Takarazuka, Amagasaki, Nishinomiya Travel Guides

The Takarazuka, Amagasaki, and Nishinomiya area has developed as a bedroom community with easy access to Osaka. The Takarazuka, Amagasaki, and Nishinomiya areas are filled with entertainment such as the Takarazuka Grand Theater, the Osamu Tezuka Memorial Museum, and the Hanshin Koshien Stadium.

The Takarazuka, Amagasaki, and Nishinomiya area offers tourist attractions such as Togakushi Shrine, Nakayama Temple, and Hanshin Koshien Stadium; sightseeing events such as the Inagawa Fireworks Festival, Ashiya Summer Carnival, and Agricultural Festival; and local delicacies such as okonomiyaki, onion soup, and squid stew with nails.

Takarazuka is so famous for the Takarazuka Revue. It is also famous as the town where Osamu Tezuka, the famous cartoonist, spent his childhood. In the past, Takarazuka was the base of the Hankyu Toho Company.

Nishinomiya is also famous for Nishinomiya Shrine, the headquarters of Ebisumiya Shrine, which has recently been used by celebrities for wedding ceremonies and for deciding "lucky men," and Hanshin Koshien Stadium, home of the Hanshin Tigers professional baseball team and the site of the National High School Baseball Tournament. The city is also known for its many shrines and Buddhist temples.

The Takarazuka Revue has the Takarazuka Grand Theater and Bow Hall, where various plays are performed throughout the year. The auditorium and stage are integrated into one structure, allowing visitors to enjoy powerful theatrical performances.

Nearby is the Hanshin Racecourse, a GI horse racing track, which attracts large crowds during the "Cherry Blossom Festival" season. The Hanshin Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya hosts professional baseball games throughout the year, and the "balloon-flying" event held by enthusiastic Hanshin fans in the seventh inning is a rare experience.

Nishinomiya Gardens," which was built nearby, has recently become a popular gathering spot for young people in this area. Visitors can enjoy movie theaters, shopping, and gourmet food.

There are also many shrines and temples in this area, such as "Kiyosarajin Seichoji Temple" built by Emperor Uda, "Nakayama Temple" which is famous as a "god of safe delivery" and was founded by "Prince Shotoku" and rebuilt by "Hideyoshi Toyotomi," and "Heirinji Temple and Takarazuka Shrine" which become very crowded during "Takarazuka Ebisu" held on January 10.

In autumn, there is "Washurin-ji Temple" where the beautiful autumn leaves of Mt. Rokko are beautiful, "Hirota Shrine" mentioned in the Chronicles of Japan, "Sumiyoshi Taisha", the god of marine traffic, "Kadoyakujin", famous as a place to ward off bad luck, and "Kumano Shrine", well known as the only math god in Japan and attracting students from all over Japan to take exams.

Nishinomiya is also famous for Nada-no-no-nama-ichibon, or "Nada's fresh bottle of sake. There are many famous sake breweries in Nishinomiya, including Ozeki, Nihonzakari, and Shiraga, and you can enjoy sake tasting at "Nihonzakari Sake Brewery Street Brick Hall" and enjoy sake sponge cake and sake buns at "Ozeki Kanzakan no Sekijuan".