Free photo
incorrect for machine.
If you wish to use a photo, please press [please apply request to email] and complete the application form.
Osaka
Fumin no Mori Hori-goenchi (Prefecture Nature Center, Kisenwaiwai-mura)
Location:
Sennan City, Osaka Prefecture
The Nature Center is a wood-built, apex-roof lodging facility, located within the Kongo-Ikoma-Kisen Quasi-National Park. The facility offers experience of life in the country and farming activities in earlier days, with wood-burning kitchen stoves, the living room fireplace, and the goemon-buro (a bath with a fire beneath ? the bather stands or sits on a wooden pallet in the bath), etc. Camping facilities are also available.
Fukujusan Jigen-ji Temple (Common name: Nozaki Kannon)
Location:
Daito City, Osaka Prefecture
Nozaki Kannon is said to date from the middle of the 8th century, when the Buddhist priest Gyoki carved and dedicated the main image, a statue of the divinity, Eleven-Face Kannon. The temple later fell into ruin. It is believed that during the 12th century a wealthy woman, Eguchi-no-kimi, restored the temple upon transfer to its present site, in gratitude for recovery from a long and difficult illness. The temple grounds are surrounded by lush green nature and offer a wonderful view. The temple divinity is said to give blessings or protection to women in such areas as matchmaking, problem-free childbirth, fertility, illnesses affecting women, and other ailments. People worship here also for recovery from illness, and for overall physical health. Shops selling souvenirs and mementos are located nearby. Spend a leisurely time and recharge your spirit in a place thought to be filled with mystical energy.
Ishikiri Tsurugiya-jinja Shrine
Location:
Higashiosaka City, Osaka Prefecture
Ishikiri Tsurugiya-jinja is located in the east of the Osaka Plain at the base of Mt. Ikoma. Commonly known as Ishikiri-san (Cutting Through Stone-san), the shrine has long been said to give blessings in recovery from illness. There is a steady flow of worshippers undertaking a “100 times worship.” To prove their sincerity to the deities, they walk from the stone at the entrance to pray at the main hall for realization of their wishes, and back to the entrance, 100 times. The road leading up to the shrine is a shopping street with the nostalgic appeal of the mid-20th century. Businesses include long-established shops selling traditional herbal medicines, haberdasheries, general merchandise shops, Japanese-style confectioners, shops specializing in pickles, and much more.
Mt. Kongo is visited by many hikers ? beginners and experienced. From late spring into summer, the region is enveloped in the cool freshness of new green growth. In autumn, everything is tinted with vivid autumn colors, whereas winter is the time to see trees flowering with hoarfrost. Take the Mt. Kongo Ropeway for a graceful trip through the sky to the top, and a view of Osaka Bay. Katsuragi-jinja Shrine and Tenporin-ji Temple are located at the top. The mountain is known as a place where Buddhism and Shintoism overlap, and is visited by many worshippers and Shugendo priests.
This shrine was originally established for the guardian deity of the ancient and powerful Haji clan. Today the shrine is dedicated to three deities, one of whom is Sugawara-no-Michizane, a descendant of the Haji clan. The Treasure Hall holds many priceless cultural assets, including items that belonged to Sugawara-no-Michizane and are listed as National Treasures. The shrine is renowned also for its plum blossoms, and the plum tree grove attracts many worshippers and visitors when the trees flower, in February and March.
Tondabayashi City Agriculture Park, Savor Farm
Location:
Tondabayashi City, Osaka Prefecture
Savor Farm, spreading out over an extensive 20 hectares, is an agriculture park where visitors can experience and enjoy the yields of the earth throughout the year. Lovely flowers bloom all over the place in each of the four seasons, and carefully tended seasonal fruits and vegetables await your approval. Try fresh juice made from fruits picked early on that day, dine on seasonal vegetables, join a workshop for hands-on experience in various crafts, and enjoy harvest festivals and other events. Bring the entire family. There is much to do and enjoy.
Ikegami Sone Archeological Site (A National Historic Site)
Location:
Izumi City, Osaka Prefecture
Ikegami Sone is the site of a ring-moated village dated to the middle of the Yayoi period, about 2,000 years ago. Measuring 1.5 km from north to south, 0.6 km from east to west, and covering some 600,000 m2, Ikegami Sone is one of the largest archeological sites in the country. An area of about 110,000 m2 at the center of the village is listed as a National Historic Site. A large-scale building measuring 7 meters north-south and 20 meters east-west, a large dug well with a diameter of more than 2 meters, pit-dwellings and other features of the site have been reconstructed. The Yayoi Cultural Workshop, offering a glimpse of life in the Yayoi period, and Osaka Prefectural Museum of Yayoi Culture, which specializes in the Yayoi period, are located nearby.
