My first trip to Japan (Osaka-Nagoya)

Hi,

I will planning go to Japan on May 2016 for the first time on 30 April arrive Osaka and depart from Nagoya on 8 May. please need someone to help me for the itinerary because I plan arrive Osaka on 30 April and will stay 1-2 nights to explore Osaka then go to Nagoya.

I really need details information about :
1. From the Osaka airport what should I do to go to Osaka, which hotel should I stay if possible near the train station. How much the cost for the transportation? and what I need to explore while I'm in Osaka for 1-2 days.

2. From Osaka to Nagoya : which transportation is the best? train? how much the cost and which train should I take?

Please kindly give me details information as I will be travelling alone am afraid because which I knew not much Japan people can speak English, is it correct?

Thanks,
Lola

Having a good explore of this site will answer a lot of your questions.

Things to do in Osaka and how to get around: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2157.html

You can get to Nagoya from Osaka either by shinkansen or express train. Hyperdia can help you work out the costs and times for both Osaka to Nagoya, and the airport to Osaka city: http://www.hyperdia.com/en/ (look at the total section above the train details to show you the full cost of travel)

Train signs, especially in big cities like Osaka and Nagoya are written in English as well as Japanese. Ticket machines have an english button you can press so you can buy tickets in english. Once you get the hang of it you'll see that it's quite easy to get around on the trains.

1.
First, do try to find the official page by yourself. Here is the answer:
http://www.kansai-airport.or.jp/en/access/index.html
You may try Google Maps with ease:
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Kansai airport/Osaka/
For hotels, read:
http://www.japan-guide.com/hotels/osaka.html
Or, access booking.com, enter Osaka, click show map in the lower left. Once you decide the hotel, refine Google Maps for that, such as
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Kansai airport/Swissotel Nankai Osaka/
Read this for transportation.
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357_kansai.html

2.
Repeat:
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Osaka/Nagoya/

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Kansai+airport/Osaka/
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Kansai+airport/Swissotel+Nankai+Osaka/

Dear all,

Thanks for your information really appreciated.

Lola

You might want to look into purchasing a Kintetsu Wide Area pass. This is a private train line that happens to have an express train that runs directly from Osaka-Namba Station to KintetsuNagoya Station. It also contains train transfers to Osaka (KIX) and Nagoya (Central Japan) airports.

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357_006.html

The cost is about the same as a one way limited express train from Osaka to Nagoya, and one airport transfer, so it is a fairly good value.

The pass is only good for five days, and the airport transfers can be used outside of the five day period when the Pass is active. If you are flying in and out of KIX, the pass would limit your stay in Nagoya to five days, but this might work for you. It would look something like this:

April 30th: Train transfer from KIX to Nanba(Nankei) station.
May 2nd: Activate Pass, and go to Nagoya.
May 6th: Return to Osaka (Last day of the pass)
May 8th: Train transfer from Namba(Nankei) to KIX to fly home.

If you look at the area that Kintetsu train service serves, you might find other places to go, such as Nara, Ise, Tobu, Kyoto, or Iga-Ueno.

This is probably not an "everywhere you want to go" pass, but it might save you some money. It can at least be used to get you to and from the airport, and to Nagoya. I would look into an Icoca IC card to suppliment this pass. If you are planning to go several places in one day, you might also look into a day pass.

I hope this helps.