Best things to do in Osaka this weekend

Known as the Temple of Winning Luck, Katsuoji is one of Osaka’s most revered temples, with a history stretching back 1,300 years. It’s also affectionately nicknamed the ‘Temple of the Winning Daruma’, as its sprawling grounds are strewn with countless figures of the lucky Japanese doll.

Katsuoji is best visited in autumn, when its lush surroundings turn vibrant shades of red and yellow, making it one of the top autumn leaves destinations in Osaka. Every weekend and public holiday in November, the temple remains open until 8.30pm (last entry 8pm), giving you the chance to enjoy the vibrant autumn colours illuminated after sundown.

The temple’s elegant buildings and structures are also lit up, shining just as brightly as the vivid red leaves. At the entrance, light displays transform the expansive pond into a mirror reflecting the surrounding scenery. It truly feels like an enchanted forest...

This touring exhibition celebrating the 25th anniversary of the One Piece TV anime is concluding in Osaka, following its run in Tokyo, Kumamoto, Mie and Fukuoka since August last year. With a focus on the Wano Country and Egghead arcs, it retraces the adventures of Luffy and his crew through visual exhibits, voice performances and large-scale installations.

Highlights include more than 400 hand-drawn animation frames showcasing the craftsmanship behind one of Japan’s most popular anime series, audio clips of voice actors performing iconic scenes, and exclusive footage of the Onigashima battle shown on a giant screen. The exhibition also features ‘appearances’ by Dr Vegapunk, the new Pacifista model Seraphim S-Snake, and the giant warriors Dorry and Brogy.

Arguably Osaka’s most iconic piece of architecture, Umeda Sky Building is celebrating the festive season with one of the city’s tallest Christmas trees. Standing at 25 metres, this isn’t your typical fir; it’s a high-tech creation equipped with LED mapping technology. Covered in 130,000 LEDs, it can change colours and display vivid scenes set to music – think of it as a storytelling musical tree.

Located at Wonder Square, the public plaza at the base of Umeda Sky Building, the tree will be unveiled with a lighting ceremony at 5.30pm on Friday November 14 and Saturday November 15. Once lit, it will host three themed shows throughout the festive period. Each runs for around six minutes and is repeated several times every evening between 6pm and 9.30pm.

From November 14–21, the lights are choreographed to the song ‘Silent’ by Japanese pop group Sekai no Owari, followed by rock trio Back Number’s ‘Christmas Song’ from November 22–30...

For parents looking to enjoy winter illuminations with kids in tow, Harvest Hill in Sakai City, Osaka prefecture, makes for a fun family outing. On selected days (mainly Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays) until February 23 2026, the sprawling agricultural park comes alive after dark with around a million lights spread across several themed zones.

The illuminations at Wonder Night Hill are designed to highlight the park’s diverse landscape and lush nature. As in previous years, the majestic 15-metre-tall Metasequoia trees will be illuminated, alongside a champagne-gold suspension bridge and hillside displays featuring glowing installations of the park’s beloved farm animals including cows, goats, sheep and capybaras.

Other highlights include wooden huts inspired by Christmas markets selling warm food and seasonal goods, a photogenic rainbow-coloured light tunnel, and a glowing blue forest where meteor-like lights cascade from above. Kids will love the Playground of Light, where they can step on a musical light-up piano, walk across sound-making light plates, and enjoy glowing seesaws.

One of the largest winter illuminations in Japan, this year’s Osaka Castle Illuminage is introducing new light installations while also upgrading some of the most popular exhibits from previous years. This annual after-dark event, held at Osaka Castle’s Nishinomaru Garden, is not your typical winter light-up. The grand showcase is inspired by Japanese history, specifically the country’s Sengoku (Warring States) period, which spanned from the mid-15th to the early 17th century.

This defining era is brought to life through millions of LEDs and an immersive soundscape, all set against the majestic backdrop of Osaka Castle. This year’s theme, ‘Toyotomi’s Dream – The Unification of the Realm’, centres on Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the eminent feudal lord who is regarded as one of Japan’s great unifiers. Six of his legendary samurai are depicted in luminous armour, their loyalty, courage and ambition expressed through vivid colours and light.

