Osaka Itinerary for weekend trip

I need your suggestion about my itinerary in osaka during my weekend trip.

D1 check in cross hotel
shopping around namba and shinsaibashi

D2 Himeji jo and Kobe
Umeda floating garden

D3 Check out
and go to Nara
Kaiyakan aquarium
Osaka jo( just take a photo outside)
shopping then pick up my luggage at cross hotel and go to KIX.

My flight back to BKK is around 00.30 am

Which pass should I buy: JR west rail pass vs Kansai thru pass? How about Kaiyakan pass? Which pass that I can use to go to KIX from my hotel( Cross hotel , namba)

or should I buy JR west rail pass for 1 day and D2 I buy Kansai thru pass ? Or just pay train ticket seperately on D2?

Thanks in advance for all your help.

The main advantage of the Kansai Thru Pass is that it can be used on Osaka subways. The disadvantage is that non-JR trains to Himeji ar slower than JR trains.

The main advantage of the JR West Pass is that you can take the faster JR trains to Himeji. The main disadvantage is that you cannot use any non-JR trains.

Either pass is likely to pay off.

Day 3 is very packed.

The round trip between Osaka and Himeji and JR Airport Express to KIX are more than 2000yen, thus JR West Pass for the 2days pays off, you can make it cheaper by taking Nankai Rapid train to KIX(890yen) though.

Day3 is doable, as I guess your plane departs at midnight of the Day4, right? You can make it if you start at 6 or 7am on Day3. But I think you should skip Osaka Castle.

Sorry. I can't agree with the secondary opinion.

1. Rapid trains for Nara of JR don't connect with Namba. （It departs from Osaka station and runs through the loop line. The loop line doesn’t connect with Namba. You must go to Shin-Imamiya for riding them).
Usually, to visit Nara from Namba people take Kintetsu, not JR.
Kaiyukan is not located near to JR station.

2. I suppose D3 may be hard to carry out the plan actually though it may be possible in calculation.
It takes about 40 minutes from Namba station to Nara station. If you visit three sites, Todaiji temple complex, Kasuga grand shrine and Kofukuji temple you need at least two or three hours.

Thanks for all informative advice.
I think I'll buy JR west rail pass for D2( Himeji trip)

and buy 1 day Kansai thru pass ( Nara and Kaiyukan then back to namba and go to KIX). Where to buy a 1 day Kansai thru pass?

Kansai Thru Pass is for 2 or 3 days, not for 1day.
http://www.surutto.com/conts/ticket/3dayeng/index.html#...

The problem is JR West Pass is better for Day2, while Kansai Thru Pass is better for Day3. Uji san might know how to manage it?

I checked the timetables and advise you to buy the 2days Kansai Thru Pass. Its disadvantage is you have to spend 1 more hour on the train on day2, but that's all.

It covers all the transportation expense for day2&3. It also makes the day3 easier and faster.(by taking Kintetsu Railway from Kintetsu Namba to Nara, Kintetsu-Hanshin direct service and subway from Nara to Kaiyukan)