The last time we visited Osaka in 2018, we stayed at the Marriott Miyako in Tennoji. After considering various options in different neighbourhoods, I booked our room there for three reasons.
One, my Gold Elite status (then) would grant us complimentary access to their executive lounge, where we could grab breakfast, light dinners and the occasional night cap.
Two, the hotel was directly connected to Tennoji train station, with quick and direct access to Kansai International Airport (KIX) as well as the main Midosuji metro line.
And three, the amazing view.
All their rooms are located on the 38th to 57th floors of the Abeno Harukas skyscraper, and we were lucky enough to be assigned one on the 55th. It was the tallest building in Japan at that time, and was only recently overtaken by Azabudai Hills in Tokyo.
When I was checking prices for our recent trip, I was shocked to find that they were almost double of what we paid. Our travel dates were during the shoulder season, before sakuras were expected to bloom, but it seems post-Covid revenge travel to Japan continues to remain strong.
Even though the Japanese Yen has depreciated significantly since 2018, ¥50,000 per night was still too rich for my liking. Especially since I no longer have status at the hotel, and hence no more freebies.
So, I went hunting for a suitable replacement.
One thing I remembered from our stay in Tennoji was that we always had to start our day with a train ride. Although connectivity was good, it still wasn’t quite in the central core of Osaka.
This time, I decided to find a place in Namba, where many of the places we wanted to visit were just a short walk away. Ideally, the rooms would be larger than 30sqm but cost less than ¥30,000 per night.
Eventually, I chose the Fraser Residence Nankai Osaka, located right in the heart of Namba.
Room Rate
I booked the 40sqm One Bedroom Executive King, and the cost of our four night stay was ¥93,000 including tax. The average daily rate, without breakfast, came up to a surprisingly reasonable ¥23,250 nett.
If the price sounds too good to be true, given the large room size and central location of the hotel, it’s because I managed to book it using my Fraser World birthday voucher. It’s available for all levels of their program, even the starting Crystal tier.
Membership is free, and one valuable perk is 25% off the standard rate, which I managed to apply to this room. I had to contact the hotel directly via email, instead of booking via their website, but the extra step was worth it.
In fact, I had initially booked their lead-in 28sqm Studio online, but the generous birthday discount nudged me to cancel my earlier reservation, and upgrade to a more spacious room on a higher floor instead.
Location
Fraser Residence Nankai is just across the road from both Osaka Takashimaya and Namba Parks. Both malls are directly connected to the Nankai Namba train station, which itself is linked to Kansai International Airport (KIX).
Dotonbori is a 10 minute walk to the north and is mostly sheltered, except for a short road crossing from Fraser Residence to the station.
Kuromon Market is to the east and the famous Namba Yasaka Shrine to the west, both around 10 minutes by foot as well. Walking to Shinsekai is also possible, and is a 20 minute southward trek.
While nowhere as extensive as the Tokyo subway system, the Osaka Metro does a good job of connecting tourists to all the key tourist locations.
Namba is arguably the most important interchange station of the subway system, and is a key stop on the Midosuji (red), Sennichimae (pink) and Yotsubashi (blue) lines.
There are two main routes to reach Namba metro station from Fraser Residence. You can choose to walk through the extensive Namba Walks underground mall, or the overland Ebisubashisuji shotengai (or shopping street). We did both, and used the underground path when it rained.
Getting There
The easiest way to reach Fraser Residence from Kansai airport is to take the Rapi:t Limited Express train to Nankai Namba station (reserved seats for ¥1,450/adult). But it wasn’t immediately clear from Google Maps which exit to take once we reached.
I reached out to the hotel and they helpfully told me to exit via the 2nd floor Central ticket gate. They even sent me the detailed directions below, starting from the airport arrival hall. So, if you’re going there soon, you might want to save this on your mobile.
After exiting the station, their instructions said to look out for the McDonald’s across the road. You can’t miss it, and just down the road is another obvious landmark — Ippudo, which always seemed to be crowded.
The entrance to Fraser Residence is directly opposite Ippudo, and we were tempted to stop for ramen every time we stepped out.
All the staff manning the front desk were fluent in English, and the entire check-in process was smooth, quick and professional.
We were offered konbini vouchers worth ¥1,000 for agreeing to have our rooms cleaned only on alternate days. Towels would still be changed daily, and we could call the front desk anytime to have water and toiletries delivered.
After we got our keys, I noticed a cute little decoration sitting on the table. I found out that it was to commemorate the Hina Matsuri (Girls’ Day) holiday. Kawaii desu ne.
Living Room
The living room had a large sofa, coffee table and an Android smart TV. We found the coffee table a bit too large, and felt that a smaller one would have made the room feel more spacious.
I had brought along my Chromecast dongle to stream shows from my mobile, but unfortunately didn’t manage to get it to work throughout our entire trip.
