Recommendation for Osaka for Sept

Hi, my wife and I would be heading to Osaka between the 18th-24th of Sept. We have been to Kyoto before and we plan to head to Wakayama to see 'the' cat. Can someone guide us on the travelling and also any places of interest or routes to travel? We are travelling on JR railpass and would like to venture to Nagoya too. Not much into shopping but more into sightseeing and relaxing.

Mt. Koya
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/wakayama/koyasan...

3 Shrines of Kumano
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/wakayama/kumanoh...

Shirahama Onsen & Beach
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/wakayama/nankish...

The Holiest Shrine of Japan
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/mie/isejingu.htm...

This April my wife and I went to Japan and spent 5 wonderful days of our trip in the Kii Peninsula. After arriving at KIX we went straight to Wakayama City, worked our way down south along the west coast, stopping at Shirahama and Kushimoto. Then we went up north along the east coast, stopping at Katsuura, Nachi Falls, Shingu, Ise-shi, Futami and Toba. After those 5 days, we complete the loop by going back to Osaka via Nara and Yoshino.

When you say 'the cat', do you mean Tama, the station master cat. We read about him (or is it a she !?) and have seen cute photos of him with the station master hat on. But we didn't make the special 30 min journey to pay him a visit because we want more time in Shirahama.

Kii Peninsula is worth a visit, esp. when there aren't too many tourists to spoil its natural beauty. Do consider to spend a few days there. I'll be more than happy to elaborate more if you need further information.

Hi Ts and William, many thanks for your info. I am definitely interested to go to the Kii peninsula and visit Tama, I think your route will be ideal, can you give me the directions?

Can you be a bit more specific about what "directions" you would need.

We didn't buy JR railpass though we used JR to get from town to town in the Kii Peninsula. Buying individual tickets came out cheaper. Within each town we used the bus to get around. We did buy a 3500 yen Kintetsu Rail Pass (good for 5 days) for our latter half of the journey after we arrived in Ise-shi and used it to go to Toba, Nara, Yoshino and Osaka. The pass is also good for Nagoya, Kyoto and surrounding area.

This map will be helpfull to you
http://arts.monash.edu.au/japanese/culturetour/kansai-map.ph...

Thanks for the map! Seriously, we have no idea of all these great places and the map just comes in handy. We are keen to visit but since we have a language barrier, can you guys help me with directions like the bus, train routes, ie.taking JR to where and stopping where in which direction? Any hotspot not to be missed? We are really pathetic of our whereabouts but yet very excited to see something different. :)

If possible, can the route be base on JR railpass only? We will be landing in Kansai and staying near Osaka station which will be our base camp as we have booked a hotel for all 6 nights there though we will be heading Tokyo for 1 nite stay. Seeing Tama the cat is a must for my wife and we will probably want to head to 1 place or several at a time but returning to OSaka for the night. Tokyo will be in between any of the days and do you guys know about the directions to go to the tsujiki market as well? Many thanks in advance!!!

If you can only afford day-trips from Osaka, I think the most south you can reasonably reach in the Kii Peninsula is Shirahama for a day excursion before returning to Osaka at night. The one-way train journey is slightly more than 2 hrs. To check train schedules, use this site:
http://www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperWeb.cgi

To see Tama the station master cat, you have to take a private train from Wakayama City to Kishi Station. JR railpass is not valid on this rail line, you have to pay separately. The one-way journey is about 30 min.

Day-trip suggestions from Osaka: Hiroshima and Miyajima, Kurashiki and Okayama, Himeji and Kobe, Nara and Horju-ji, Koya-san (reached by private Nankai rail from Osaka Namba)

If you donft mind a longer train ride (more than 2 hrs. with a train transfer), you can also consider Amanohashidate. Weather permitting, scenery there is beautiful. You can take a short ferry ride and feed the sea gulls, then take cable car up mt. for view of the famous tree-filled inlet. The interesting part is that you have to bend over and view it between your legs to apprehend its gbridge of heavenh fame. Note that to take train to Amanohashidate, you have to pay a supplement as the last leg of the journey is run by a private rail line.

