Expo 2025 Osaka Visitor Guide
The expo was held from April 13 to October 132025
64 million visitors - more than half of Japan's population - visited the Expo 70 in Osakamaking it one of the most successful events in the country's history. 55 years laterthe world expo is returning to the cityaddressing issues facing humankind on a global scale.
The theme of the Expo 2025 is "Designing Future Society for Our Lives" with participants sharing their ideas and technologies in dozens of pavilions across the expo sitewhich is located on a man-made island just off the coast of central Osaka. The same islandYumeshimais also scheduled to see a massive new resort with a casino around 2030.
Attractions
The expo site's most prominent feature is a hugewoodenelevated ring-shaped pedestrian walkwaycalled "Grand Ring"which is two kilometers long12-20 meters tall and 30 meters wide and partially extends over the water. Inside the ring are the majority of the expo's pavilionsalthough some are also located outside of the ring.
The major pavilions at the expo are:
- Japan Pavilion (by the Ministry of EconomyTrade and Industry)
- Kansai Pavilion (by the Union of Kansai Governments)
- Osaka Healthcare Pavilion (by the prefecture and city of Osaka)
- Pavilions by about a dozen major companiesincluding NTTSumitomoMitsubishiYoshimotoPanasonic and Bandai
- "Signature Pavilions" by the eight producers of the expo about life and society
- And last but not least pavilions by over 60 countries from across the world and a few international organizations. Over 30 countries have built their own pavilionswhile the others are gathered in five Commons pavilions.
A wide array of food options are found on the expo site in form of restaurantsfood stands and dining areas inside some of the country pavilionsoffering dishes from Osaka and across the world. There are also several shops selling expo merchandise and convenience stores.
Entering pavilions
Many pavilions can be entered freely or by lining up; howeverfor some of the more popular pavilions it is possible - and for some even mandatory - to make an advance reservation for a specific time slot. Ticket holders have up to four opportunities to make reservations:
- One reservation can be made through a lottery drawing two months before your visit
- One reservation can be made through a lottery drawing seven days before your visit
- One reservation can be made on a first-come first-serve basis during the three days leading up to your visit (from midnight three days before the visit)
- More reservations - one at a time - can be made during your visit after entering the expo site (you need to complete each visit before making the next reservation)
Reservations can be made through the expo website; howeverit is notoriously difficult to make reservations for the more popular pavilions. Consequentlywe recommend to approach your visit with the expectation that queuing will be necessary to see many of them. If you made a reservationyou can enter the pavilion by showing your expo ticket at the entrance.
The expo website and app recently introduced a list of pavilions with current waiting times or a note that reservations are mandatory (you find the link to the list near the right corner of the above-linked page); howeveronly a small number of pavilions seem to be submitting their dataresulting in a list that is dominated by "check the waiting time on site" entries.
Tickets
The sale of tickets ended on September 302025. It is no longer possible to purchase ticketseither online or at the venue.
Tickets types
- 7500 yen (1-day pass for any day)
- 6000 yen (1-day pass for any weekday)
- 3700 yen (any day after 4pm)
Important practicalities
- The official expo website is an essential tool for visiting the exposerving as your ticket via QR code and the platform for making pavilion reservations. Unfortunatelythe site is very difficult to use. Here are some tips to help minimize frustration:
- Avoid using your browser's back button. The website does not handle it well. Insteaduse the site's built-in "Return to previous page" buttons.
- Do not close your tab. If you doyou will be forced to log in againand each login requires a one-time password sent by email.
- Except during the first hour of the daymaking same-day reservations is nearly impossible for popular pavilions. Even if a slot appears availableit is almost always gone by the time you click the "Reserve" button.
- The reservation system lacks effective filtering toolsso expect to scroll through a long list of unavailable or irrelevant pavilions again and again.
- The site often looks broken during the first few seconds of loading. Be patient. The page usually appears after a short wait.
- Many labels and links are unintuitiveoften leading to complicated instruction pages rather than the action pages you actually need. The reservation functionfor exampleis not found under "Reservations"but under "My Tickets".
- Luggage larger than 60cm x 90cm x 40cm (approx. 23in x 35in x 15in) or any suitcases with wheels are not allowed in the expo site. Furthermorethere is only very limited luggage storage available at the expo site. If you have luggagemake sure not to bring it to the expo site but to store it somewhere in central Osaka beforehand. Special temporary storage facilities are set up at Bentencho and Sakurajima stations (1000 yen per piece).
- The entire expo site is cashless. Payments at shops and restaurants are possible by credit cardsIC cards such as Suicaother digital payment services and the expo-specific Expo 2025 Digital Wallet. Charging stations are found across the site for those who need to recharge their digital wallets with cash.
- Your mobile phone is as an essential tool for visiting the expo. It serves as admission ticket and allows you to make reservations for pavilionsparticipate in some of the pavilions' attractionsaccess the expo site map and make mobile payments. Make sure it is fully charged and you bring enough battery reserves for it to last through the entire day.
- Osaka can get extremely hot and humid during the summer from June to September. Drink enough and protect yourself from the sun to avoid heat stroke.
- The expo site officially closes at 10pm; howeverthe closing time of pavilions and shops is typically 30 to 120 minutes before that.
Getting there
The main means of transport to the expo site is the Chuo Subway Linewhich was recently extended to Yumeshima Stationa few steps from the expo site. The Chuo Line crosses central Osaka from east to west. Transfers from the JR Osaka Loop Line are possible at Bentencho Stationand from the Midosuji Subway Line at Honmachi Station.
An alternative main access method is provided by shuttle buses from Sakurajima Stationthe terminal station along the JR Yumesaki Linewhich branches off the Osaka Loop Line at Nishikujo Station. An easy transfer of trains is usually required at Nishikujo Station; howeverthere are also a few trains on the Loop Line from/to Osaka Stationwhich directly run into the Yumesaki Line to/from Sakurajima Station. Additionallythere are hourly "Expo Liner" trains that directly connect Shin-OsakaOsaka and Sakurajima stations.
Direct shuttle buses to the expo site are operated also from several other locations in and around Osakaincluding Osaka StationShin-Osaka StationNamba and Tennoji/Abenobashi.
To ride shuttle busesadvance reservations should be made via the Kansai MaaS app (Google PlayApple App Store). The cost for a shuttle bus ride is 350 yen to/from Sakurajima1300-2000 yen to/from other stations in central Osaka and 2500 yen to/from Kansai Airport.
How to get to and around Osaka
