Abeno Harukas

Abeno Harukas is a 300-metre skyscraper in the Abeno district, opened on 7 March 2014. It was the tallest building in Japan until 2023, and it still dominates the skyline of southern Osaka. The building stands directly over Kintetsu's Osaka Abenobashi Station, the terminus of the Minami Osaka Line, and its exterior design was supervised by Cesar Pelli & Associates, with Takenaka Corporation as designer and builder.

The building stacks several attractions on top of one another. The lower floors hold the main store of the Kintetsu department store, the obvious place for food-hall snacks and gifts. The Abeno Harukas Art Museum on the 16th floor stages a changing programme of exhibitions, so it is worth checking what is on. Higher up are offices and the Osaka Marriott Miyako Hotel, and at the very top, on the 58th to 60th floors, is the Harukas 300 observatory.

Harukas 300 spreads over three floors at the top of the tower, high enough to take in the whole city and, on a clear day, Osaka Bay and the hills around the plain. Because the tower stands well south of the centre, you look back over the whole of Osaka towards Umeda and Osaka Castle, which gives a different perspective from the observatories in the north of the city.

Opening hours were changed in 2025, so check the current times, ticket prices and booking options on the official website before you go. Allow an hour for the observatory, and more if you add the art museum or the department store. Sunset is the most popular time, and clear winter days give the longest views. Families, couples and photographers all find something here, and it is a good option for those with limited mobility because everything is reached by lift.

Osaka Abenobashi Station on the Kintetsu Minami Osaka Line is built into the base of the tower, and the JR and Osaka Metro stations at Tennoji are next to it. The building makes a natural pair with Shitennoji to the north and with Tennoji Park and Shinsekai, where the old Tsutenkaku tower makes an interesting contrast.