Osaka Castle (Osaka-jō; 大阪城) is one of the city's most iconic sites, and while the building is not an original, it still looks impressive enough to draw huge crowds. To get the best from the experience, book ahead to avoid queues or explore the vast landscaped grounds where there's plenty of interest to history buffs.
Solid Foundations
Stepping into the landscaped precincts, you can’t fail to be awed by the massive scale and precision of the ishigaki stone walls that make up the moats, gates and battlements of Osaka-jō (大坂城). The beefiest stone slab is 11m wide, and many are inscribed with the crests of the 64 daimyō (feudal lords) tasked with the castle’s construction back in 1620.
Lightning Strikes
The white castle tenshu (main keep) is not a relic but a 1931 replica – lightning vaporized the former wood-and-plaster edifice centuries before. Inside you’ll find a thoroughly modern museum focusing on the life and times of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, the warlord who unified Japan and constructed the first castle here in 1583. Its observation deck gives you a vivid sense of the castle’s lordly standing over the Osaka plain.
Castle Grounds
Save time to wander the castle grounds, starting at Nishinomaru Garden with its two yagura (defensive turrets), which you can enter to see actual period interiors. One way to view the castle is aboard the Gozabune Boat (adult/child ¥1800/900; free with Osaka Amazing pass), which cruises the inner moat, leaving from the Gozabune Pier every half-hour. From the water, the stone walls rise up 34m – it’s like sailing through a canyon.
