Best Townscapes around Kansai Spot List

A cobblestone road thick with the atmosphere of old Osaka

Popular with tourists, check out this shopping district and its old Japan feel

One of Kobe's busiest areas

A nationally designated Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings, overflowing with exotic appeal

A picture of life in Japan perfectly blended into nature

A town that developed near Ise Jingu Shrine

A street that feels like it’s from the Edo Period

A stone paved street where shops of long standing are lined up, full of Kyoto atmosphere

Kobe’s Chinatown has many famous specialties

Maiko hurry back and forth at night amongst establishments fit for heads of state

The main street of Gion features a machiya-style townscape on a cobblestone street

Southern Osaka's hippest place, where the all the trendy young people go

Every day's a festival at this shopping street

Midosuji takes its name from the Kita Mido Hall and the Minami Mido Hall, which are branch temples of Higashi Hongan-ji Temple and Nishi Hongan-ji Temple located by the roadside. As the face of Osaka, this grand boulevard runs through the city's heart and entertainment area and is lined with banks, trading company buildings, and hotels. Stretching 44 meters wide, the road extends four kilometers southwards from the front of Hankyu Department Store beside Osaka Station to Namba Station. The road is lined with four rows of gingko trees, whose leaves turn a beautiful yellow in autumn.

The Dotombori-gawa River slices right through the Minami district of Osaka, and it is from the river's Ebisubashi Bridge that you can view the famous Glico neon billboard up close. The riverside promenade called Tombori River Walk exudes a tasty atmosphere. Tombori River Cruise, in which you can enjoy the scenery of Dotombori from the river, is open for an only limited time.

Shaped like the fugure eight, this loop bridge connects Kinsei-dai (Venus Lookout) in Suwayama Park and the mountaintop observatory square called Venus Terrace. This winding bridge, thrusting out toward urban Kobe, offers you a magical night view right before your eyes. Lights of ships and planes arriving and taking off from Kobe Airport resemble shooting stars. The Futatabisan Driveway leading to Venus Bridge is closed to vehicles from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. (closed to two-wheel vehicles all day).