In the Osaka Landmark Series, iconic attractions such as Tsutenkaku Tower, Dotonbori, retro trams, temples and markets are recreated in vivid, three-dimensional light displays. The ever-popular takoyaki illuminations also return, now on a grander scale with enhanced lighting effects.

Another past festival favourite making a comeback is the Samurai Helmet Collection, which has evolved into full-body samurai armour.

Now in its 14th year, Namba’s signature winter illumination event has expanded to feature dazzling large-scale light displays and seasonal installations across the area’s key landmarks. These include the iconic Namba Parks and Namba Parks South, as well as Namba City, Namba SkyO, Namba Carnival Mall, Parks Street and Takashimaya Osaka. Every evening from 5pm to midnight, the bustling Osaka shopping district is transformed by around one million twinkling LEDs, creating a truly mesmerising winter atmosphere...

The National Museum of Art, Osaka’s regular Collection exhibitions offer a glimpse into the museum’s extensive holdings, which span primarily from the 19th to early 20th century. Collection 2, however, adds a special feature to complement the usual Collection Highlights.

Titled ‘The Imaginative Power of the 21st Century’, the special presentation reflects on the first 25 years of this century, exploring both our current state of affairs and the trajectory ahead. At the turn of the millennium, few could have predicted the sweeping changes that had come to completely transform our lives, values and perspectives. This exhibition examines our recent history through contemporary works created over the past quarter-century.

The Collection Highlights section is lighter in subject matter, showcasing some of the museum’s most iconic works alongside recent acquisitions. Notable new additions include pieces by Joseph Beuys, Takashi Murakami, Maureen Gallace and Maria Farrar.

Since Grand Front Osaka opened in 2013, its annual champagne gold illumination has become a signature year-end event in Umekita, the area north of Osaka Station where the sprawling multi-purpose complex calls home. This year, following the full opening of Grand Green Osaka and Umekita Green Place, and through a collaboration with JR West, the light-up has expanded significantly to cover a larger area.

The illumination now stretches from Osaka Station all the way to Umekita Green Place. The number of illuminated trees has increased from 93 to 140, while the number of LED lights has almost doubled – from 250,000 last year to an impressive 480,000. The result is an even more striking spectacle, with the lights enveloping the entire Umekita district in a warm, atmospheric winter glow.

This annual year-end celebration in Osaka covers a series of light-ups across the city. The Midosuji Illumination takes centre stage and has started earlier than usual this year to coincide with the recently concluded Osaka Expo. Another highlight is the Osaka Light Renaissance, held on the ‘museum island’ of Nakanoshima, showcasing striking site-specific projection mapping displays.

The 4km-long illuminations along the tree-lined Midosuji come aglow from 5pm until 1am. The entire stretch is divided into seven coloured zones, each highlighting a different aspect of the city. Notably, the Minami area has unveiled a new colour for the first time in five years.

Part of the Osaka Light Renaissance programme, the Osaka City Hall facade now serves as a canvas for 3D LED mapping (until December 31, 5pm–1am), with additional video projections running closer to Christmas (December 14–25).

Born in Osaka, Yasumasa Morimura is one of the most compelling Japanese artists of our time. A conceptual photographer, filmmaker and visual artist, Morimura is best known for appropriating iconic Western paintings and classic imagery from history and popular culture. He inserts himself into these works as a form of self-portraiture through expert use of props, costumes, make-up and digital manipulation.

Since the debut of Portrait (Van Gogh) in 1985, Morimura has produced self-portraits based on works by renowned artists such as Frida Kahlo, Diego Velázquez, Johannes Vermeer and many more. While often cheeky, witty and even humorous, his meticulous recreations of some of the art world’s most recognisable masterpieces not only challenge our relationship with the originals but also highlight Japan’s fascination with Western culture.