Joruri is a type of dramatic narrative chanting, accompanied by shamisen, and usually associated with puppet theater. “No-se Joruri” is a regional performing art handed down here since the Edo period. The theater was built in 1993 primarily to support the joruri tradition. No-se Ningyo Joruri Rokkakuza, a theater group made up of local people, presents an annual performance of puppet joruri each June. Performing artists of diverse genres also give performances in the theater. The theater lobby screens video recordings and has a permanent exhibition. Please contact the theater beforehand if you wish to handle the puppets and have photographs taken.
Settsukyo ? Upper reaches of the Hokusetsu district
Location:
Takatsuki City, Osaka Prefecture
Each spring, some 3,000 cherry trees present a magnificent panorama of cherry blossoms. Summer offers fireflies and the chance to dip your toes in cool, clear streams, while autumn is a mellowing season with vivid autumn foliage. Walk along the hiking paths and enjoy the unique features of each of the four seasons. The Settsukyo area is also renowned for its hot springs. There are spa hotels, and spa facilities for day trippers, offering opportunities for thorough enjoyment of natural hot springs.
Expo ’70 Commemorative Park
Location:
Suita City, Osaka Prefecture
The site of the 1970 World Exposition in Japan (Osaka Expo) is now one of Osaka’s best known parks. After the Expo, it was redeveloped as “a cultural park set within nature,” with facilities for culture, sports, recreation and leisure. The Tower of the Sun (symbol of Expo ’70) and the Japanese-style garden have been retained as they were during the Expo. Today, visitors can enjoy flowers and plants all over the park, highlighting each of the four seasons, and diverse events presented throughout the year.
On the north side of JR Osaka Station, you'll find a new town made of four towers, called Grand Front Osaka. Amongst water and greenery, enjoy shopping at "Shops and Restaurants" featuring 266 stores; learn, play, and discover at the intellectual and creative spot, "Knowledge Capital"; enjoy world-class services at the Intercontinental Hotel Osaka, and more. In the middle of a huge city, take a deep breath of fresh air and enjoy a stroll in this facility.
Tsutenkaku is a symbol of the most Osaka-est of neighborhoods, Shinsekai, and it is well-loved by locals. This year Tsutenkaku celebrated its 100th anniversary. When you visit, don't forget to make a wish and touch the feet of its own lucky god, Billiken.
Shin Umeda City Floating Garden Viewing Platform
Location:
Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture
A viewing platform located 170m in the air. See the entire Osaka City area and out to Awaji Island. The underground shopping street features a food court with a retro streetscape called Takimi Koji.
Meiji no Mori Mino Quasi-National park
Location:
Minoh City, Osaka Prefecture
The valley starts with one of the most famous waterfalls in the country, Mino no Taki, and the area is beautiful in every season, with sights such as cherry blossoms and autumn leaves. The area also features Ryuanji and Katsuoji temples, with lots of things to see.
Hirakatajuku Kurawanka Goroku Market (Tsutsumi, Mitsuya, Okamoto, Hirakata City)
Location:
Hirakata City, Osaka Prefecture
The Hirakata-juku area was the 56th stop on the Tokaido Highway, as well as a connecting port for the Yodo River boat transport, making it a spot rich in history and culture. Every month, an open-air market is held in the Hirakata-juku area, where visitors can buy high quality handmade items such as accessories, pottery, and more from approximately 200 shops. Every month approximately 6000 shoppers visit the market. "Kurawanka" is a word that was used when selling food and drink to the boatmen travelling the Yodo River during the Edo period, making it a local phrase full of history.
Rinku Town, Ferris Wheel and Gate Tower Building
Location:
Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture
A landmark of Izumisano is the view of Rinku Town ferris wheel and Gate Tower Building together. In particular, Gate Tower Building is 256m tall, one of the tallest buildings in Japan, and the view of the Kansai area from this tower is a truly superb view.
The Koya Highway connects the old capital of Kyoto with the world heritage site Mt. Koya. Since ancient times, it has been lively with worshippers heading to and from Mt. Koya. From Kawachinagano Station to Mikkaichicho Station, important cultural properties Nagano Shrine, Eboshigata Hachiman Shrine, registered cultural properties Saijo Goshigaisha former shop, the Yagike house, and more can be found, in a streetscape rich with historical atmosphere. In recent years, the streets have been decorated by local citizens groups with things like "sugitama" cedar balls and lanterns, to welcome visitors to the Koya Highway.
Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture Mt. Inuaki
Location:
Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture
Just two stations from Kansai International Airport and 30 minutes by bus from Nankai Izumisano Station is the remote Mt. Inuaki. Part of the Kongo-Ikoma Kisen Quasi-National park, it is one of Japan's oldest sacred grounds, with abundant natural beauty. Inuakisan Shipporyuji Temple is a popular place for ordinary people, and women in particular, to try a Buddhist ascetic practice experience. At the foot of the mountain is Osaka Prefecture's only natural hot spring, Inuakisan Onsen, and Osaka's only brand-name pork, Inuaki-buta can be experienced at the accommodation facilities there, making it a recommended spot for both international and domestic travelers.
Abeno Harukas Building (1-1-43 Abenosuji, Abeno-ku, Osaka)
Location:
Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture
With 60 floors and a height of 300m, it has surpassed the twenty-year leader Yokohama's 296m Landmark Tower, as the tallest building in Japan. The floors include Osaka Marriott Miyako Hotel, offices, Abeno Harukas Art Museum, a rooftop garden, Kintetsu Department Store, Kintetsu Minami Osaka Line, Osaka Abenobashi Station. The Abeno Harukas Kintetsu Main Store Tower opened first on June 13, 2013, and the following spring, in March 2014, it held its grand opening. It will be a new Osaka landmark.
Osaka Prefecture Izumisano Fishing Port
Location:
Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture
This fishing port connects the fruits of the sea with the dining tables of the people. Look out to see the Kansai Airport Bridge, connecting Japan with the world. The airport is built with the newest technology to create a manmade island that is gentle on the environment, and the way it protects rich fish habitat is a shining example of this. The fishing port includes Osaka's original open-air market, the Izumisano Fisheries Cooperative Open-Air Fish Market, where visitors can buy seafood fresh from Senshu to eat, and also enjoy watching the fish auctions.
Danjiri Festival (September Festival, October Festival)
Location:
Kishiwada City, Osaka Prefecture
The Kishiwada Danjiri Festival has approximately 300 years of history, and over the three-days of this September festival from the trial runs to the official festival, 600,000 people come to watch the spectacle. The festival is held to pray for a good harvest, which is held in September and October, and all over the city 81 danjiri carts are pulled under self-management, self-restraint, and self-policing.
It is uncertain when and who built Kishiwada Castle, but it came into being during the Sengoku period (mid-16th century) and it was the residence of the Matsuuras, who governed the Senshu region. During the Edo period, Kishiwada Castle was used to protect south Osaka, and it played an important role in helping the Bakufu control the western part of the country. In front of the castle keep, is the Hachijin Garden, designed by leading garden designer Shigemori Mirei, and even today the castle is famous as a spot for a castle wedding.
Open-Air Museum Of Old Japanese Farm Houses, Hattori Ryokuchi Park
Location:
Toyonaka City, Osaka Prefecture
In the Open-Air Museum of Old Japanese Farm Houses see the nostalgic old Japanese way of life with representative farm houses from all parts of Japan that have been dismantled and reconstructed on the site. This was Japan's first outdoor museum. From Iwate Prefecture in the north, to Kagoshima Prefecture in the south, there are 11 farm houses collected on the site. All of the farm houses were originally built in the 17-19th centuries (the Edo period), and people were living in them until the late-1950s. Also on display are Kuribune boats from Amamioshima and San'in, and a windmill from Sakai. Hattori Ryokuchi Park is the location of the Open-Air Museum Of Old Japanese Farm Houses, which is a green tract of land 33 times the size of the Koshien baseball stadium, chosen as one of Japan's hundred best city parks, and Japan's hundred historical parks, and loved as a place of relaxation and refreshment.
Benten-shu Summer Fireworks Festival
Location:
Ibaraki City, Osaka Prefecture
This large-scale fireworks festival features approximately 3000 fireworks launched from 11 starmines located on the temple ground of Benten-shu Meio-ji Temple. The road leading up to the temple is lined with stalls, and approximately 80,000 visitors come to enjoy the fireworks and the festival. In particular, the final starmines fill the night sky with a gorgeous golden waterfall, as bright as broad daylight that dazzles the eyes of everyone watching. The special firework made in the shape of the religion's crest, the bellflower, is rare and special to see.
Kansai International Airport Framed Night View ＠ Star Gate Hotel
Location:
Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture
Head to Japan's number one Airport on the sea, and go to the 53rd floor sky chapel of the Star Gate Hotel to get the best view of Osaka Bay, a straight line glowing at night with warm orange lights to soothe the soul. The sky chapel provides a beautiful frame for this magical, picture-perfect view that can't be found elsewhere.
TOP