Awesome Osaka hotels for family adventure and amusement

Only a six-minute walk from Universal Studios Japan, Hotel Universal Port is an official part of the brand’s first theme park in Asia. Go all out and book a room inspired by the smash-hit movie Minions, with dragon-shaped soft furnishings and portraits of the film’s funny yellow characters hanging on the walls.

The restaurants at this hotel cater to the kiddies too, with a huge dinosaur skeleton hanging from the ceiling in Lounge R. Order yourself a succulent salmon roe bowl and a plate of fresh cut fruit for the little ones. There’s also an aquarium on-site for watching the tropical fish flit through the water.

If you have a very small child with you, the public baby rooms furnished with nappy changing tables and nursing chairs will come in handy. Customer service here’s top-notch and staff are always happy to help with warming up hot water for making formula. To lighten the load of your suitcase (leaving more room for yummy souvenirs like Kuidaore’s sweetly packaged taro pudding), you can also rent baby supplies, from baths and bouncers to cots and thermometers.

The Park Front is, pretty literally, a stone’s throw away from Universal Studios at about a minute’s walk. This chandelier-lined space features digital monitors updating you in real-time on how long the lines for the rides are, whether your kids have their eye on the ET Adventure or Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.

Many parts of the hotel are geared towards children; they’ll even have their own concierge dressed in a silk hat and swallowtail coat! Kids will also get a kick out of the rooms, with each floor designed to represent a different stage of America’s past, present and future. Akala Restaurant has a setup for the little ones, too, with a hunger-busting kids’ buffet. The sinfully good two-tone chocolate fountain is a favourite of guests no matter what their age.

You can also borrow essentials to make your stay smoother. That means everything from mattress covers for bedwetters to teeny tiny nightwear. While the baby’s settling into one of the cribs, line up a Universal film for free on your personal TV.

Spaworld Onsen From Around the World takes you on a journey across the globe via the spa traditions of different cultures. Kids 11 years or older can try out experiences like an Israeli salt cave, Turkish hammam or Canadian forest bath. There are also hot pools influenced by the blue-tinged grottos in Italy’s Capri and a Jacuzzi backed by a replica of the Trevi Fountain!

Little ones taller than 115 cm can zoom down water slides in the Amusement Pool, and there’s a shallower pool for kids younger than 11 to play in. Elsewhere in the complex, you can keep an eye on your little ones in the colourful soft play area and ball pit, while teens strike up a lively battle in the arcade game centre.

Choose your room based on its theme: Western or Japanese. If you’ve got a big family, the latter fits in more people and you’ll be able to immerse yourself in local culture by sleeping on tatami mats. For food to suit the whole brood, you can mix and match Japanese dishes from fresh sushi to steamy ramen at the on-site Food Zone.

Keihan Universal City, one of Universal Studios Japan’s official hotels, is a few steps away from the JR Universal City subway station. A feast for the eyes, its front is painted in bright yellow and blue, and inside you’ll feel the glitz and glamour of the Hollywood Art Deco theme. Snap some fun family portraits in the hotel’s many photo spots, including the lobby styled like an American diner with a huge star-shaped light on the ceiling.

For interactive experiences outside of the hotel and theme park, head to Kids’ Plaza, less than 20 minutes away on the subway. At this huge museum, watch with pride as your little ones learn through play, whether they’re more into cooking or creating art.

Back at the hotel, rooms are grouped under ‘Forest’, ‘Lake’ and ‘Movies’ categories, with bold murals all over the walls to match. Tuck your brood into soft designer bedding for a nap or put on a film to keep them entertained while you browse the free in-room Wi-Fi. When little tummies start to rumble, the hotel’s main buffet restaurant lays out yummy treats for kids – including always-popular sweet crêpes! You’ll be spoilt for choice with more than 50 international dishes, so you can easily introduce your youngest members to new cuisines if you wish. As an added bonus, the entire hotel’s a smoke-free space so little lungs can breathe easy.

