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LGBTQ+ Osaka Eating and Drinking Tour

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Summary
Highlights
Experience Details
Experience Location
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Duration
3 hours
Number of Guests
1 - 6 guests
Language
Japanese, English
Other
Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescetarian, With 2 drinks

While Nichome in Tokyo may be Japan’s largest gayborhood, Osaka, known for a fun-loving and boisterous nightlife scene, has much to offer the LGBTQ+ traveler, including famous Osaka street food!

Highlights

  • Learn about the history of Japan’s LGBTQ+ community in Osaka, which has the 2nd largest gay scene in Japan

  • Check out the retro Shinsekai, where even the closeted can feel at home, and its famous street food

  • Explore Doyama, Osaka’s main gayborhood, which has the largest concentration of gay bars, clubs, and saunas

  • Get recommendations from the tour guide and see where the night leads you after the tour!

For each guest that attends this experience, byFood will donate
10 meals
+
Host will donate 10 meals

Experience Details

This LGBTQ+ Osaka Eating and Drinking Tour starts in Shinsekai, which is known for its classic Osaka street foods and flashy sights. Deep in this nostalgic district, which evokes both Paris and New York’s Coney Island, the LGBTQ+ community secretly thrives. In the past (and perhaps even today) closeted gay men who found themselves married to women (as society expected) could enjoy their private lives at the bars and saunas here. We’ll take a gander at some of these sights, camouflaged by the neon lights, and maybe even stop at one of the bars for a drink.


Trying the food in Shinsekai is, of course, mandatory, as the area is famous for street foods like kushikatsu (battered and deep-fried skewers of vegetables and meat). Many kushikatsu restaurants are open 24/7 here, the perfect places to refuel after a whirlwind at the bar or saunas. A light dinner and drink in Shinsekai is included, and you can choose from small plates like miso beef tendon, tempura, tofu, and grilled chicken.


After dipping a toe into the hidden gay scene at Shinsekai, you’ll be ready to tackle the beast that is Doyama. The equivalent of Shinjuku Nichome, Doyama is loud and proud and full of gay youth and the young-at-heart, home to over 100 bears -- oh -- we meant bars. Here you can find anything you’re looking for, from hole-in-the-wall bars to dance clubs where you can bust a move, as well as some genre-nonconforming establishments. Once you’ve seen it all, we’ll enter one of the bars for a drink. The language barrier dissolves, as the bilingual tour guide can assist you.


The tour will be over before you know it, but the night doesn’t have to end. Our guide is equipped with recommendations for all tastes and will make sure you get where you want to go.

Inclusions

  • Expenses for the English-speaking tour guide, who is a part of the LGBTQ+ community

  • Light meal and a drink at a restaurant (with iconic Osaka street foods)

  • Another drink at an LGBTQ+ bar

  • Transportation fee during the tour

Exclusions

  • Additional food and beverages

Meeting Point and Meeting Time

  • Meet at Dobutsuen-Mae Station (address:1丁目-1 太子 西成区 大阪市 大阪府 日本)

Remarks

  • Please be on time for this tour

  • Please note that the legal drinking age in Japan is 20 years

Cancellation Policy

Cancel your booking at least 2 days before the experience start time to receive a full refund minus a 3.2% transaction fee.

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Experience Location

Literally translating to “New World,” the layout of this retro district of Osaka was developed in the early 1900s, taking inspiration from Paris (for the northern half of the district) and New York’s Coney Island (for the southern half). Many restaurants here are open 24 hours but truly come alive in the evening when the lights turn on. With the vibrant signage, and glowing shades of red, blue, and orange, Shinsekai truly has a nostalgic fairground atmosphere. But, in the background, you can see Tsutenkaku Tower, which was modeled after the Eiffel Tower.

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INSTANT CONFIRMATION
Earliest available date: November 9, 2024
from
¥12,000
per guest
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Please note that the time is in Japan Standard Time.
Free cancellation (2 days notice)
For each guest that attends this experience, byFood will donate
10 meals
+
Host will donate 10 meals
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