Osaka Bay Area is a man-made waterfront islands and peninsulas which has recently developed into a place of large-scale facilities for shopping and entertainment.
The districts host a variety of tourist attractions, such as theme parks, museums and observatories which have become popular among young people in particular. Tempozan Harbor Village is one of the islands that offer pleasant shopping and entertainment facilities. The Chuo Subway Line conveniently connects Tempozan Harbor Village with central Osaka in less than 20 minutes. |
Osaka Aquarium, known as Kaiyukan in Japanese, is one of the largest public aquariums in the world. It’s pretty expensive and the wait outside can sometimes be long, especially on weekends or national holidays, but it’s certainly worth it.
Kaiyukan comprised of 27 tanks in 16 main exhibits with a 11,000 tons of water and 80,000 sea creatures of 580 kinds. The size of the tanks allow the aquarium to keep even the larger species of shark and manta rays. The habitats are from the Ring of Fire area of the Pacific Ocean. |
Tempozan Ferris Wheel with the height of 112.5 meters is no longer the largest in the world, but it still offers a unique view of the Osaka bay area and Kobe, and surrounding areas, such as Mount Ikoma to the east, Akashi Kaikyo Bridge to the west, Kansai International Airport to the south, and Rokko Mountains to the north.
The wheel has colored lights that provide a weather forecast for the next day. Orange lights indicate a sunny day, green lights a cloudy day and blue lights indicate rain. |
Tempozan Marketplace is located between the Aquarium and the Ferris Wheel. It consists of over 90 shops, restaurants, amusement facilities, and live concert halls.
Inside the Marketplace is a food theme park called Naniwa Kuishimbo Yokocho which is one of the places in Osaka where you can sample variety of native dishes and specialties, such as Takoyaki and Okonomiyaki, all set in a fun, old-style atmosphere. This could be the best place to eat in the Tempozan area, but it can get very crowded – try to go during off-peak hours. |
Sakishima is another nearby island which is home to Cosmo Tower one of the tallest building in Osaka - formerly known as Osaka World Trade Center Building.
The 55-story building rises 256 meters above the ground offering a spectacular observation deck on the top floor. It contains a museum, restaurants and shops on the top and lower floors, while offices and conference rooms occupy the many floors in between. A transparent elevator would take passengers from ground level to the top in just 80 seconds. |
Asia and Pacific Trade Center "ATC", located in the Cosmo Square area is both a business and a pleasure venue.
It is a world-class international trade complex filled with popular shopping and dining facilities. The site was designed to host business gatherings and events, and has large conference facilities for this purpose. It hosts live shows and cosplay events especially at weekends and is always full of couples and young people. |
Sakurajima Island's main attraction is Universal Studios Japan, one of four Universal Studios theme parks.
Universal Studios Japan’s attractions are arranged in ten areas of the park. It features rides and shows based on some of the most popular films like, Terminator, Shrek and Jurassic Park. There are also attractions that are not in the U.S. and are unique to Universal Studios Japan, such as Black Lake and Hogwarts Express Photo Op. The park also has shops offering unique souvenirs, as well as many restaurants and cafes. |
Right outside the park's gates is Universal Citywalk, a shopping mall with multiple official Universal hotels and plenty of restaurants and shops, including stores selling Universal Studios products and Osaka souvenirs.
The complex is filled with American chain restaurants and some local options. It’s pretty fun to walk around and the food is tasty even if it’s not particularly healthy. It’s not really worth making the trip out here if you’re not visiting the theme park next door. |
Osaka Bay Area AccessTempozan Harbor Village and Sakishima Island are connected to central Osaka by the Chuo Subway Line, which stops at Osakako Station "a 5 minutes’ walk from Tempozan Harbor Village", before terminating at Cosmosquare Station on Sakishima Island.
Stop by Tourist Information Center to pickup a guidebook. |
Osaka Bay Area - Minato-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Prefecture