Marking the 40th anniversary of his career, Morimura has organised this retrospective exhibition to showcase one work from each year between 1985 and 2024. Here, you can also explore a chronological timeline of his artistic journey, view four of his personal favourite pieces, and discover previously unreleased works for the first time.

Every Sunday, the central boulevard of Tsurumi Ryokuchi Park hosts Seseragi Marche, a relaxed, family-friendly market surrounded by the greenery of one of Osaka’s most beloved urban parks. From 9am to 4pm, visitors can browse a rotating line-up of local vendors offering everything from fresh seasonal produce and handmade crafts to hot meals and sweet treats from colourful food trucks.

The stalls change weekly, so there’s always something new to discover. But expect to find anything from fragrant karaage, tacos and even pizza alongside crêpes and baked goods. When the weather is good, the atmosphere feels more like a picnic than a market: visitors spread out under the trees, dogs roaming along the paths, and live music or local community events often add to the charm. The market is the perfect complement to an easy Sunday in nature without leaving the city.

Founded in Osaka prefecture in 1996, POP Circus (whose acronym stands for ‘Pursuit of Pleasure’) is a renowned touring entertainment troupe specialising in world-class human acrobatics. Known for its high-energy, family-friendly performances, POP Circus’s latest show in Aramotokita features top-tier artists from over 10 countries performing jaw-dropping, and sometimes death-defying, stunts, including flying trapeze, aerial acrobatics, high-level juggling and African-style hand voltige.

This marks POP Circus’s first performance in Osaka prefecture in 12 years. The show runs until January 12 2026, in an air-conditioned tent set up in front of the Higashi-Osaka City Hall. Performances typically start at 10am, 1pm, 4pm and 7pm, though the number of shows varies by day, and some days (usually around mid-week) have no performances. Each performance lasts approximately 1 hour and 50 minutes, including a 15-minute interval.

One of the most prolific artists of our time, Yayoi Kusama has created a strikingly diverse body of work spanning painting, sculpture, performance art and fashion. Yet across all mediums, her art is consistently defined by themes of obsessive repetition and proliferation, expressions she has described as a form of ‘self-therapy’ born from her hallucinations.

What sets Kusama apart is her ability to continually reinvent these signature motifs in imaginative ways. Her work always feels fresh, even as it remains instantly recognisable. This thematic continuity is on display in the small but curated exhibition now showing at Espace Louis Vuitton Osaka until January 2026. Titled ‘Infinity – Selected Works From The Collection’, the showcase brings together pieces from her early career through to her most recent creations.

The clear highlight of the exhibition is the Infinity Room, which transforms her repetitive motifs into a physical, immersive experience. ‘Infinity Mirror Room – Phalli’s Field (or Floor Show)’ (1965/2013) is one of the earliest works in her widely celebrated ‘Infinity Mirror Room’ series. 

The 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts held in Paris was a landmark event in art history. It marked the launch of the Art Deco movement, one of the most influential design styles of the 20th century. For its centenary celebration in 2025, the Nakanoshima Museum of Art is hosting a special exhibition focused on the graphic art and design of the era, with a particular emphasis on its portrayal of women.

You can expect to see rare and exquisite Art Deco works from across Europe, especially France, including jewellery, perfume bottles, dresses and classic cars. The exhibition also features around 100 vintage posters that capture the glamorous image of the modern woman as envisioned a century ago. 

Osaka-born Koide Narashige (1887–1931) was a pioneering figure in Western-style Japanese painting, and this comprehensive exhibition at the Nakanoshima Museum of Art marks his first major retrospective in 25 years.

A graduate of the Tokyo University of the Arts, Narashige produced a prolific body of work in oil painting, focusing primarily on still lifes and female nudes. It was his portrayals of the female nude, however, that earned him lasting acclaim. 

The exhibition features key works from each period of Narashige’s oeuvre, tracing his contributions to early 20th-century Japanese art. You can also expect to see a selection of sketches, book designs, illustrations and writings that highlight his wide-ranging creative talents beyond painting.