Den Den Town

Sometimes known as Nihonbashi or Nipponbashi, Den Den Town, like Tokyo’s Akihabara, is Osaka’s electrical district with nearly all the area from Nansan Dori Street to Nihombashi being filled with electrical store after electrical store. There are hundreds of shops selling just about everything imaginable electronic. You can buy just about anything from small battery operated toys to the latest computerised products.

The area is also a popular place for hardware, furniture and antiques but the bustling area is mainly made up of electronic stores. They range from the small kiosks selling cd’s and mp3 players up to the larger department stores which sell cameras, air conditioners and other large ticket items.

The variety of items is amazing you can buy almost anything, there are Japanese electronic toilet seats, Electronic horse saddles which are all the rage for the fitness set – every apartment should have one. There are dozens of different types of electronic Hello Kitty and USB memory sticks in the shapes of plastic sushi and even a computer case which has a place for a goldfish.  But there are a huge assortment of quality electronic gadgets available. All you need is pockets full of cash.

Unlike most other stores in Japan it is not impolite to haggle a bit on price. Many of the larger stores will bargain a bit with prices. Usually you can expect a 10 -15% discount on the ticketed price.  Japan unlike most of Asia has most of their products tagged with the price so it is easy to see what to spend.  For foreigners who don’t speak Japanese a friendly ’Kansai Ben’ gets you started. With the use of your passport you can usually get a sales tax discount too…it’s all worth a try.

Another favorite for tourists in the area is visit the Osaka Hard Rock Cafe which is near the Namba Railway Station.

Den Den Town is easily reached with a few minutes walk from Nipponbashi Station which is on the Sakaisuji Subway line and only 5 minutes walk from the Namba station.