hello!! looking for recommendations on what to do in japan - specifically osaka or kyoto. we're going for a 4-5 days (altogether). is one more interesting to visit than the other? thank you!

Deer Park in Nara! (Osaka). Although I enjoyed Kyoto in general much more, I wish I had more time there!

Thank you for your advice!! Will definitely have to check it out

What time of year? What’s your budget? Osaka is a huge city. Kyoto is not. If you love shopping, spend a day or two in Osaka. Govisit the castle. If you can afford it, spend a night or two at an onsen in Kyoto.

Metta we’re going from approx. dec 22-26!

If you can, go to Kinosaki. Its 2.5 hours north of Kyoto, on an express train. Have the crab hot pot (nabe). It's a winter specialty. It's really lovely in the winter and worth the trek for an authentic Japanese onsen experience. (Stay overnight) . You could do a day trip to Nara from Osaka but considering how much time you have, I'd probably give it a pass. If you love temples and shrines, I highly recommend a trip to Koya San in Wakayama Prefecture (just south of Osaka and lots of fast trains). You can stay over night in one of the temples. Its the birthplace of Shingon Buddhism. It is one of my favourite places. You have such a short period of time. I'd probably just stay a night at Koya OR a night at Kinosaki and go to Kyoto for the rest, if you don't care to shop/eat/drink/party. You can google but the best temples and shrines are in the Eastern and Southern part of the city.
Osaka has a very lively night scene and awesome shopping. You can hang around the Namba area and walk for hours and hours through the covered malls (Shinsaibashi Shotengai) or go to the electronics area called Den-Den town. For the best view of the city, go to the Umeda Sky Building. If you like architecture, it's pretty cool.
It really depends what you want to do. There is endless shopping, eating and drinking to be done in Osaka. The castle is pretty cool and worth checking out if you haven't seen one before.

I'd recommend three days in Kyoto. Then take the long way to Osaka via Nara where you can spend a few hours exploring, and your last night on the Dotonbori in Osaka.

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Sen O Kaze in Kyoto for the best ramen in the free world.

Dennis interested to know your recommendation for the unfree world lol

I'd say a day in Osaka and the rest of the time in Kyoto is your best bet.
TBH my absolute favourite thing in Osaka was the Kaiyukan aquarium - it is in my top 3 of amazing aquariums in the world (it has a whale shark and the building design is SO COOL).
I would suggest the following:
- Kiyomizu Dera (and dining in Gion)
- Arashiyama (the monkey park, the bamboo forest and trolling through all the souvenir shops will take up a day, easily. Though there was flooding there a month or so ago, so it might still be recovering a bit)
- exploring the Nishiki market (it is mostly covered and has tons of shops ranging from souvenir to food to dollar type stores)
- Nijo castle (though absolutely rent the audio guides - there is almost no English signage inside). You can also sign up for tours of the Imperial Palace for free, but you have to book in advance through the website - I found the tours of Nijo and the palace built off each other and gave a lot of context for each other.
My favourite restaurants were Karako (which specialized in karaage) and Ichiran (which is a ramen chain).
I would not suggest the golden pavilion or going to Nara - the Golden pavilion, unless you go right first thing in the morning, is pretty crowded and basically ends up being "look at the shrine over the heads of everyone, then shuffle through the garden in a hoard". Nara is a lot of fun in spring summer and fall, but in the winter, it is likely to be pretty miserable and brown.
I agree with Metta that Kinosaki is amazing, but it is not a quick day trip and requires the minimum of one overnight - if you're only in Japan 4 days, skip it and do it next time.

I was just in those two places in October. By far Kyoto was my favourite. There was more to see and do for me in Kyoto although Osaka has a lot of shopping! Check out my blog entries for Kyoto (and hopefully soon for Osaka when I have a chance) at https://www.mahalodistributors.ca i have some photos of the sites i visited in the two cities there also. Feel free to message me if you have any questions

I spent a year in Japan. Kyoto is gorgeous.

Kyoto is rich in history and has some beautiful spots and traditional foods. The Kyoyo train station is a fun place to wander in and of itself! The golden pavilion is a must see but try to go right at opening to enjoy a bit of tranquility.

Fushimi Inari-taisha is a must. But, like everywhere touristy in Japan, it gets busy so head up there early and do the easy walk around the mountain to take it all in.

The Momofuku Ando Cup Noodle Museum was fantastic! And seconding the Aquarium.

Kyoto, has so much to see, i agree with the golden pavilion and some interesting places to shop

Nara City- for the deer.

Hiking the daimonji yama in Kyoto is fantastic, recommend it highly.

My biggest piece of advice in Kyoto would be visit your top "must sees" first thing in the morning to beat the crowds ie like 7am. Also, Universal Studios Japan (Osaka) was incredibly fun if you like theme parks/ rides.

Kyoto hands down - it is amazing.

If you like Sake, do a day trip from Osaka to the Nada district for sake distilleries. For shrines and temples, definitely Kyoto. Shin Kyougoku street market for souvenir shopping in Kyoto. Osaka is great for food and urban experience. And don’t underestimate Japanese 7 11 or other convenient stores. They are cheap and amazing compared to canadian ones.

Iwatayama Monkey Park and Arashiyama Bamboo Grove are both very close to each other in Kyoto, and well worth the visit. You can pay 100 yen to feed the monkeys. Visit Ichiran Ramen in Osaka for some really good ramen as well.