Osaka Travel Answers

From your question, I take it you haven't booked your hotel yet. If so, I highly recommend reconsidering staying in Osaka during the race. The closest city to Suzuka is actually Nagoya. From Nagoya, you can easily get to the circuit. From Osaka, it will be difficult. From Osaka, I did a quick search and you'll have to switch trains at least once, depending on where you stay. My best guess would be to stay in Namba. From there, you can take the Kintetsu Railways all the way to the circuit. You will have to change in Osaka-Uenommachi and then again in Tsu. However if the train can go all the way, you can go to Shiroko Station as well and walk to the circuit from there. If you are in Nagoya, you can do one of two things. Take the Kintestu to Shiroko, or buy a special ticket to Suzuka Circuit Inou. They have special reserved seat trains that leave in the morning. Returning to Nagoya is much harder to reserve a seat on these trains but possible. Just a little more info, going to Suzuka gives you 3 options for train stations. The first and easiest is Suzuka Circuit Inou. It is located on a special line run by the Ise Railway. It connects with the JR Lines so travel along this line is really easy. No need to switch trains. However, you have to pay for it if you are using a JR Pass. It is essentially a small line that provides better access to the circuit and a few small villages along the way. The second is to use Shiroko Station on the Kintetsu Railways. Kintetsu is, if my memory is correct, the largest private railway company in Japan. They provide access to Nagoya, Nara, Kyoto, and Osaka. The line that serves Suzuka is the Kintetsu-Nagoya Ise-Nakagawa Line. From other places you are more than likely to be changing trains, although I think there is a direct service from Osaka but it might take 2 hours or so. The only problem for this station is that it is about a 20 minute walk or so from Suzuka Circuit. There is a shuttle bus but the lines are so long you are better off walking it. The other station is Hiratacho. It is on a spur line from the Kintetsu-Nagoya line that starts on the Nagoya side. Unless you are going to Nagoya, there is no reason to think about this line if you are in Osaka. :) Just to give you a little more info, I created a Google Map on how to get there when I went a couple years ago, from Nagoya. :) maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid... You can also read about my own personal experience here: http://wp.me/piUxk-hI

Great blog and good advice. I'm staying in Nagoya myself ( Nagoya kanko Hotel). Osaka looked too difficult to commute from and I can fly on to Seoul from Nagoya .

If your purpose to visit Japan is only to watch Formula 1,I recommend you to stay in Hirata-cho or Shiroko. There are more hotels in Hirata-cho than Shiroko.Also there is a shopping mall called "Bell City" in Hirata-cho which is the biggest shopping mall in Suzuka for your convenience.The cost of hotel in Hirata-cho is cheaper than one in Nagoya.

wwroam: Thanks. Have a great time there. Be sure to try the chicken wings and the "aka-miso katsu". Not very healthy but good. :)