Osaka is located in the center of Kinki region in the Midwest Japan covers the compact prefecture land area in Japan, but boasts of largest population and highest population density second only after the capital, Tokyo. Mountains surround three sides of the prefecture and the west faces the arc-shaped Osaka Bay. In the Osaka City the Osaka Castle with a five-layer donjon as its core, on a lawn park that stretches for about 60,000 square meters. During the cherry blossom season in the spring, this park is especially crowded with hanami (cherry blossom viewing) crowd. In contrast to Kita with Umeda as its core, Minami is an area with core cities Namba, a popular business, shopping place and Dotonbori with many restaurants on both sides of Dotonbori-gawa River.

 

The Shinkansen bullet train allows - among others - the Kyoto-Tokyo routes, Tokyo-Hiroshima route and since March 2015 Tokyo to Kanazawa.

 

JR trains: the former national railway company is now divided into regional entities, which each manage their own networks. If traveling in a single region, the Regional JR Pass is often the most economical alternative.

 

Private lines: they are extremely numerous in Japan and often offer a quality equivalent or better service than JR lines, often for a lower rate. Among the most prestigious are, for examples, the Hankyu train line that connects Kyoto and Osaka in just 45 minutes.

 

 

The world's largest tram network.

Bus and coach services.

A railway network.

A regional rail network.

Multiple taxi, hire car and other small commercial passenger vehicle services.

Public bike-hire system.