Osaka Best And Brighest
OSAKA'S BEST AND BRIGHTEST BY PRIVATE VEHICLE
Osaka Castle and Dotonbori, but more local, less visited sights too.
Introduction: Authentic Osaka City Tours
Looking for a full-day Osaka private tour that covers top spots with a fun, knowledgeable and truly fluent English speaker? Do you want it to be by spacious, private vehicle and reasonably priced to boot? Well look no further! We show you the true Best and Brightest of Osaka including Dotonbori, Osaka Castle, Shin-sekai, a view from high above, and more! Plus, get some local insight with interesting commentary along the way and at some of our other recommended stops.All of this at your pace with your own personal driver/guide and high quality vehicle service. Even better, if you’ve got something specific in mind, we can change things up to suit your desire!
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Historic Landmarks
Osaka Castle stands tall as a beacon of Osaka history and a testament to the power the city held in generations long past, while the commercial areas we visit over the course of the day speak loudly to the great prosperity the city enjoys today.
Professional Guide
Real English, real skills, and great personalities. Our guides have the knowledge and expertise to provide you with interesting, fun, and memorable tours.
Fully Narrated Tour
Our tours never leave you to wonder about on your own. Your guide stays with you the whole time, unless, for example, you want a bit of time to roam a garden or have lunch on your own.
We Come to You
Our Osaka private car tour includes pick up at your lodging or port in Osaka, Kobe, or Kyoto (additional charges apply for pickups outside central Osaka).
Osaka Best and Brightest Tour
Take a sneak peak at some of the sights you'll experience on tour with us!
Tour Overview
The naysayers whom have always been a sayin’, “Why go to Osaka, when we are seeing TOKYO?”. Why see San Francisco when you will see New York? Why see Melbourne when you are seeing Sydney? Then there are those who feel wasting a moment by not being in Kyoto is nothing less than a sin. Well my friends, I am here to tell you that Osaka is AWESOME. That said, we love Tokyo and Kyoto too and are happy to provide you with great tours there too… but Osaka is our hometown and we just adore it. Despite it not being the Belle of the ball.
Your Osaka private car tour has been meticulously designed, but don’t let that stop you
The tour’s been designed to not merely show the Best and Brightest, but to do so with a nice balanced approach. We’ve got a famous castle, an often overlooked temple on spacious grounds (not like Kyoto in design or atmosphere), views and an extra large serving of Osaka style entertainment and shopping districts to lead you through. We also have flexibility. You want to see some of Osaka’s famous cutlery? You want to check out a garden? You want to compare our flagship Shinto shrine vs. our Buddhist temple? You just let us know.
Osaka’s famous for food for a reason
Denying you exposure to Osaka’s food culture would leave us feeling very guilty. We’re happy to take you to an Okonomiyaki place for lunch, or maybe you’d like something else? We don’t have a fixed restaurant to take you so finding something you want to eat will be something we will be happy to do. But it’s not just about eating: Over the course of the day we will show you one or two food markets and even the famous restaurant supply district, should you have the interest.
Easy as pie (or Okonomiyaki)
By now with items on your “Things to See” list neatly checked off -- and a few write-ins as well -- it will be just about time to drive you back to your lodging. You liked Osaka before the day started, but now you LOVE it. Naturally, this was our plan all along and if you’re thinking about taking your Osaka adventure up a couple notches, do be sure to check out our ever-popular night tour for a whole different side to the city (in completely different locations too).
Itinerary
No Osaka private car tour would be complete without its own walking tour of Osaka Castle included, arguably the most iconic spot of great historical significance in Osaka. We’ll traverse the grounds, all the while talking about the history, architecture and significance of the spot. Since the rebuilt interior of the castle is rather disappointing (due to some events in recent history), we recommend giving that a miss. Trust us. About 75 minutes.
No Osaka private car tour would be complete without a visit to the Castle, arguably the most iconic spot of great historical significance in Osaka. We’ll traverse the grounds, all the while talking about the history, architecture and significance of the spot. Since the rebuilt interior of the castle is rather disappointing (due to some events in recent history), we recommend giving that a miss. Trust us. About 75 minutes.
Osaka’s Shintennoji is said to be the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan. Though fires and wartime have brought intermittent waves of destruction, the important buildings have always been faithfully reconstructed as they looked over the nearly fifteen centuries of history. Both the buildings and open spaces are very deliberate, and the impact is invariably felt by all. Buddhism came to Osaka from Korea (who got it from China), so the design element differences from Kyoto are noteworthy. We spend 45-75 minutes here, depending on if we can go in the garden.
Come check out the tallest building in Osaka (tallest in Japan as a building excluding the Skytree in Tokyo, which is a tower). We won’t go to the top of this 300 meter building, but we’ll sneak in a view from the free floor that is already high enough. Then it’s down to levels B1 and B2 for a guided walk through the fanciness that is the Japanese department store food hall, where prepared foods, sweets and various meats and seafoods vie for your attention. About 45 minutes here.
Fun for all ages. In a slightly reality-independent way, this is a certifiable must-see while in Osaka. It started big in the 1920s and into the 1930s, then fell into hard times, back into good times, and hard times, and now solidly in good times. Games, a foodie fantasia, fashion (“fashion” being a very subjective term), and that general, unmistakable Osaka vibe. A visit to Shin-sekai is hard to forget. About 30 minutes walking around here.
We’ve got a little flexibility here, but we love showing people not only the internationally famous Kuromon Ichiba (seafood market with an emphasis on the ready-to-eat), but also some cool back streets, the kitchenware district, and then of course a walkabout in the Dotonbori area proper. 1 to 1.5 hours.
Historic and Cultural Landmarks
Osaka Castle stands tall as a beacon of Osaka history and a testament to the power the city held in generations long past, while the commercial areas we visit over the course of the day speak loudly to the great prosperity the city enjoys today. Seeing the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan is no slouch of an activity either.
Easy Access
Can’t be much easier than us picking you up at your lodging!
Know Before You Go
- Please come wearing comfortable shoes. It’s a car tour, but there is inevitably a fair bit of walking in the big city. For those who wish to avoid walking, please let us know and we will modify the itinerary to suit your requirements.
- We operate rain or shine, except in cases of typhoons deemed serious enough to shut down train service.
- Enjoy all the exciting stops described above and more on this private vehicle tour! The plan described is a model course, and there is the possibility for change based on our guests’ interests. Timing and external factors (such as traffic conditions) may force deviations from this model course.
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- All vehicle costs
- Food and drinks
- Admissions (which will range from zero to a few hundred yen or so, depending on if you change the plan)
- Osaka Pickup: Port or USJ pickups incur a 2,500 yen extra fee each way. Fees are for the whole group, not per person.
- Kyoto or Kobe pickups: All points in the city are included at the posted price.
- Extra fees may be levied if an itinerary change incurs significant cost for our guide or vehicle. We will work that out in advance with you.
- Extensions are available at 6,500 yen/hr. Please inquire.
Large Group Tours
Join us on the ultimate adventure! 🚐 Whether your squad is big or small, we’ve got the wheels to match. From a fleet of cars for large groups to a mini-bus for an epic journey, we’re here to turn your group tour into a memorable experience. Let’s make memories together and fill every seat. Book your group adventure now! 🌐✨
Our Tour Guides
We've got around a dozen guides at your service. Here we showcase a few of our most active ones.
Kevin
Shoji
Mardi
Dan
Levy
Suzie
Not profiled here are guides who speak Spanish (Kyoto, in addition to Dan in Osaka), French (Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo), and German (Kyoto and Tokyo).
Pickup Point
We'll pick you up in Osaka, Kyoto, or Kobe.