The Android TV was therefore an unexpected bonus, and allowed us to watch several BWF badminton matches from YouTube that were geo-locked back home.
At one corner of the living room, just beside the window, was a decent-sized study table with a comfortable work chair. We didn’t get to use it much, which was a good thing because, you know, vacation.
The view from our 11th floor window was nothing fantastic, and nowhere comparable to the magnificent skyline from the 55th floor of Abeno Harukas.
Humidifier
What did impress me though, was the fact that the room came with a humidifier. And not just any random cheapo model, but a Sharp Plasmacluster with a large water tank.
Coming from a tropical country with 70% humidity on a normal day and 100% when it rains, I never understood the concept of a humidifier.
“You mean someone actually created an appliance for the sole purpose of adding more moisture to the air?” my incredulous brain would ask itself, incredulously.
It was a totally unfathomable idea; something that I could never wrap my head around. That is, until I started travelling to dry countries, and my skin started flaking and cracking.
Japan is one of those countries, and seeing a humidifier running when I first step into a hotel room never fails to make my day.
Coffee Machine
The other thing that made my day was finding a UCC drip coffee machine sitting on the study desk. More often that not, if there’s a coffee machine in a hotel room, it’s going to be a Nespresso.
Nothing wrong with a Nespresso machine, of course, and I’m quite happy with the one I have at home. But these days, we prefer filter coffee instead of espresso-based drinks, and a drip machine is closer to what we like.
I didn’t know that UCC made their own machines and pods, and had never seen one before. It was easy to use, with clear and comprehensive instructions provided in both Japanese and English. But more importantly, the coffee was good and made for an enjoyable start to our mornings.
Bedroom
The bedroom was separated from the living area by a sliding door, with a king-sized mattress one a wooden bedframe. The mattress was nice and firm, just how we like it, but the pillows were a tad too soft.
There were sufficient power points on the bedside table tops, an iron with accompanying ironing board, a sturdy safe, a large mirror and plenty of wardrobe space.
Like the TV outside, the one in the bedroom was also supposed to be powered by Android. But it was apparently locked into terrestrial TV mode, and I couldn’t find a way to cast anything from my mobile.
It’s a good thing that Japanese shows are generally quite entertaining. As we wound down at night on our bed, we still managed to be entertained despite the formidable language barrier.
Bathroom
If you’ve ever stayed at Japanese salaryman hotels, the bathroom at Fraser’s would no doubt look familiar.
It was the typical toilet/bath/shower combo module that’s installed in almost all space-constrained lodging in the country. Personally, I would have preferred a shower stall in-lieu of the bathtub.
The toilet bidet had all the standard functionality, and is something I look forward to whenever I visit Japan. Every time I return home from a trip, the delicious Japanese food is what I miss most. Coming in a close second is the bidet.
Surprisingly, tiny single-use toiletries were provided.
In this day and age, I would have assumed that they would have been replaced with larger refillable bottles, like most of the other hotels we’ve been to recently.
The brand was not familiar, but they smelled nice and did their job.
Washer/Dryer
Just outside the bathroom was a combo washer/dryer. As to be expected, the button labels were all in Japanese, but a scannable QR code was provided to obtain English instructions.
When we ended up using it a couple of days later, we only relied on the stickers that had been thoughtfully pasted at the right locations for: ① Power, ② Detergent and ③ Start. It was as simple as that.
A full load took about two to three hours, and The Wife especially liked how our clothes smelled after using the bottle of liquid detergent and softener provided.
I’m sure the thought of hunting down a bottle in Osaka and lugging it home must have crossed her mind. But if it had actually happened, I would have intercepted her and exercised my veto rights.
I also made repeated and pre-emptive mentions of the many bottles of sake I was planning to buy, and that we should be judicious in the use of our limited luggage capacity. It’s a universally accepted fact that sake is more important than detergent (right?).
As a concession, here’s a zoomed-in photo of the bottle for reference, so that she can find it easily at our local Donki in Singapore, or online on Shopee.
Kitchenette
A medium-sized fridge, microwave oven, induction cooktop and sink were packed into a compact space just after the entrance. Tucked into a corner was also a tiny dining table, complete with two chairs.
We weren’t planning to do any cooking during our stay, but the appliances, dishware and cutlery would come in handy if we ever had to reheat any takeaway food for a light in-room meal.
After washing up and settling down a while, we headed out to look for our very first dinner in Osaka.
The original plan was to have a steaming hot bowl of ramen in thick tonkotsu broth at the Ippudo opposite. It would have been a nice way to warm up our bellies in the cold winter weather.
But we already had a heavy Japanese kaiseki meal during our flight from Singapore, and decided to search for something lighter instead.
So we wandered around Namba Parks mall and explored the numerous restaurants inside. Nothing caught our eye, and we ended up buying back konbini food from the Family Mart just around the corner of Fraser’s.