Another shorter but equally interesting side-trip from Osaka is the Momofukku Ando Instant Ramen Museum which is just 20 min by train from Osaka. Though geared more towards kids, my wife and I fully enjoyed the visit there, having fun and feeling young again among all those Japanese children and making our own cup of instant noodle to take home as a souvenir. On the same rail line, 30 min from Osaka is Takarazuka, home to the famous all female Takarazuka performing group and the Tezuka Osamu Manga Museum. Again this rail line is a private rail line, you canft use JR rail pass.

The nearest subway station for Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo is Tsukiji Shijo Station on Toei Oedo Line. Slightly further away is Tsukiji Station on Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line. To see the auction, you have to be there early, around 6.00 in the morning. Try not to get in the way and no flash photography. Because it's popular with tourists, I hear nowadays the auction area is off limit and you can only watch from a distance.

You do need to read carefully the section A-Z at the very top of this site.Lots of info you just have to know to make your trip interesting.
Don't worry about language problems. All the railway stations have signs in English. The computerized screens on the platforms on the main lines alternate between English and Japanese, giving the time,destination, of the next train, where the non-reserved cars are etc. Restaurants have menus with pictures and price, and many of them have realistic models of all their dishes in their window display by the door etc. Osaka city has lots of stuff to see. Department stores are huge and are very interesting as you have a chance to learn about the lives of the locals. These stores all have amazing food floors in their basement, the like of which you have never seen. They also have several restaurants on their top floor. There is also a floor where they sell kimonos and accessories. Yodobashi cameras and other big electronic stores are worth seeing for the amazing number of cameras on display but also for their appliances floor. Have you ever seen refrigerators with 3 to 5 compartments at different temperatures? microwave ovens that also bake, broil, steam cook? Kyoto is justly famous for its temples but all the friends I have taken there have spent their first 3 hours going around the JR Kyoto station as it is an incredible building. The Fushimi Inari shrine, 10 minutes by train from that station, will give you both a great shrine and a walk up an down a short but steep mountain under thousands of vermillion torii. Kobe has both an interesting port area and a mountain with walks in the nature.Nara, Himeji etc...so much to see and do.

Many thanks guys! I have done a little planning already and I need some feedback from you guys.Upon landing in Kansai, i will be heading to Osaka to check in on the 18th. Shinkansen to Nagoya then to Tokyo for the night on the 19th. My plan is to visit Tsujiki on the 20th morning and the nearest is Tsukiji Shijo Station on Toei Oedo Line (I won't miss the place right)? I will return to Osaka the very day and there my Osaka plan will begin. Can you tell me how to get to Amanohshidate and the Momofukku Ando Ramen Museum? On the 21st to Wakayama, am I right to take JR to Wakayama via Tennoji? Where can I transfer to Kishi station to see Tama? And Shirahama after that?

To go to the Momofuku Ando Ramen Museum, across the street from JR Osaka Station is private rail Hankyu Umeda station, go up one floor and take the Hankyu Takarazuka Line to Ikeda Station. Journey time is 20 min. and train fare is 260 yen. The museum is less than 10 min walk from the rail station. It's on the left-hand side of the station as the train approaches from Osaka direction. Admission is free but 300 yen for buying a cup noodle. Opening hr. is 10.00-16.00, note that itfs closed on Tuesdays.

For trains to Amanohshidate, Wakayama and Shirahama, you can look up the schedules and plan your rail journeys using the following site. Note that even with a JR railpass, you have to pay a supplement for the train to Amanohshidate.
http://www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperWeb.cgi

For the Wakayama Electric Railway from Wakayama city to Kishi ‹MŽu, the train ride is 30 min. to the last stop. Single ticket is 360 yen but itfs worth buying a day pass which is only 650 yen. To attract more passengers they have 2 gtheme-trainsh. One is a strawberry theme train painted inside-out with red strawberries, and the other is a toy theme train that has a lot of toy displays for kids.
http://www.wakayama-dentetsu.co.jp/index.html