Osaka in Half a Day: Shitenno-ji Temple — Guide Yuki

Title: What's a Private Osaka Temple and Dotonbori Tour Like? A Licensed Guide's Report

Because this was a last-minute tour, I asked several times about where the guests wanted to go and sent plan ideas, but they were not fully satisfied, and so we arrived at the day itself. The guests seemed to love temples, so we went to Shitennoji Temple, which they enjoyed. Some of the guests bought candles for honoring ancestors and candles for family safety, as well as charms, and they were very devout. They also rang the bell to honor their ancestors. However, they did not enter the main temple buildings and only took photos from outside. Next we went to Dotonbori, as they wanted to visit a waterside area, and we looked at the canal and the cruise boats, deciding to come back again after dark. Since the guests liked temples and shrines, I also showed them Hozenji Yokocho. Some of the guests wanted to eat takoyaki or okonomiyaki, but opinions were divided, and in the end we moved on without eating anything. We headed to Nipponbashi to look for Pokemon cards and kendama, but moving around in the heat was difficult, so we tried to walk through the covered arcades as much as possible. We could not find anything in particular, so I called a taxi to move to a waterside area, choosing the Sakuranomiya area. However, since only 20 minutes of tour time remained, the guests went there on their own and we parted ways. Before the start, one of the guests stayed behind to do their own activity, another was delayed in setting out, and moving from the Hotel in Nishi-Umeda to Higashi-Umeda, which is convenient for reaching Shitennoji, took longer than expected. I regret that I was not able to plan an efficient route from the guests' Hotel in advance. They had also suggested from the beginning using taxis for getting around, but I could not think of any natural waterside spots that they wanted to visit, so I ended up searching online and telling the taxi driver the places that came up. From that point it felt as though a guide was no longer needed, so we parted ways, but I wondered whether it would have been better to stay with them until the end.

Click here for more details: Osaka Customized Half-Day Tour with Licensed Local Guide

Tour Report by Yuki

Hi! I’m an official English guide in Wakayama prefecture. I’m also a national guide as well. I’d like to expand my guide area to help tourists.
The town of Osaka offers a different atmosphere than Tokyo. I like both exciting Osaka and nature-filled Wakayama Prefecture.
If you stay in Osaka for 3 days, you can go to Koyasan for one day, or even for a day trip, so I recommend sightseeing at Koyasan.
If you are tired of the hustle and bustle of the big city, the nature of Koyasan will relax you.
I will introduce you to the unique culture, history and must-see sights.