show 3–24 Jan · Show Bunraku, New Year programme 初春文楽公演 National Bunraku Theatre, Nipponbashi, Osaka The New Year run on bunraku’s home stage in Osaka, three separately ticketed programmes a day. At 11:00 the dances Manzai and Sagi Musume with Ashiya Doman Ouchi Kagami, in which the fox Kuzunoha parts from her child; at 14:30 Igagoe Dochu Sugoroku, including the Numazu scene; at 18:45 Kuruwa Bunsho. Dates 3–24 Jan Where National Bunraku Theatre, Nipponbashi, OsakaGoogle Maps Open Programmes at 11:00, 14:30 and 18:45 · Closed 14 Jan Tickets Programmes 1 and 2 ¥6,700 each, students ¥4,700; programme 3 ¥5,500, students ¥3,900. Booking by phone and online opens on 8 December at 10:00. Surtitles are shown, and the theatre has an English information page. On sale from 8 Dec · in 75 daysBuy tickets Holidays Coming of Age Day · long weekend: expect full trains and hotels Heritage UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage · 2008 人形浄瑠璃文楽（ユネスコ無形文化遺産代表一覧表） Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits Gunther Hagleitner · CC BY 2.0 Mc681 · CC BY-SA 4.0	The New Year run of puppet theatre on its home stage	Photo · Gunther Hagleitner · CC BY 2.0
十日戎 In 107 days · 9–11 Jan Matsuri 9–11 Jan · Matsuri Toka Ebisu 十日戎 Imamiya Ebisu Shrine, Naniwa, Osaka The New Year rite of merchant Osaka: over three days about a million people come to the shrine of Ebisu, god of trade, for a fukuzasa, a bamboo branch given out free, and have the fuku-musume, shrine maidens chosen each year, hang paid charms on it. On the 10th the Hoekago procession of decorated palanquins brings geisha, kabuki actors and bunraku puppets to the shrine. Dates 9–11 Jan Where Imamiya Ebisu Shrine, Naniwa, OsakaGoogle Maps Open In 2026 branches were given out 7:00–1:00 on all three days, with the fuku-musume on duty 9:00–21:00Sun 10 Jan · Main day, with the Hoekago palanquin procession to the shrine Tickets Free to enter; you pay for the charms hung on the branch. The 10th is the most crowded day. Holidays Coming of Age Day · long weekend: expect full trains and hotels Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 3 photos · credits Mixtribe Photo · CC BY 2.0 Ogiyoshisan · CC BY-SA 3.0 Mixtribe Photo · CC BY 2.0	A million people come for a lucky bamboo branch for the year’s trade	Photo · Mixtribe Photo · CC BY 2.0
大相撲三月場所 In 171 days · 14–28 Mar Sport 14–28 Mar · Sport Grand Sumo — March Tournament 大相撲三月場所 Edion Arena Osaka, Namba, Osaka The only one of the six annual tournaments held in Kansai, in a compact arena a few minutes from Namba where even the upper seats are close to the ring. The stables lodge at temples and halls around the city for the month, so wrestlers are a common sight on the streets and trains. Dates 14–28 Mar Where Edion Arena Osaka, Namba, OsakaGoogle Maps Tickets The sale date is posted by the Japan Sumo Association; buy from the official seller. Buy tickets Holidays Vernal Equinox Day, Substitute holiday · long weekend: expect full trains and hotels Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 2 photos · credits Ogiyoshisan · CC BY-SA 3.0 KishujiRapid · CC BY-SA 4.0	The one tournament of the year in Kansai, in a compact arena in Namba	Photo · Ogiyoshisan · CC BY-SA 3.0
AnimeJapan 2027 In 184 days · 27–28 Mar Show 27–28 Mar · Show AnimeJapan 2027 AnimeJapan 2027 INTEX Osaka, Osaka The industry’s main annual fair: studio stands, stage events and the first announcements of the year’s series. It has been held in Tokyo since it began in 2014; the public days of 2027 are at INTEX Osaka, on the bay side of the city. Dates 27–28 Mar Where INTEX Osaka, OsakaGoogle Maps Tickets Ticket types and prices are not announced yet. Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos Photo credit Sakai Yayoi · CC0	Japan’s main anime fair, held in Osaka instead of Tokyo	Photo · Sakai Yayoi · CC0
天神祭 In 303 days · 24–25 Jul Matsuri 24–25 Jul · Matsuri Tenjin Matsuri 天神祭 Osaka Tenmangu and the Okawa river, Osaka The festival of Osaka Tenmangu, held on the same two dates every year and said to date from 951. On the 25th a land procession of about 3,000 people in court dress leaves the shrine in mid-afternoon, and from about 18:00 the deity boards a fleet of about a hundred boats on the Okawa, lit by bonfires, under votive fireworks. In 2027 both days fall at a weekend. Dates 24–25 Jul Where Osaka Tenmangu and the Okawa river, OsakaGoogle Maps Open Sat 24 Jul · Eve: the hoko-nagashi rite on the river and lion dancers through the districtSun 25 Jul · Land procession in mid-afternoon · boat procession from about 18:00 · votive fireworks after dark Tickets Free from the bridges and banks, which fill by late afternoon. Times for 2027 are not published yet. Source Official site · checked 2026-09-19 Photos 3 photos · credits Midori · CC BY-SA 3.0 Ogiyoshisan · CC BY-SA 3.0 Tomi Mäkitalo · CC BY-SA 3.0	A hundred boats on the river by firelight, then fireworks	Photo · Midori · CC BY-SA 3.0