If you’re deciding on where to stay in Osaka, the Imperial Hotel may well fit the bill. Here, you and your family can bed down with Snoopy. The Peanuts character is found on rugs, linen and even bathrobes in these themed rooms. Plus, little ones aged 12 and younger can stay for free. If you let staff know in advance, they’ll stock your room with an adorable kids set that includes mini pyjamas, slippers and a toothbrush.

You’ll have breakfast delivered to your door, complete with bread shaped into the cartoon dog’s facial features and served on Snoopy plates. The hotel restaurant has a special Snoopy menu, too – great for encouraging kids to widen their palates.

The Imperial is in one of Japan’s most famous areas for viewing cherry blossoms. You can leave the children in the capable hands of on-site nannies while you breathe in the sights and smells of the flower-filled riverside. Enjoy some well-deserved alone time while your kids are kindly looked after in a light-filled Kids’ Room with separate play and sleeping areas.

Live it up at the Ritz-Carlton during your family holiday. Activities in the Ritz Kids programme will have little ones exploring Japan’s culture and landscape while having fun. They’ll also choose from a mini menu of Western or Japanese food, so they can try treats like thick udon noodles, chewy onigiri rice balls and crispy deep-fried bean curd.

Young guests can start a lively game of Marco Polo in the garden view pool or play in the bubbling Jacuzzi when supervised by an adult, and there’s also a small pool for toddlers to splash around in. To take part in a cultural activity as a family, book an origami lesson where you’ll learn a new craft while spending quality time together. A river cruise down the Nakanoshima – complete with sound effects – is just one of the outdoor activities the hotel can organise if you’re looking for things to do in Osaka.

In your dazzling room, feel like royalty with features like Italian marble bathrooms and panoramas over downtown Osaka’s towering skyline. After your fun-filled day, you’ll relish slipping into goose-down beds dressed in Egyptian cotton linens. Baby beds are available for especially small guests – just ask for one in advance.

Hotel Kintetsu Universal City is covered in colour, from the outside to the rooms. Family Rooms fit up to four people, and you can even pick a Woody Woodpecker theme to liven up the kids’ trip. You’ll have slippers for every member of the clan to pad around in and useful amenities like a water heater to warm baby food. Ever-hungry tweens and teens can pick out snacks from the well-stocked vending machine corner and store them in your in-room fridge.

The buffet restaurant looks like a kids’ play centre, what with its zany murals all over the walls, and puts on food for children as well as adults. In the evenings, you’ll have more than 60 different dishes to choose from! Herd your crew towards the stocked counters to enjoy a family meal at your own pace.

Osaka family hotels are often centred around Universal Studios Japan, and this one’s no different. The park is a 5-minute walk away and has a Universal Studios Store where you can pick up souvenirs to bring home. On days when you’re not at the park, take the kids to Kaiyukan Aquarium – one of the world’s biggest, with tons of interactive experiences like a penguin sanctuary made to look like the Falkland Islands.

At Swissôtel Nankai Osaka, children stay for free when sharing a bed with a parent. If you’d rather have more space, you can pay a bit more for another bed or book an adjoining room. The hotel also has complimentary baby cots for tiny tots, and little ones who are a bit older will get their own kid-sized kit with a bath sponge, slippers and toothbrush.

Small swimmers can splash about in the pool between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. each morning, leaving the spa child-free if you fancy time to yourself the rest of the day. When it’s dinner time, chefs at on-site restaurant Minami will entertain the whole family by cooking up dishes like sizzling Japanese beef and super-fresh seafood before your eyes.

Want to introduce the little ones to some local history? Osaka Castle is less than a 35-minute trip from this hotel on the subway and is surrounded by a big, open green space. The hotel’s also easy to reach via train from Kansai International Airport, cutting down on your taxi costs and keeping those public transport journeys fuss-free.