27 best things to do in and near Osaka this weekend: May 1–3

The Nakanoshima Festival is one of Osaka’s largest annual community festivals. Returning for its 53rd edition this year over Golden Week, the free-to-enter extravaganza takes over Nakanoshima Park with a bustling flea market plus lots of food stalls selling classic Japanese street eats like yakisoba and yakitori, as well as springtime festival staples like shaved ice and draft beer.

A variety of live performances will be held throughout the day, with the programme including music, dance numbers, street performances and daring sword fights. Also on the grounds is a handmade, hand-powered amusement park for kids, which features a variety of carnival games, a maze, a playground and even makeshift (but perfectly safe) rides cobbled together from plywood and metal.

The Nakanoshima Film Festival will be taking place concurrently as well, with indie movies screened twice daily for free...

Osaka’s annual Hawaii Festival is a vibrant three-day event celebrating the significant cultural ties between Hawaii and Japan. Held from May 2 to 4 in Namba, the free-to-enter festival draws large crowds every year. The programme includes live music and numerous hula dance performances by troupes from all over Japan taking place from 10am to 6pm daily. 

With beer and tasty festival food sold from food trucks and booths on site, you can enjoy some authentic Aloha spirit in what’s usually gorgeous Golden Week weather. Traditional Hawaiian clothing, beachwear, and accessories like iron-on patches, floral pins and flower crowns can be purchased at the festival’s small market...

After a two-year absence, Craft Gyoza Fes returns to Osaka Castle Park for Golden Week 2026, bringing together 17 vendors and more than 30 types of gyoza across five days at the open-air Sun Square (Taiyo no Hiroba).

Pan-fried, boiled, deep-fried, steamed, wrapped, souped, sauced and stacked with cheese – this year's line-up is organised around four categories intended to showcase just how far the humble dumpling can be pushed. 

‘Neo Gyoza’ leads with creative cross-cultural mashups: think salted butter truffle, duck peperoncino and green chilli clam soup. ‘Local Gyoza’ covers Japan's regional favourites, from bite-sized Hakata dumplings with Kurobuta pork and mentaiko cheese to Kyoto lemon gyoza with sparkling citrus jelly. 

‘Traditional Chinese’ brings hand-wrapped xiaolongbao and Hong Kong dim sum as well as shrimp dumplings in crab sauce. ‘Artisan Gyoza’ rounds things out while pushing the boat out a little further with Sichuan mapo deep-fried gyoza, 100-percent Kuroge wagyu beef gyoza, and ginger gyoza swimming in bonito and Hokkaido kombu broth...

Whether you’re a fan of bitter hops or malty sweetness, there’s sure to be a German beer for you at the Tenshiba Oktoberfest. Held at Tenshiba Park over 13 spring days – not October, but arguably as great a season for sud-sipping as any – the festival invites you to enjoy draft beers courtesy of six German breweries, plus classic German festival foods like bratwursts, currywursts and pretzels to match the beers.

Not a big sausage person? Worry not: steaks, pizza, platters of seafood and a variety of fried foods will also be served at the event, so you won’t go hungry. And with the World Wine Festival held concurrently at the same venue, even non-beer-drinkers have a reason to visit...

Held at the sprawling Flower Expo Memorial Park Tsurumi Ryokuchi in northeast Osaka City, Harapeko Circus has been a Golden Week staple since 2022. This year, the mega food festival promises over 50 vendors from popular Kansai restaurants, serving a wide variety of cuisines, from dim sum, gyoza and fried items such as shrimp tempura and fugu (blowfish) karaage to rice bowls and meaty dishes made with beef, chicken, lamb and the like, with no overlapping menu offerings.

Moreover, there’s a ramen zone featuring renowned local restaurants including Toyomen with its bonito soy sauce noodles, Umasou na Ramen-ya with its creamy soy ramen, and Kyoto’s Katajikenai with its shellfish broth ramen. Separately, a dessert section populated by food trucks will be set up conveniently between the food festival’s main site and the nearby Tsurumi-ryokuchi Station, perfect for picking up a sweet treat on your way out after a meal...

If you think you may be in need of some grill power to get you through Golden Week, the Meat Osaka 2026 has you covered. For eight days from April 29, Nagai Park becomes the city’s premier destination for meat lovers, with free admission and a line-up of vendors from across Japan.

After a two-year absence from Osaka, the event returns with an expanded line-up, offering a plethora of top-tier meat dishes from butchers, yakiniku specialists and innovative chefs who’ve developed exclusive menus for the festival. Expect premium wagyu sushi, rare-cut katsu (deep-fried cutlets), Korean-style grilled beef tongue, hearty menchi katsu (deep-fried ground meat patties) and more, served up by vendors from across Japan.

Confirmed participants include World Diner (Hokkaido black wagyu sushi and roast beef with truffle sauce), Tamagawa Butcher Shop (rare beef katsu and secret-blend menchi katsu), Korean BBQ specialist 4si (two styles of grilled tongue), and Ishigaki Island Kitauchi Ranch (premium cuts from its own cattle).

