Learn about history while running around Osaka Castle with the audio guide "RUN RUN LEARN"

Osaka Castle: Watching over the changing times

Osaka Castle is a symbol of Osaka. When you visit this must-see spot for tourists in Osaka, you will be greeted by huge stone walls that tell the story of over 400 years of history, and a solemn gate tower at the end of the moat. It is a space filled with the romance of history, where you can feel the presence of history that has been accumulated over the ages.

When you visit Osaka Castle, you'll encounter tourists and runners running lightly along the stone walls and moat. Osaka Castle is known as a tourist destination, but it's also widely loved as a running course, with many runners visiting morning and evening.

Now, a new experience has begun at Osaka Castle: "listening to" history while running. The audio guide "RUN RUN LEARN | Osaka Castle Running Through Time" acts like a travel storyteller, making sightseeing runs even more special.

In this article, we will introduce the appeal of guides that allow you to enjoy running and sightseeing at the same time, along with the different features of guides in the morning and evening.

Audio guide "RUN RUN LEARN Osaka Castle Running Through Time"

Audio guide app | ON THE TRIP

Usage fee: Free Compatible devices: iOS / Android

▶︎ Download the iOS app here
▶︎Download the Android app here

"RUN RUN LEARN Osaka Castle Running Through Time"

▶︎Click here for the guide to "RUN RUN LEARN Osaka Castle: Running Through the Morning and Time"
▶︎Click here for the guide to "RUN RUN LEARN Osaka Castle: Running Through Time at Night"

Osaka Castle

540-0002 1-1 Osaka Castle, Chuo-ku, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture

Osaka Castle is a historical castle located in Osaka city. It was built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi during the Sengoku period and later rebuilt by Tokugawa Ieyasu. The current building was rebuilt in 1931, and there is a history and culture museum inside the castle. Castle elements such as stone walls, moats, turrets, and gates have been beautifully restored, and the vast grounds, such as the Honmaru, Ninomaru, and Sannomaru, are especially fun to explore on foot. From the observation deck inside the castle, you can see a panoramic view of Osaka city, and you can also enjoy the beautiful garden that changes in each season. Osaka Castle is loved not only by tourists but also by locals, and various events and festivals are held there every year. It is an attractive place where you can feel the history and culture while walking around the castle and its large surrounding grounds.

Why Osaka Castle is recommended for runners

Osaka Castle Park, which spreads out around the castle tower, is surrounded by nature in all four seasons, and the wide roads make it an ideal place for running. This urban oasis is an ideal location for runners.

The park has two courses, a short course (2.9km) and a long course (3.5km), which are popular with a wide range of people, from beginners to serious runners. The long course, which goes around the outer moat, is the equivalent of a full marathon in 12 laps, making it perfect for practical training. Running through a landscape where skyscrapers and historical buildings coexist is a luxurious experience like no other.

The park is dotted with runner support facilities where you can enjoy running empty-handed, as well as toilets, convenience stores, and vending machines, making it easy to incorporate running into your sightseeing or business trip. There are also cafes that open early in the morning and restaurants where you can enjoy the atmosphere of Osaka Castle at night, so it's recommended to spend some quiet time before or after your run.

The greatest appeal of running around Osaka Castle is that you can run through a historical landscape. The dynamic castle tower can be seen from the inner moat, the open course that runs along the outer moat, and the huge stone walls that come into view up close. The scenery changes with each run, and you can experience the exhilaration that can only be experienced in a tourist spot.

When you run, there are moments when your mood is elevated and your senses become sharper. When you are in this "runner's high" state, the information you hear is more likely to stick in your mind as a deeper experience rather than just knowledge.

Scenery and stories that you might miss if you just visit will come to mind through your ears. Running while coming into contact with the memories of the place will turn your everyday run into something a little more special.

Osaka Castle Park

540-0002 1 Osaka Castle, Chuo-ku, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture

Osaka Castle Park is a beautiful park centered around the historic Osaka Castle. Osaka Castle is known as one of Japan's three greatest castles, and its castle tower has been restored and is open to tourists as a museum. Inside the park, there are stone walls and historical buildings that retain the atmosphere of the Edo period, allowing visitors to enjoy a leisurely stroll through history. Especially during the cherry blossom season, the entire park is filled with blooming cherry blossoms, and you can enjoy the beauty of the cherry blossoms reflected in the moat. Osaka Castle Park, where history and nature are in harmony, offers visitors a peaceful and quaint moment.

