Vegetarian's Japan Guide

Ikeda City: A Laid-Back City With a Long History in Osaka

When people talk about Osaka, they talk about all the great food from Dōtonbori, the Universal Studio Japan, and much more! The second-largest metropolitan area in Japan is a great place to have fun while accompanied by its mouth-watering food. But what if you want a bit of cultural element and quietness but simply can’t be bothered to go all the way to Kyoto?

Come to Ikeda City (池田市), located north of the prefecture! Although it is only 20 minutes away by Hankyū Train from Umeda, the lifestyle there is comparatively relaxing. It is also a nice place to indulge yourself in nature and the local history (=゚ω゚)ノ.

The only shortfall in sightseeing in Ikeda City is that some of its attractions are geographically further away from each other. But lucky for us, we have Hankyū Bus! Their bus service stops are conveniently close to each attraction, so all that is left for us tourists is to plan and stick to the plan to minimize bus waiting time!

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Tip: If you want to stay overnight in Ikeda City, how about Hotel Ikeda? While the building is old, it is close to Ikeda Station, and the rooms are spacious.

Kureha Shrine (呉服神社)

Kureha Shrine Ikeda Osaka Japan
© photo-ac.com

After you come out of Hankyū Ikeda Station, you will see a stone torii gate about a 3-minute walk from the station in the middle of a residential area.

Passing through the torii gate and following the rail track, you will find the Kureha Shrine (a shrine for the god of kimono making).

While not much is happening at this shrine, you can walk past this spot on your way to other attractions around the station, especially in autumn (^_-)-☆.

How to Get to Kureha Shrine

The gorgeous shrine is just a short 3-minute walk from Hankyū Ikeda Station (阪急池田駅).

Cup Noodles Museum Osaka Ikeda (カップヌードルミュージアム 大阪池田)

We all know that instant noodles in Japan are super delicious, no matter what flavor you choose! But has it ever occurred to you that the particular ingredient you crave just isn’t in front of you? If that has ever been the case, come to the Cup Noodles Museum Osaka Ikeda (=゚ω゚)ノ.

Refer to our Cup Noodles Museum Osaka Ikeda article for more information about what you can expect on the day of your visit!

Click HERE to return to the list of attractions in Ikeda City.

Rakugo Museum (池田市立落語みゅーじあむ)

Rakugo (落語) is Japanese comedic storytelling that dates back to the Edo period (1603–1868) and remains popular today. While it probably wouldn’t be fun to participate in one of the Rakugo performances if you don’t understand the dialect the storyteller speaks, it might still be engaging to watch (albeit not much).

There is a corner where visitors can watch DVDs or listen to CDs of Rakugo performances in the museum.

Rather than paying to listen to the stories live, how about testing the water at this museum first to see if you actually like this part of the Japanese culture?

Rakugo Museum’s Opening Hours and Access Information

  • Rakugo Museum is open from 11 am to 7 pm.
    • If an event is on, access will be limited.
  • The museum is just a 6-minute walk from Hankyū Ikeda Station (阪急池田駅).

Click HERE to return to the list of attractions in Ikeda City.

Ikedashiroato Park (池田城跡公園)

Ikedashiroato Park Ikeda Osaka Japan
© photo-ac.com

When you come to Ikedashiroato Park, you might think that the turret, bridge, and almost just about anything there seem relatively newly constructed compared to the other castles across the country.

And your suspicions are correct! While the Ikeda Castle’s location was where the park is today, pretty much everything you see in the park was restored from ruins in the last century!

The park that opened in 2000 has a really nice Japanese garden surrounding the turret. Inside the turret, there is a small museum about the Ikeda Castle, a tea ceremony room, and most importantly, an observation deck that overlooks both Ikeda City and Shininagawao Bridge (新猪名川大橋). On a sunny day, you can even see Kobe (神戸) and Wakayama (和歌山)!

On weekends and public holidays, volunteered guides will introduce Ikeda’s history and culture to tourists. If you understand Japanese, dropping by the park when the guides are around might be a better idea (=゚ω゚)ノ.

Ikedashiroato Park Ikeda Osaka Japan
© photo-ac.com

You can refer to the park’s map HERE.

Ikedashiroato Park’s Access Information and Opening Hours

  • The park is a 12-minute walk away from Hankyū Ikeda Station (阪急池田駅).
  • If you plan to take a bus from Ikeda Station’s bus stop no. 4, get off Satsukiyama Kōen Daikōji (五月山公園 大広寺). The park is just a 2-minute walk from the bus stop.
  • Entry is free.
  • Ikedashiroato Park is open from
    • 9 am to 7 pm from April to October
    • 9 am to 5 pm from November to March
  • The park is closed on Tuesdays and from the end of December to the beginning of January.
    • If Tuesday is a public holiday, it will close on the next business day instead.

Click HERE to return to the list of attractions in Ikeda City.

Daikōji (大広寺)

When you visit Satsukiyama (refer to below), add this temple to your itinerary as this magnificent temple is just at the foot of the mountain (^_-)-☆.

However, please prepare to climb a fairly steep slope!

From the Satsukiyama Park’s car park, after hiking for around 7 minutes, you will see the front gate of Daikōji Temple. Due to the steep slope, not many people would walk around the spacious temple, known for its long history.

