Conrad Osaka Nakanoshima (Osaka, JAPAN)

It's been a while since I last wrote about a new hotel so I thought I better finish writing this when it's still fresh in my mind.

Last week, we had the pleasure of staying at Conrad Osaka, one of the newest additions in Osaka's hotel scene which has been pretty stale the last couple of years with very few new luxury hotels. The 164-room 5-star hotel aimed to change that. Situated in Nakanoshima (中之島), a charming river island in central Osaka sandwiched between the business oriented Kita area and the bustling shopping Minami area, Conrad has been opened for just over a month and while people are a little worried about its location, I found it to be exactly what I'm looking for.

The hotel is part of a large facility that includes an art museum as well as Festival Plaza which offers around a dozen dining options under the same roof. It's well connected to Higobashi subway station (肥後橋站) with underground passage and most importantly, it's away from the hustle bustle of Osaka's nightlife and shopping district (but not really that far off).



Conrad Osaka was not really my first choice to begin with. We made a last-minute decision to go on this trip so I didn't get to plan things out as carefully as I would have. There were two hotels originally pretty high on my list with Osaka Marriott Miyako as my bona fide No.1 choice (It's been my go-to hotel in Osaka for years!). But after securing my flight tickets, I realized that prices for both hotels have already jumped up considerably while the price for Conrad Osaka remained unchanged. That's when I had the change of heart and I'm so glad I did! 



One of the nicest things about staying in a luxurious 5-star hotel is service. It's part of the package and during our 5-night stay, we got exactly what we expected from a Conrad. Service was exceptional even before we stepped through those doors. Knowing that we would be arriving at the hotel late around midnight, I wrote to the hotel's reception team asking for the keys and paperwork to be ready at front desk to minimize waiting time (so my nugget won't get too grumpy) and they did exactly that. Within 6-8 minutes, we got our keys and went straight up to our rooms hassle-free. Restaurant reservations can get complicated at times in Japan but their concierge team handled those for us in flying colors. Other than one minor mistake by the Housekeeping team with their turn-down service, I thought everything was simply perfect throughout our stay.




In the past, I've not been a fan of Conrad hotels because they tend to over-do their room decoration with way too much luxury (which sometimes backfires!) but I was pleasantly surprised with this one that uses minimalist design to perfection. The rooms (we had two) were thought to be a little dark with grey and black as the predominant color but that didn't bother me at all. In fact, the clever use of sliding doors, the round bathtub in the bathroom etc. were all seen as plus for all of us.





The only weird part of the room was the toilet, which was located right next to our front door. We had to walk all the way, passing the bathroom and corridor to get there, which could be a bit of a pain at times.



Like most new skyscraping hotels in Japan (or Asia), the hotel lobby sits right on top on the 40th floor of the premise while the hotel rooms are slotted between 33rd to 39th floor. I was a little curious with how the view would turn out and not surprisingly, it's not nearly as impressive as the one from Osaka Marriott Miyako or Swissotel Nankai with a number of tall buildings blocking the way.




Location was a surprising plus. The hotel is only about a 20-minute walk to Shinsaibashi (心齋橋站) and Umeda (梅田) if one chooses to walk there instead of taking the train. There are restaurants (underneath at Festival City), cafes, grocery shop and art gallery all within a stone's throw away.




If you happen to be looking for snacks, fruits and supplies, there's a Life Tosabori supermarket nearby that operates until 1am. Took me about 10 minutes to get there.



And more good news for those traveling to Kyoto on a day trip like us. The Keihan Railway Line (京阪線) which offers train service between Osaka, Kyoto and Shiga, can be found right across the street from the hotel. By taking the Keihan line via Watanabebashi station (渡辺橋駅) in front of the hotel, then a quick change either at Temmabashi Station (天満橋駅) or Kyobashi Station (京橋駅), one can get straight to Kyoto in less than an hour (without the trouble of going to Osaka station, which is also a lot of trouble due to the crowd!).

One small piece of advice here. When you're changing at Temmabashi or Kyobashi station, make sure you take advantage of the Rapid limited express or limited express trains to avoid stoppage in every single station (There are 40 stations in between!). Some of the rapid trains take you straight to Kyoto in 30-40 minutes while the local trains take at least an hour (after stopping by each and every station).

For more details on Keihan Railway Line (京阪線), click the following link.



Sky bar on the 40th floor



Spiral staircase from 40th floor lobby to the function rooms on 39th floor



Interesting artful display inside the lobby



My nugget so excited running around our room.....

Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤ 
Price: ￥￥￥￥
Address: 3-2-4 Nakanoshima, Kita Ward, 530-0005 Osaka, Japan
Closest Metro Station: Higobashi
Tel: +81 (0)6-6222-0111
Website: http://conradhotels3.hilton.com/en/hotels/japan/conrad-osaka-OSACICI/index.html