Two audio guides, one for morning and one for night | See the changing faces of Osaka Castle at different times

The audio guide "RUN RUN LEARN | Osaka Castle Running Through Time" comes in two versions to suit different times of the day. Even though it's the same Osaka Castle, the view and the atmosphere change between morning and night. One is the morning guide, which helps you start your day off on a light note. The other is the evening guide, which lets you enjoy Osaka Castle in a more relaxed manner after dark.

The morning guided tour is accompanied by fast-paced background music that makes you want to run through the park, and while you gaze out at the bright gardens, you naturally become aware of the historical footprints that unfold before your eyes.The guide uses this refreshing style to tell you about history.

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Osaka Castle stands tall today, built on the accumulation of stone and time. However, the castle tower you see before you is actually the third generation.
The first Osaka Castle was the jet-black one built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the great ruler of Japan, while the second was the white-walled Osaka Castle built by Tokugawa Hidetada, the second shogun.
The current third-generation castle tower is white on the bottom and black on top, as if two eras were layered together.
A golden tiger sparkles on the jet black upper layer, a design that seems to have anticipated the tiger love of Osakans in later generations.

So what is the story behind the origins of this castle?
Ishiyama Honganji Temple originally stood on this site. It is said that the charismatic Jodo Shinshu monk Rennyo chose this place as his retirement home. At the time, even monks fought. This was a plateau, making it the perfect location for building a fortress. Kyoto and Nara can be easily reached by going up the river, and Sakai is nearby, making it ideal for the development of commerce and industry. And above all, the magnificent sunset over Osaka Bay. This view, symbolizing the Pure Land paradise said to lie to the west, made it the very holy place befitting the Jodo Shinshu sect.
Eventually, with the construction of Ishiyama Honganji Temple, a temple town was formed around it. As the town spread out along the slopes along the plateau, the area came to be called "Osaka" and later "Osaka."
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The evening guided tour differs from the morning tour in that it features a relaxing and calming background music, revealing another side of Osaka Castle that is different from the daytime tour.
Modern skyscrapers line the outer moat, creating a landscape where history and the city intersect. This contrast is one of the unique charms of Osaka Castle.

At night, its charm is even more striking, as the illuminated castle tower and the night view of the city overlap, creating a fantastical landscape.
As you ride around the castle tower, its beauty combined with the mood of the audio guide creates a quiet sense of exhilaration, as if you were racing through a historical tale.

The guide begins quietly, as if embracing the night air, with the following narration:

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Osaka Castle emerges from the darkness. Unlike its splendor during the day, another face lurks in the shadows.

This time, we'll introduce you to the story behind Osaka Castle. When you think of Osaka Castle, many people probably think of a magnificent castle, the castle of Hideyoshi, the ruler of Japan. However, it's surprisingly only recently that this image has become widespread. In 1983, the Osaka Castle Exposition was held to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the castle's construction. Since this event, Osaka Castle has come to be seen as "Hideyoshi's magnificent castle."

So what did it look like before then? Since the Meiji period, the vast grounds of Osaka Castle have long been used as a military base. At its heart was the Osaka Artillery Arsenal, the largest weapons factory in the Orient.

The First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War, and the Pacific War. Taking advantage of Osaka Castle's location, the weapons and ammunition produced here were shipped all over the country via railroads and ports. The factory boasted cutting-edge technology in the field of metal processing in Japan at the time. It is said that they produced not only weapons, but also a variety of other items such as piping for water pipes and bridge structures. However, it was not a place that citizens could casually visit, and before people knew it, it had become a place that was "inaccessible."
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Even in the same place, the atmosphere changes completely depending on the time of day. One of the great attractions of this guide is that you can experience these differences through the audio guide.
If you want to know the rest of the story, be sure to listen to it when you're there.

summary

As you drive through Osaka Castle, learning about its history with the audio guide, you'll feel like you're in a story, not just a tourist spot. With every step, you'll feel the memories of the past with your whole body.

This is a "listening sightseeing experience" where you can discover Osaka Castle, which has continued to live while changing its appearance through the ages, while driving. Whether it's sightseeing or an extension of daily life, when you visit Osaka Castle, be sure to put on your headphones and let yourself be transported to the story.