This makes this temple the perfect place for all temple and Japanese history lovers!

As the temple was built in 1395 by Mitsumasa Ikeda – the lord of Ikeda Castle at the time, it is also a nice spot to drop by after you visit the Ikedashiroato Park (=゚ω゚)ノ.

How to Get to Daikōji

  • By train: a 15-minute walk from Hankyū Ikeda Station (阪急池田駅).
  • By Hankyu Bus: please get off at the Daikōji (大広寺) bus stop.

Click HERE to return to the list of attractions in Ikeda City.

Satsukiyama (五月山)

At the border between Ikeda City and Minoo City (箕面市) is the Satsukiyama or Mt. Satsuki. The 315 meters tall mountain is the symbol of Ikeda City.

Known for its great viewpoint overlooking the Osaka Plain, many tourists would come to the summit of Satsukiyama for the night view as the lights down in the city all sparkle like a diamond!

For more information, please refer to our article on Satsukiyama!

Satsukiyama-Satsukidai-Ikeda-Osaka-Japan
© photo-ac.com

Click HERE to return to the list of attractions in Ikeda City.

Suigetsu Park (水月公園)

Suigetsu Park is a multipurpose open space and resting area for people in Ikeda. The Seihōtei Pavilian (斎芳亭) by the pond was gifted by Suzhou City in China in 1981, making the park resembles a Chinese garden. With around 250 plums of 15 varieties planted, the park is Ikeda City’s top plum blossom spot. So, if you are in Osaka between late February and mid-March, visit Suigetsu Park to enjoy the gorgeous flowers and their elegant fragrance!

Note that Suigetsu Park has a large height difference between the entrance and the back, so you have to go up the stairs in the center to get to the plum grove.

The park is also a famous spot for the iris. Near the pond and the pavilion, there are around 60 different species of iris and more than 6,000 iris plants. The iris season at Suigetsu Park is from late May to mid-June.

When the iris is blooming, the Iris Festival (花菖蒲まつり) usually takes place on the second weekend of June. It is one of the biggest event in the area. Food and game stalls are set up and various events take place throughout the day.

Suigetsu Park Ikeda Osaka Japan
© photo-ac.com

In addition to the plum blossom and iris, Suigetsu Park is a hidden gem for cherry blossoms. There won’t be many people visiting the park between late March to early April, giving you the space you need to adore the flowers!

How to Get to Suigetsu Park

The park is a 15-minute walk (approximately) from Hankyū’s Ishibashi Handai-Mae Station (石橋阪大前駅).

Click HERE to return to the list of attractions in Ikeda City.

Kyūanji Temple (久安寺)

Kyuanji Temple Ikeda Osaka Japan
© photo-ac.com

Despite being located away from the city center, Kyūanji, a temple with a long history dating back to 725, is probably more well-known than the other temples in Ikeda City.

While the halls and statues of Buddha are quite impressive, they aren’t why the temple is so popular. Like most temples in Japan nowadays, it became famous because of the scenery in the temple’s precinct.

Flowers at Kyūanji

Every year in June, when the 5,000 hydrangea start to blossom throughout the temple’s spacious ground, the temple receives more and more worshippers and visitors.

Be on the lookout for the pond in front of the gate of Kyūanji. It will suddenly become a lot more colorful as the hydrangea flowers float on the pond! So if this is what you are eyeing, plan your visit from mid to late June to early to mid-July (=゚ω゚)ノ.

However, hydrangea isn’t the only flower the temple is known for. As one of the 25 temples in the Kansai Flower Temple Route, the lotus flowers start to bloom when the hydrangea flowers are wilting!

As time passes by, the ground of the temple slowly turns from yellow to red foliage in early November.

The Autumn Festival (もみじまつり) that takes place on the third Sunday is when the color changes start to peak.

By early December, most of the beautiful foliage will be on the ground already. So try to go there in time for their breathtaking autumn scenery!

Other flowers that bloom throughout the year are:

  • Japanese allspice in January
  • Plum blossom and sasanqua camellia in February
  • Camellia, cornus officinalis, and yulan magnolia in March
  • Cherry blossoms, azaleas, and peonies in April
  • Hirado azalea and water lily in May
  • Crape myrtle and lily in August
  • Cluster Amaryllis, confederate rose, and Yamahagi in September
  • Chrysanthemum in October

Kyūanji’s Opening Hours, Admission Fee, and Access

  • The temple opens from 9 am to 4 pm daily
  • The admission fee is 300 yen
  • From Hankyū Ikeda Station (池田駅), please change to Hankyu Bus (阪急バス久) and get off at Kyūanji (久安寺)
    • You can utilize Hankyū Bus’s website HERE to know which bus to take, as there are a couple of options.

Discover Minō, the City Next Door for Great Onsen and Nature Getaways

Minoo-Falls-Autumn-Minoh-Park-Osaka
Click the photo to find out how to get to this stunning spot!

Minō City is another part of Osaka for you to discover the beauty of Japan’s nature with rich cultural elements. And it also has great hot spring facilities to rejuvenate from the tiredness of travel!

For more information, please refer to our article on Minō City.

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