All events in Osaka

Meibutsu & craft

Meibutsu & craft · Osaka

Sakai forged knives 堺打刃物

さかいうちはもの

Kitchen knives forged, ground and fitted by separate craftsmen, most of them single-bevel blades for professional cooks: the long yanagiba for sashimi, the heavy deba for fish. Sakai is said to make most of the knives used by Japanese professional chefs.
Meibutsu & craft · Osaka

Osaka Naniwa pewter 大阪浪華錫器

おおさかなにわすずき

Sake flasks, cups and tea caddies of tin, turned on a lathe and polished. Tin is said to soften the taste of water and sake, and it keeps tea leaves dry; the city has worked it since the Edo period.
Meibutsu & craft · Osaka

Sakai incense 堺線香

さかいせんこう

Stick incense kneaded from powdered aromatic woods and herbs, burned at home altars and temples. Sakai, the port where the aromatic woods arrived, is said to have made Japan’s first stick incense, in the late 16th century.
Meibutsu & craft · Osaka

Senshu towels 泉州タオル

せんしゅうタオル

Soft cotton towels from the south of the prefecture, bleached after weaving rather than before, so they soak up water from the very first use. Japan’s first towels were woven here, in Izumisano, in 1887.

Food

Food · Osaka

Takoyaki たこ焼き

たこやき

Balls of runny batter with a piece of octopus inside, turned with picks in a dimpled iron pan until crisp outside and molten inside, then topped with sauce, mayonnaise, green laver and bonito flakes. Many Osaka homes keep a takoyaki pan of their own.
Food · Osaka

Kitsune udon きつねうどん

Thick udon noodles in a pale, clear kelp stock, topped with a sheet of fried tofu simmered sweet. Kitsune means fox: the fox, messenger of Inari shrines, is said to love fried tofu.
Food · Osaka

Box sushi 箱寿司

はこずし

Fish, omelette and prawns pressed with rice in a wooden box and cut into neat squares, like a mosaic: the Osaka form of sushi.
Food · Osaka

Pufferfish hotpot てっちり

Pufferfish, fugu, simmered with vegetables and tofu and dipped in ponzu, usually after a plate of paper-thin raw fugu; the meal ends with rice cooked in the broth. The name comes from teppo, gun, Osaka slang for fugu: both can kill.
Food · Osaka

Water aubergine 水なす

みずなす

A round, thin-skinned aubergine so juicy that water drips when you squeeze it, eaten raw or lightly pickled in rice bran. It grows on the Senshu coast and is in season from May to August.

History through time

5th century
The Daisen tomb in Sakai, 486 metres long, is built with dozens of other keyhole mounds; the group became a World Heritage site in 2019.

645
The court moves to Naniwa after the Taika coup; the palace site lies beside today's Osaka Castle.

1583
Toyotomi Hideyoshi begins Osaka Castle on the site of the Ishiyama Hongan-ji; it falls to the Tokugawa in the summer siege of 1615.

1730
The shogunate licenses the Dojima Rice Exchange, where rice is traded for future delivery; the city is known as the nation's kitchen.

1970
Expo '70 in Suita draws 64 million visitors; the Tower of the Sun still stands in the park.

2025
A second world exposition is held on Yumeshima, a reclaimed island in Osaka Bay.

Osaka 大阪府

Seasonal calendar

Notable places

Japan Mint cherry passage

Minoo Park

Osaka Castle Park

Sumiyoshi Taisha

Events

Kishiwada Danjiri Matsuri, October festival

Naniwa Yodogawa Fireworks

Bunraku, autumn programme

Bunraku, New Year programme

Toka Ebisu

Grand Sumo — March Tournament

AnimeJapan 2027

Tenjin Matsuri

Meibutsu & craft

Food

History through time