Osaka in One Day: Travel to Dotonbori by subway — Guide Nori

What's a 6-Hour Private Osaka Tour Like for Cruise Ship Passengers? A Licensed Guide's Report

This time the guests were a group visiting from Europe while sightseeing on a cruise ship. I handled the pre-tour discussions about the itinerary with one of the guests. At first, as many as eight desired locations had been listed, but I explained that "since this is a 6-hour course, four locations is the maximum," and I proposed "Osaka Castle ⇒ Dotonbori ⇒ Kuromon Market ⇒ Shitennoji Temple," which the guests agreed to.

On the day, the weather shifted from cloudy to clear blue skies, becoming just slightly hot, but in the afternoon a cool breeze blew, making for fairly pleasant conditions. Meeting the guests at Tempozan went smoothly, and after confirming the itinerary, we immediately set off by subway. The strength of this course is that the entire route can be covered in a short time using only the subway, and it is a course I often use myself (though the somewhat complicated transfers are its one drawback).

The first stop, "Osaka Castle," is always very crowded, making it difficult to tour the main keep, but it is an essential place for explaining the history of samurai rule. The guests were interested in samurai and listened attentively to my explanations. The second and third stops, "Dotonbori" and "Kuromon Market," served as sightseeing that also included lunch and a break. For lunch we had "Kamukura Ramen," known for its soup based on Japanese dashi. Everyone said it was "very delicious" and finished it completely. At Dotonbori, they came to understand how the flashy signboards express the humor of Osaka's people, and at "Kuromon Market" they got a real sense of the everyday food culture of Osaka. At the final stop, "Shitennoji Temple," they learned about the history of Osaka Buddhism at one of the oldest temples, said to be "the birthplace of welfare activities."

Even on the subway between stops, the conversation never lagged, and it became an enjoyable Osaka tour with a cheerful group.

Click here for more details: Osaka Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide

Tour Report by Nori

Hi, everyone! I’m Norifumi Kamon, a government registered guide interpreter. Please call me “Nori”, or “Kamon-san”.
Let me introdece myself. I was born on April 17th in 1952 in Miyazaki prefecture in Kyushu island. I used to be an English teacher of Osaka Prefectural high school. When I retired from a teacher ten years ago, I decided to get a professional guide license. I wanted to play a role of the bridge between Japanese people and the people from all over the world as a second life of mine. After two years efforts, I finally got the guide license. Since then, I have guided several handreds of foreign people mainly in Kyoto and Nara for about five years except Corona Pandemic period. Almost all the tourists were deeply impressed by the beauty of nature, traditoin, culture, and art of Japan. I can surely help you enjoy and be satisfied with the sightseeing in Japan. And I’m looking forward to seeing you soon.