Den Den Town, Osaka: the guide to Nipponbashi's otaku street
By Corentin · updated on September 22, 2026
Den Den Town is Osaka's Akihabara, along Sakaisuji and Otaroad in Nipponbashi. It is less crowded than Tokyo, strong on retro games, figures and cards, and a short walk from Namba.
Key facts
| Stations | Ebisucho (Sakaisuji line), Nippombashi, or a walk from Namba |
|---|---|
| Main streets | Sakaisuji and Otaroad (オタロード) |
| Usual shop hours | Around 11:00 to 20:00, varies by shop |
| Street Festa | Yearly cosplay festival in spring, held on May 17 in 2026 |
| Time to plan | Half a day |
As of September 22, 2026
What should you not miss in Den Den Town?
- Mandarake Grand Chaos: Mandarake’s Osaka flagship, on Sakaisuji since 2020, with vintage toys, figures, cards and manga.
- Super Potato: the retro game chain’s Osaka shop, cartridges and consoles sorted by system.
- animate Osaka Nipponbashi: new manga and anime goods.
- Otaroad: the back street of anime, figure and card shops, parallel to Sakaisuji.
- Volks Osaka Showroom: dolls, garage kits and model kits.
- Nipponbashi Street Festa: the yearly cosplay festival, when Sakaisuji closes to cars.
Where is Den Den Town?
Den Den Town is the district around Sakaisuji avenue in Nipponbashi, south of Namba’s shopping streets. Get off at Ebisucho (Sakaisuji line) for the south end, or Nippombashi for the north end. From Namba, it is a 10 to 15 minute walk east.
What is Otaroad?
Otaroad (オタロード, “otaku road”) is the narrow street one block west of Sakaisuji. It gathers anime goods, figure, card and maid café shops in small buildings. Sakaisuji has the large shops, Otaroad the small specialists: walk one, then the other.
Where can you find retro games, figures and cards?
For second-hand of everything, start with Mandarake Grand Chaos on Sakaisuji.
Mandarake Grand ChaosまんだらけグランドカオスDen Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop → Super Potato Ota Road (Nipponbashi)スーパーポテト オタロード店1F · Den Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop → Suruga-ya Osaka Nipponbashi Main Store駿河屋 大阪日本橋本館Den Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop →For new manga and character goods, animate Osaka Nipponbashi.
Animate Osaka Nipponbashiアニメイト大阪日本橋1F · Den Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop →For dolls and model kits, the Volks showroom.
Volks Osaka Showroomボークス大阪ショールームDen Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop → GiGO Osaka DotonboriGiGO大阪道頓堀本店See the shop → Jungle Osaka Nipponbashiジャングル大阪日本橋店Den Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop → Kotobukiya Nipponbashi (Osaka)コトブキヤ日本橋Den Den Town (Nipponbashi)See the shop →The full lists are on retro game shops, figure shops and card shops in Den Den Town. Before buying a console, read what works at home.
Den Den Town or Akihabara?
Den Den Town is smaller and calmer, with fewer queues and more room to browse. Akihabara has more shops and more official stores. If your trip includes Osaka, Den Den Town deserves half a day; see our Akihabara guide to compare.
How do you combine it with Namba and Dotonbori?
Den Den Town sits between Namba and Kuromon Market: shop in the morning, eat at the market, then walk to Dotonbori in the evening. Pokémon fans can add the Pokémon Centers in Umeda or Shinsaibashi; see how to buy Pokémon cards.
Frequently asked questions
How long should I plan in Den Den Town?
Half a day covers the main shops. Add an hour if you dig through retro games or card binders.
Are prices lower than in Tokyo?
Sometimes, especially for retro games and second-hand figures, because demand from travellers is lower. For recent products, prices are about the same.
Is there luggage storage nearby?
Coin lockers are in Namba and Nippombashi stations. Namba is the easiest if you arrive from Kansai Airport.
Den Den Town or Akihabara?
If you visit both cities, do both: Den Den Town is calmer and good for bargains. Our Akihabara guide covers Tokyo.
Where to go
Shops in Den Den Town (Nipponbashi)27
- 1FAnimate Osaka Nipponbashiアニメイト大阪日本橋MangaFigures
- Astro ZombiesアストロゾンビーズFigures
- 1FCard Labo Nambaカードラボ なんば店Cards
- 2FCard Labo Namba Sales & Buyback Centreカードラボ 販売買取センターNAMBACards
- 5FCard Labo Osaka Nipponbashiカードラボ 大阪日本橋店Cards
- Card Labo Ota Road Main Storeカードラボ オタロード本店Cards
- 3FDOLK OsakaDOLK大阪Figures
- 5FDoll Point Osakaドールポイント大阪Figures
Mandarake shops39
- 4FMandarake Anime-kan (Nakano Broadway)まんだらけ アニメ館FiguresManga
- 2FMandarake Card-kan (Nakano Broadway)まんだらけ カード館Cards
- Mandarake CoCoo (Akihabara)まんだらけCoCooMangaFiguresRetro games
- Mandarake ComplexまんだらけコンプレックスMangaFiguresRetro gamesCards
- Mandarake Complex 2 (Akihabara)まんだらけコンプレックス2CardsRetro gamesFigures
- 2FMandarake Cosplay-kan (Nakano Broadway)まんだらけ コスプレ館Figures
- 2FMandarake Daisharin (Nakano Broadway)まんだらけ 大車輪FiguresRetro games
- Mandarake Fukuokaまんだらけ福岡店MangaFiguresRetro gamesCards
animate shops142
- animateMangaFigures
- B1FAnimateアニメイト小田原MangaFigures
- 3FAnimateMangaFigures
- 2FAnimate - Aeon YonagoアニメイトMangaFigures
- animate · Chūō, Kobeアニメイト三宮店MangaFigures
- animate · Hachinoheアニメイト八戸MangaFigures
- 3Fanimate · Hakodateアニメイト 函館店MangaFigures
- 4Fanimate · Hirosakiアニメイト 弘前店MangaFigures
Volks shops8
- Volks · Yokohamaボークス 横浜ショールーム ビブレ店Figures
- Volks Akihabara Hobby Tengoku 2ボークス秋葉原ホビー天国2Figures
- 4FVolks Fukuoka ShowroomFigures
- 8FVolks Hobby Square Akihabaraボークス ホビースクエア秋葉原Figures
- Volks Kobe ShowroomFigures
- 2FVolks Nagoya Showroomボークス 名古屋ショールームFigures
- Volks Osaka Showroomボークス大阪ショールームFigures
- 8FVolks Doll Point Akihabaraボークスドールポイント秋葉原Figures
Super Potato shops5
- 3FSuper Potato Akihabaraスーパーポテト 秋葉原店Retro gamesFigures
- Super Potato Ikebukuro Game Yokochoスーパーポテト 池袋ゲーム横丁Retro gamesFigures
- Super Potato Nagoyaスーパーポテト 名古屋店Retro gamesFigures
- 1FSuper Potato Ota Road (Nipponbashi)スーパーポテト オタロード店Retro gamesFigures
- Super Potato Showacho (Osaka)スーパーポテト 昭和町店Retro gamesFigures