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| This is a passageway leading to Nankai-Namba Station. Be aware that underground passages in Japan can be quite complex for visitors. |
When you arrive at Kansai International Airport (symbol: KIX) and try to reach your destinations via trains, sometimes you need to make connections at Namba Station (see Fig. 2).
Namba Station is one of the main connection points (the other two are Umeda and Tennoji Stations). But, Namba Station actually means 4 different stations on Google map (see Fig. 3&4) :
- Namba Station (Subway): This station provides access to the Osaka Metro lines: Midosuji (see Fig. 4), Sennichimae, and Yotsubashi. These lines can take you to popular destinations like Osaka Station, Koreatown, Honmachi, and Nippombashi.
- JR-Namba Station: This smaller station has only four tracks and two platforms. It's located within the Osaka City Air Terminal (OCAT) building, and the entrance can be easy to miss. Thankfully, it's connected to the other stations by an underground pathway.
- Nankai-Namba Station: This station is operated by Nankai Railways and offers connections to Wakayama Prefecture and Kansai Airport (KIX).
- Osaka-Namba Station (or Kintetsu Namba Station): This station serves both Kintetsu Railways and Hanshin Railways, providing access to Nara, Nagoya, Kyoto, and Kobe.
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| Figure 2. Osakan trains operate on a network of private rail companies |
JR and Other Private Railways in Kansai Region
On Internet, Japan Rail Pass (JR Pass) is often recommended for traveling throughout Japan, which can be used on the railway, bus and ferry services that are provided by Japan Rail Group with few exceptions.
If you are traveling within Kansai region, however, most train services are provided by a myriad of private railway companies. See the caption of the Figure 2 for some of them.
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| Figure 3. Four different Namba Stations (top Namba Station is subway station & bottom Namba Station is Nankai-Namba Station) |
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| Figure 4. Four different Namba Stations (highlighted in green; Osaka Metro Route Map) |
Which Namba Station?
To search for train routes, Jorudan becomes a handy tool. However, most likely you will find the following stations (name pair used by Google/Jorudan):
- JR-Namba Station / JR-Namba
- Nankai-Namba Station / Nankai-Namba
- Osaka-Namba Station / Osaka-Namba
- Namba Station / Namba
References
- Kansai Thru Pass (Surutto Kansai)
- Jorudan - Transit Data Producer
- Japan Rail Pass
- Japan Rail Group
- How to enjoy Osaka
- KIX to Namba Station serviced by Nankai Limited Express Rapi:t
- KIX → Tengachaya → Shin-Imamiya → Namba
- Departure from KIX roughly every 30 mins
- Regular seat: 1130 yen (downloaded on 05/30/2016)
- How to purchase a ticket
- Living in: The world's safest cities
- Osaka, Amsterdam, Sydney, Singapore, Stockholm
- Best Things to do in Osaka - Overnight City Guide (video)
- Namba Station: Trains, transfers and getting around
- Midosuji Line M20 Namba Station
- Kintetsu Railways
- Osaka Area Route Map
- Japan Transit Planner (Jorudan)
- Osaka Metro Route Map (pdf)
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| Figure 5. Midosuji Line M20 Namba Station (M19: Shinsaibashi) |