Admission is free and the event is cashless. Food and drinks can be purchased using meal tickets ...

Osaka’s Lohas Festa is a massive eco-friendly outdoor market held at Expo ’70 Park from late April and over Golden Week through early May. The event features a whopping 700 vendors peddling all sorts of handmade and upcycled items, such as pottery, children’s clothes, jewellery and accessories, including some fair-trade items. You can also look forward to gourmet food and fancy flower arrangements.

With an Eco-Recycling Corner set up on the premises, the event aims to be entirely zero-waste. Donate your used milk cartons to be made into toilet paper, and cooking oil, which will be turned into biodiesel fuel to power the generators used during future Lohas events. Used books, paper bags and winter clothes are also accepted at the donations stand. Visitors are encouraged to bring their own cutlery to the festival, and food vendors will offer only reusable tableware.

Admission to the festival costs ¥500...

By bringing together three Kansai-born, internationally renowned artists who each has a singular point of view on the world today, this group exhibition is bound to be a blockbuster hit.

Born in Osaka, Kenji Yanobe creates functional mechanical sculptures that carry underlying social commentary on modern survival. He is perhaps best known for his Ship’s Cat series, ‘catstronauts’ envisioned as guardian spirits to protect travellers. One of these beloved feline figures now permanently greets visitors at the entrance of the Nakanoshima Museum of Art, the host of this showcase.

Fellow Osaka artist Yasumasa Morimura is a master of disguise. A conceptual photographer, filmmaker and visual artist, Morimura is renowned for appropriating iconic Western paintings and historical images. He inserts himself into these works as a form of self-portraiture through a meticulous fusion of props, costumes, make-up and digital manipulation.

Rounding out the trio is Miwa Yanagi. Born in Kobe, Yanagi creates evocative works that put women at the centre of the narrative. Through photography, make-up and digital effects, her captivating images examine women’s roles and gender stereotypes in modern Japanese society. Since 2010, her practice has expanded to include large-scale theatre works...

If you’re looking for one final spring hurrah, dust off your trekking shoes – you’re heading out for a hike on Mt. Ikoma in Higashi-Osaka.

Located towards the east of Osaka City near the border with Nara, this lush mountain is home to one of the region’s most scenic hiking trails. Every spring, the azalea slope at Narukawa Park, found midway up Mt. Ikoma, bursts into brilliant shades of white, red and pink.

Around 2,500 azalea bushes are planted here, in a stunning layered formation that resembles bands or ribbons cascading down the mountainside. From afar, the sight looks like a colourful Swiss roll, earning it the nickname ‘Azalea Roll’.

The flowers grow so densely along the trail that they surround hikers on both sides. It almost feels like you’re walking through a corridor of colours. In recent years, this breathtaking scene has started trending on Japanese social media, with many people touting it as one of Osaka’s must-see spring destinations...

The colourful koinobori appear just once a year for a short period from late April through early May. Traditionally flown to celebrate Children’s Day on May 5, these vibrant carp streamers have become a joyful symbol of the Golden Week holidays.

For a striking display of around 200 koinobori, head south to Sennan Long Park. Set against the idyllic coast, the sight of brightly coloured carp fluttering in the sea breeze beneath open blue skies is breathtaking – and makes for great photos, too.

Since this is a public space, there is no entry charge. However, during Golden Week on May 3–4, there will be festival booths offering retro games such as super ball scooping and ring toss for a small fee of ¥300.

Come mid-April, the short but beautiful season of pastel pink cherry blossoms gives way to the brilliant blue of nemophila, also known as baby blue eyes. One of the best places to catch this vivid ground cover is Osaka Maishima Seaside Park.

This annual event, held near Yumeshima, was canceled last year due to the Osaka Expo, but returns this year in full splendour. Expect to see 44,000 square metres of nemophila blooming in unison, creating a breathtaking panorama where the sea of blue flowers seems to merge with the sky and the sea beyond.

Widely regarded as one of Osaka’s most photogenic spring festivals, the event naturally leans into its visual appeal. Photo spots are scattered throughout the grounds, including areas where nemophila is paired with seasonal favourites like cherry blossoms and tulips.

There’s plenty here for families, too, with a kids’ playground and a lineup of 12 food trucks offering everything from light bites and desserts to heartier options such as beef bowls. On weekends and public holidays, the festival runs until 6.30pm – perfect for catching the sunset, which is often ranked among Japan’s finest...

With its seaside setting and palm-fringed shoreline, Sennan Long Park will channel the U.S. West Coast vibes when it hosts the LA Food & Culture Fest over the Golden Week holidays.

For two days, the festival will bring a slice of Los Angeles to Osaka, showcasing its food, sports, art, music and culture. There will be multiple themed zones to explore, each offering a different aspect of the Californian lifestyle: a food area serving LA-inspired cuisine, a sports zone featuring basketball and skateboarding experiences, a stage hosting dance performances and live painting, and a bazaar filled with vintage clothing, antiques and outdoor goods.

For baseball fans, this festival is also a rare chance to snag LA-exclusive Shohei Ohtani merchandise...