Here’s a First Look at the Lush New Four Seasons Hotel Osaka

EVERYBODY KNOWS OSAKA as a food destination, but here in Japan it’s also called the City of Water. Split in two by the Yodo River as it flows to Osaka Bay, the city owes its very existence to its waterways. The port was a gateway for goods and people as far back as the sixth century, with all manner of treasures flowing up-river to shifting cultural and political capitals, while wealth and influence flowed down. The new Four Seasons Hotel Osaka, located canal-side in the redeveloped mercantile district of Dojima, is wholeheartedly leaning into that maritime history.

Hotel design, a collaboration between three leading Japanese firms, includes subtle touchpoints like upholstering ruched in rippling waves and blown-glass artworks resembling underwater bubbles. Other water references we appreciate: the Japanese-style soaking bath and 16-meter swimming pool in the sprawling 36th-floor wellness center.

The Four Seasons Hotel Osaka opened on the first of August, and I was lucky enough to dive in on day one. The lobby was bustling when I arrived, full of neighborhood office workers stopping in for signature croissants from French bakery Farine and a closer at the central artwork: a massive black stone floating dreamily above a pool of water. The French all-day-diner Jardin seems to have attracted a few early fans too. With tall windows, ample greenery, and sea-foam-and-sand décor, it’s airy and bright, and welcoming to all kinds of guests.

The elevator hall immediately signals a transition to more exclusive space, though, with glossy vermillion walls nodding to Kansai’s uber-luxe Negoro lacquerware. While the majority of FS Osaka’s 175 rooms are Western-style, I stayed in a Tatami Premier room, part of the 28th-floor hotel-within-the-hotel Gensui. It’s a contemporary ryokan experience, with tatami-floored rooms, yukata loungewear, and exclusive tea lounge Sabo. T+L Tip: Rooms ring the tower. While distant Osaka Castle is visible on the east side, the better option is the west’s sunset vistas. 

In Sabo, luxe Japanese green and black teas are prepared with tea-ceremony precision, including frothy matcha, but I was partial to the welcome brew with the auspicious name “Ho” or “bounty,” a nutty non-caffeinated blend of toasted grains and medicinal herbs paired with a bite of sweet yuzu yokan. However, my favorite Sabo perk was the nightly aperitif time with Japanese spirits (including some fine whiskies, naturally), beer, shochu, and sakes. Seeing me hesitate between Dassai 39 and Mimurosugi, the staff helpfully whipped out a row of crackled glass cups and prepared a tasting flight of all the available sakes.

Service at signature Cantonese restaurant Jiang Nan Chun was just as responsive, allowing me to mix and match favorites from the available courses. The dim sum was some of the best I’ve had in recent memory, complimented by chef Raymond Wong’s original XO sauce and paired with a crisp Clos de Lune white. I’ll be dreaming of the winter melon broth with crab and scallop for months.

The neighboring Bar Bota, meanwhile, has a cheeky, boisterous vibe belied by its glamorous décor. A closer look at an elegant zelkova-timber counter near the entrance reveals a DJ booth, while a lever hidden in the shelving bric-a-brac the opens a hidden speakeasy, fitting for a bar with a particular focus on domestic gins. From its 37th-floor perch, the wraparound views of Osaka are a prime attraction, but the action at the dramatic circular bar is just as eye-catching, as vest-wearing bartenders carve blocks of ice and shake up original cocktails like Fast Forward, a fast-aged Negroni variation with perilla gin and red sake.

With the Four Seasons Hotel Osaka set to open an additional restaurant, an as-yet-mysterious contemporary sushi venue, I’m happy to have an excuse to come back before the year is out for another dip in these waters.

BOOK YOUR STAY AT FOUR SEASONS HOTEL OSAKA VIA BOOKING.COM

www.fourseasons.com/osaka; Rooms from JPY 100,000 per night

Images courtesy of Four Seasons.

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