Specifically, a kurobuta nikuman, some oden and the world-renowned Famichiki. Luckily, we had the kitchenette at our disposal and enjoyed a simple but satisfying dinner.
Final Thoughts
We fully enjoyed our stay in Osaka, and the Fraser Residence Nankai was a major contributing factor.
It was near to many of the places we wanted to visit, and in fact, allowed us to walk to many of them. For those that were further away, its proximity to Namba metro station meant that we were always just a short train ride away.
Food options were close by and plentiful, covering the gamut from simple eateries to fancy restaurants. There were so many things we wanted to try, but we were constrained by time and stomach capacity.
Having a spacious and homely environment to slowly start our days, and comfortably wind down our nights, made for a relaxing vacation in a bustling city.
Fraser Residence Nankai is not the cheapest accommodation in Namba, but its location, connectivity, facilities, size and price fit our needs almost perfectly.
From now on, whenever we find ourselves in Osaka, we know exactly where we’ll be staying.
Kansai Winter 2024
Gion to Ginkakuji via the Philosopher’s Path
The 5.7-kilometre walk was quite an achievement for us, and easily one of the longest we’ve ever completed while on vacation.
Elegant tofu kaiseki at Rengetsujaya in Higashiyama
Tofu may seem like a humble ingredient but centuries — no, millennia — of refinement in Kyoto has elevated it to a delicacy.
There’s no such thing as too much yuzu at Yuzugen Pontocho
Yuzu sake, yuzu daikon, yuzu kosho, yuzu gyoza, yuzu nabe, yuzu ramen. When you’re a yuzu addict, it’s never enough.
Relaxing day trip to Uji from Kyoto
Uji feels like the kind of place that’s best enjoyed on a slower pace, and that’s exactly what we did. Here are the places we visited during the six hours that we were there.
You can never have too much matcha in Uji
As they say in Japan: “When in Uji, drink matcha.” So we travelled to the mecca of matcha, to see if it was possible to overdose on the magical green powder.
The Wife walked into Ousu no Sato and almost didn’t make it out
I could tell that she was very pleased with her purchases, and I was pleased that she was pleased.
A peaceful stroll in the Byōdō-in temple grounds
There are two main reasons why tourists travel to Uji. The first is for matcha, and the second is to see the temple stamped on all Japanese ¥10 coins.
Heartwarming matcha soba by the old folks of Torikiku
The broth had a clear citrusy note of sudachi that shone through, plus something else that we couldn’t quite identify. Whatever it was, it made the dashi taste extra special.
Katsukura: Sometimes, all you need is some deep-fried pork
Whenever we find ourselves in Japan, our number one pick for crispy and juicy tonkatsu is invariably Katsukura from Kyoto.
Kawaii temari sushi for breakfast at OMO5 Kyoto Gion
Apparently, its petite size and easy-to-bite form factor makes it the ideal choice for geishas who don’t want to smudge their makeup.
Waking up to the smell of freshly-baked bread
The next morning, as dawn approached and sunlight started peeking through the blinds, we were awoken by an enticing and unmistakable scent.
OMO5 Kyoto Gion is great, but not so good on the knees
It’s right in the heart of the historic geisha district and offers a good combination of price, location and size. But if you have bad knees, stay clear of the Double Zashiki Tatami Room.
Catching the Kyo-train Garaku from Osaka to Kyoto
There are many ways to travel between the two cities by train, but the most beautiful and elegant one must surely be the Kyo-train Garaku rapid limited express.
Nihonshu bingo at Yamanaka Sake Ekimaru in Umeda
We were only halfway through our Japan trip, and I had already managed to move my progress bar from 36% to 53%. Crossing the halfway mark felt like a significant milestone.
The complete Club Level experience at Ritz Carlton Osaka
When travelling to a foreign land, hotels are usually just places to spend the night. But sometimes, they can be destinations in their own right.
Ritz Carlton Osaka: Camping out at the Club Lounge for all our meals
I had booked one night in a club level room, which included access to the legendary club lounge. And for the next 24 hours, all our meals were sorted.
Fancy champagne high tea at Ritz Carlton Osaka
Checking into a hotel is typically a mundane affair, except when you book a room with Club Lounge access at the Ritz Carlton in Osaka.
Sushi Sakaba Sashisu was so good, we had to go twice
Whenever hippos get hungry, they sneak off to the nearest izakaya and scarf down some nigiri sushi, together with copious amounts of sake.
The oishii asagohan at Yawaragi in Shinsaibashi
At night, Yawaragi is your typical salaryman izakaya. But at the break of dawn, it transforms into an atypical breakfast spot, famous for tamago dashimaki prepared à la minute.
Going down the gachapon rabbit hole at #C-pla+
I sumimasen-ed my way inside and found a sea of gachapon machines. Wall-to-wall and three storeys high, there must have been hundreds of them packed into that small space.
