Osaka in January

Cold; quiet after Jan 3.

All twelve months in one grid — weather, crowds and prices, with gaps left as unknown.

January is rated good. These months rate higher:

• MayGreatAvoid Golden Week.
• OctoberGreatBest walking weather.
• NovemberGreatLeaves at the castle park.

• OsakaHighs around 10 °C (50 °F), lows around 3 °C (37 °F), rain on about 5 daysHighs around 50 °F (10 °C), lows around 37 °F (3 °C), rain on about 5 days
• Honshū cities, Japan · Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshimacool

  Rainy season June to mid-July; humid heat July–August; typhoon risk peaks in September.

Dates as our data lists them. Moving holidays (lunar and Islamic calendars, Easter) shift every year: check the date for your year before you build a trip on it.

• New Year shrine visits (hatsumōde)

  1–3 January · Sumiyoshi Taisha, Osaka Tenmangū, every shrine

  Sumiyoshi Taisha draws some of the largest crowds in Kansai; one-way routes from the station. The castle keep, museums and many restaurants close around 28 Dec–3 Jan.

• Tōka Ebisu

  9–11 January · Imamiya Ebisu Shrine, near Namba

  About a million visitors buy lucky bamboo branches for business; lanes packed day and night.

• Doya Doya check

  14 January · Shitennō-ji

  Young men in loincloths scramble for paper talismans; short, crowded, free to watch.

• New Year

  Dec 31–Jan 3

  Shrine crowds; some restaurants closed; transport runs late on New Year's Eve.

Crowds · Japan overall

Low

Prices · Japan overall

Low

Japan overall: Cold, dry and clear in the cities after 3 Jan; ski season in Hokkaidō and the Alps.

Weather, crowds and prices for any two months in Osaka, side by side.

• A warm coat, hat and gloves for mornings and evenings
• Layers: a fleece or light jacket

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