KANSAI

Guide to Kansai region of Japan including Himeji, Kobe, Kyoto, Nara and Osaka. Also includes Kansai map and Kansai hotel.

Kansai (関西) is the western region of the main Japanese island of Honshu, second only to Tokyo's Kanto in population. The area is also known as Kinki (近畿), literally "near the capital" (referring to former capital Kyoto).
Differences between Kansai and Kanto (the eastern region dominated by Tokyo) are slight but numerous. Kansai people speak a distinctive dialect of Japanese, use less dark soy in their cooking, ride on the other side of escalators and are renowned for humour and their love of food.

Kansai Prefectures

Hyogo — the largest prefecture in Kansai, stretching from coast to coast and covering Kobe and Himeji
Kyoto — synonymous with the city
Mie — eastern prefecture with one leg in Chubu, best known for the Ise Shrine
Nara — Japan's oldest capital Nara and its surroundings
Osaka — synonymous with the city
Wakayama — mountainous terrain and the southern coast
Shiga — rural backwater dominated by Lake Biwa

Kansai Cities

Himeji — small town famed for its beautiful castle
Kobe — maritime city known for its beef
Kyoto — Japan's ancient capital, with temples and geisha
Nara — Kyoto without the modern urban sprawl
Osaka — Japan's second largest city; famed for its food

Kansi Islands

Awaji Island — the gateway to Shikoku

Kansai Attractions

Hikone — castle and garden town off the beaten track
Horyuji — temple complex housing some of the oldest wooden buildings in the world
Ise — home to the eponymous Ise Shrine, the holiest in all Japan
Lake Biwa — placid marshy lake nice for a quick getaway
Mount Hiei — headquarters of Tendai and protector of Kyoto
Mount Koya — mountaintop headquarters of the Buddhist Shingon sect

Talk
The Kansai dialect (関西弁 Kansai-ben) is Japan's largest and liveliest dialect group after Kanto's standard Japanese. There are many subdialects, ranging from the effete Kyo-kotoba (京言葉) of Kyoto's courtiers to the gruff but imaginative gangster slang of Osaka, much favoured by Japanese comedians. Some notable features include the negative ending -hen instead of the normal -nai and the use of akan instead of dame for "No way!".

That said, most Kansaites are perfectly conversant in standard Japanese, so knowledge of the local dialect is by no means necessary — but even a few words will be appreciated.

Get to Kansai

By plane
International flights to the Kansai region land at Kansai International Airport. The primary domestic airport is Osaka's Itami Airport, although a new airport will be opening in Kobe in 2005.

By train
The Tokaido Shinkansen (bullet train) line from Tokyo serves Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe. The San'yo Shinkansen connects to Okayama, Hiroshima and Hakata.

Get around
Most of Kansai's regional transportation companies have tied up to offer the Kansai Thru Pass (http://www.surutto.com/conts/ticket/3dayeng/index.html) (するっと関西 Surutto Kansai), which can be used on pretty much any train, subway, monorail, cable car or bus in the region, except JR trains. The Nankai trains from Kansai Airport are also included, and you can buy your card or pass at the airport's train station.

Normal Kansai Thru cards are single-use stored-value cards available in denominations ranging from 1000 to 5000 yen. Slide them in the ticket gate when entering and leaving, and the fare will be deducted automatically.
2-day and 3-day passes are also available for ¥3800 and ¥5000 respectively. In addition to free transport, these offer a series of discounts to temples, museums and other attractions in the region, but figuring that an hour on a train would normally cost you ¥1000, you'll have to travel quite a lot to make these pay off.

Eat
Kansai cooking is subtly different from the Kanto style, although the average short-term visitor is unlikely to spot many differences. Perhaps the most visible difference is a tendency to use light-colored soy instead of dark, especially in soups, and to prefer thick wheat udon noodles over the buckwheat soba favored in Tokyo.

Some classic Kansai dishes include sobameshi (そば飯), a concoction of fried rice and noodles mixed together, and okonomiyaki (お好み焼き), variously described as Japanese pizza or pancakes (although Hiroshima also makes a strong claim for this).

Drink
Kansai is sake country, with Nada (in Kobe) and Fushimi (in Kyoto) alone accounting for 45% of the country's production. Kobe in particular is a good place to tour sake breweries, many of which are open to visitors.

(Article based on Wikitravel article by Wikitravel users Jpatokal. Based on work by Wikitravel user(s) Nils and Nzpcmad and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel.  Article used under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0.)