I’m currently based in a medium-sized city in Japan. It’s big in terms of land area but that’s pretty much it. Even the locals consider most of it the country-side.
My city is nice but I want to try living in one of the bigger cities before I decide if I want to stay in Japan for the long haul. I’ve been here for almost 2 years and I’m thinking of finding another job and moving by the end of next year at the earliest.
Right now, I’m choosing between Osaka and Kyoto, but Kobe and Nara are also in the running. My main concern is the financial aspect but I wouldn’t mind a tiny space or a share house. For those who have moved to any of the places mentioned, how was it like? I’ve been to them on day trips but living there a whole different experience.
I’m currently living by myself for the first time (and in another country). I’ve learned so much and it was a good choice not to jump head first into a big city. I’m now slowly but surely preparing for the next big step and I would really appreciate any help or advice I can get.
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Without knowing where you’re living, it will be hard to give good advices.
Depending on where you live, I think Nara may not be the change you hope. Kyoto share some of the cons of Nara (feeling of having more tourists than inhabitants, a bit dead apart from touristic places). Kobe could be a good choice, but it all depends on what you’re expecting from the big city.
Nara is very nice, but not a large city by any stretch of the imagination.
Kyoto is nice, but the tourists make it feel crowded and congested.
Osaka vs. Kobe comes down to where you can find work and how much of a commute you are willing to bear. I live and work in Kobe, but I wouldn’t want to commute into Osaka, which is likely to have more opportunities. There are lots of cities between Kobe and Osaka and between Kyoto and Osaka if you want the best of both worlds.
Nara is Sleepy Hollow. Forget it.
Back in the day I used to rent 1R/1K with everything (kitchen, shower…etc) for ¥22k in Osaka; 7 mins to Morinomiya/Osaka castle; to me seems Osaka rental market is in acceptable range compared to Kobe
Kobe is good if you have a good job. Kinda expensive for a medium sized city but well connected and you can have peace at your home.
Osaka has way better work offers and is not much more expensive than Kobe.
Nara can be considered country side but it has a lot of history.
I would never live in Kyoto. Gone there a lot for work, and sometimes staid there for drinks. I didn’t find any better point than the other options.
I vote for Osaka.
Osaka is very affordable, and it’s pretty convenient. Some neighborhoods are the sketchiest in Japan, at least in Japanese people’s eyes. But if you don’t mind, you could live in nishinari-ku in Osaka. Pretty much right in the center of the city and has a bad rep, but it’s really not that bad in reality. You could probably get a pretty decent place for little money there and have the convenience to get to pretty much anywhere in the kansai region within an hour. Makes finding work and actually commuting easy too.
Osaka is not the most beautiful city, but all the surroundings are quite nice. Plus Osaka people are pretty chill. You do get the occasional asshole, loud mouth old Osaka man… but they are just laughable and annoying more than anything.
As for work, Osaka/Kansai has some job prospects, but not nearly as good as Toyko/Kanto region.
Let me guess where you are located now… Tottori?
Kobe might as well be Osaka…
Osaka is nice, I always liked it.
Visited Kyoto and hated dealing with the tourists.
Never visited Nara.
It depends on where you live currently and what you want to do.
It’s very affordable to live in a country side in Osaka “prefecture”, but it’s a little bit expensive to live near the city centre or good educational district, for example.
Nara city is also a medium sized city but it’s close enough to visit Namba, the biggest downtown in Osaka, on weekends.
Kobe and Kyoto are pretty big. If you like harbours and less crowded places, Kobe would be a good choice.
Kyoto is a nice place as everybody knows. You’ll enjoy historical things every day spontaneously, which would be amazing. However, it’s always busy and there are too many tourists. This might make you feel exhausted.
Both cities are also close enough to Osaka.
I have lived in Kyoto and Nara before and now live in Osaka. All three are nice but very different.
My favorite was Nara, it was just the right size, not too big not too small, full of young people because of it’s 5 universities, almost all tourists leave in the evening because they are staying in Kyoto or Osaka. Really the only reason I left is because there is almost no big company residing there and thus no work. But depending on where you live now, it might be too small for you.
Kyoto is probably prettiest cities out of those 3, but there’s a lot of tourists all year long at every time. The city is big enough tho that you will find cool non touristy areas as well, it just takes some time. Also I really don’t like the public transport in Kyoto, it’s a bit inconvenient.
Osaka is the biggest and most convenient of the 3. You have everything you need. Making friends is also the easiest in Osaka. People are super easy going. Basically straight to 本音 and タメ口. Osaka is just way less clean and pretty compared to Nara or Kyoto. Also you might run into weird or rude people more often, but that’s just the drawbacks that come with the upside’s I mentioned above. The main reason for me currently living here is work.
So my personal favorite is Nara, but probably most people would disagree. It is really down to what you are looking for!
First choice would be Kobe, second choice would be for Osaka.
Pass for me on Kyoto… don’t know Nara well but didn’t seem in the same league as the other three.
I quite like Kobe myself but it’s a lot calmer than Osaka. It may or may not be what you are looking for.
We are two people living walking distance to Shin-Osaka station. About 35,000 yen.
This is way too general. What are you looking for in your day to day life? You’d have a vastly different life if you were living near Juso station compared to somewhere like Koshibe station (Osaka and Nara, respectively).
Nagoya all the way, lol. People like to think it’s just the city to pass through on your Shinkansen ride from Tokyo to Osaka, but it’s so good to live here. No joke.
Kobe!! Mountains, ocean, everything you need, not overcrowded, and easy access to bigger places.
I stayed in Kyoto 3 months, you will get tired of the crowds everywhere very quickly.