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Kita-ku
Umeda and Osaka Station Area
Umeda is the business district of Osaka and has many tall buildings that are architecturally interesting. Yet despite all the concrete, the area around Umeda is remarkably pedestrian-friendly. Housing is primarily high-rise, and this is an urban environment more suitable for singles or couples who don’t have children. High-end serviced apartments are available in the newly completed Grand Front Osaka, which also houses the InterContinental hotel on the north side of Osaka Station.
Shopping is abundant in the newly renovated JR Osaka Station, which is full of restaurants, shops, department stores, movie theaters, and gardens on top of the north and south gate buildings.
Nishi-Ku
This metropolitan area of Osaka sits slightly to the West of Shinsaibashi and contains some neighborhoods that have become quite hip places to live in in the past ten years. Minami-Semba, Horie, and the Utsubo Park area are all cosmopolitan yet maintain a low-rise neighborhood feel. Nishi-Ku is the city life, and everything is accessible by subway. Those with young children might find it a hassle as getting around by car can be a nuisance and school options are better elsewhere.
Chuo-ku
Shinsaibashi
Chuo-ku stretches from the Osaka Castle Area in the north to the Namba area in the South and encompasses Shinsaibashi, one of the city’s major nightlife districts. This area is busy and eclectic, offering an almost limitless array of dining options with every cuisine imaginable. However, the area can get a bit gritty in places (imagine a cross between LA and New York), and things tend to go late in this part of town – very late.
Namba
Located in the very center of Osaka, Namba is the entertainment and shopping hub of the city and a bustling area with a mixture of commercial and residential buildings which tend to be mostly low-rise and accessible. Namba has an exhilarating urban vibe with eclectic shops, bars, restaurants, and the neon lights of a thriving nightlife. Namba can be a fun place to live. Like many areas of downtown Osaka, the lack of greenery may put some people off, and the accommodation is at city prices, and apartment sizes are small.
Tennoji-Ku
Roughly ten minutes by train away from Namba at the southern end of Osaka city, Tennoji is a vibrant and bustling cityscape packed with department stores and shopping complexes. The area boasts a park, an art museum, a rather cramped zoo, and the historic Shitenno-Ji Temple. The tallest building in Japan, the Abeno Harukas, is located here and contains the Marriott Hotel. The station area has Kintetsu, a high-end department store, and the Hoop shopping complex, which features GAP, Muji, and LOFT, a popular Japanese stationery and household-goods store.
North of Osaka
If you are looking to live in a more residential area, you might consider one of the three main bedroom communities situated in the hills to the north of Osaka. Senri, Suita, and Minoh are easy commutes into town and offer more greenery and space for families to live.
Senri City
Senri is about 25 minutes from Umeda Station via rail. You can find single-family dwellings and apartments in a greener, quieter environment.
Suita City
This small city was the site of the 1970 World EXPO, and The J-League soccer club Gamba Osaka plays at the EXPO Stadium, located on the site of the former World’s Fair. The Expo City in Suita is one of Japan’s largest multi-use complexes, featuring entertainment facilities and a large shopping mall.
Minoo City
Minoo, sometimes spelled as Minoh, is a relatively quiet part of Osaka Prefecture and the location of the highly regarded Osaka International School. It is also known for Meiji no Mori, one of Japan’s oldest national parks, which houses a large population of wild monkeys and has a picturesque waterfall.
