Kita, which means “north” in Japanese, refers to the northern part of central Osaka. It is well known for its vibrant and expansive shopping district. The area is packed with skyscrapers, shopping malls, major department stores, and a wide variety of restaurants, cafés, and entertainment venues. Kita is home to Japan’s first underground shopping mall, as well as Osaka Station—the largest terminal on the JR line network in Japan.
The district also features some of Osaka’s most striking architecture, including the cylindrical-shaped Maru Biru and the Umeda Sky Building. The Umeda Sky Building consists of two 40-storey towers connected by a sky bridge and dramatic escalators that cross a massive open atrium, leading to a floating garden 170 metres above the ground.
HEP Five is one of the newer shopping complexes in Kita and features one of Japan’s largest rooftop Ferris wheels, which is especially popular with young couples.
Osaka’s cultural hub lies at the edge of Kita on Nakanoshima, an island on the river that separates Kita from the central and southern parts of the city. Nakanoshima is home to several major institutions, including the Museum of Oriental Ceramics, the National Museum of Art, the Science Museum, and the Osaka Performing Arts Centre. Meanwhile, Osaka Castle (Osaka-jō) and the Osaka Museum of History are located just a few blocks east of the Kita district.
