Itami is one of two airports in Osaka. This airport is a domestic flight airport. If you arrive in Osaka by the international flight, you will be Kansai airport. Please find the information in the post below:
If you take a domestic flight to get Osaka, your flight may arrive in this airport, Itami. But some domestic flight arrive in Kansai too. Please make sure which airport you will arrive in Osaka.
In this post, I will tell you about the terminal building of Itami airport and the access to/from downtown Osaka.
Overview of Itami airport arrival level
The airport terminal building is five stories. The arrival gate is located at the second level. And the departure gate is also located at the second level. But the check in counter is located at the first level.
Please see the map in Itami airport official site:
Airport terminal map – Itami airport official site
I show you a few photos of the arrival area below:
Access to the monorail station and the bus stop
After you exit from the baggage pick up area, just go straight by the information center.
There is the information board. It shows the bus stops and the destinations.
If you take a bus, go down and proceed the bus stop. If you take the monorail, just go up the stairs a few steps and walk through the overpass to get the station.
Access route to/from Itami airport
There are two ways to/from Itami airport. The first one is the bus and the second one is the monorail. Taxi is very expensive and most of you do not take it. But I show you the fare for some destinations.
Airport Limousine Bus
The primary way is the bus. I recommend to take this bus because:
- There are many routes available.
- The seat is secured. The standing passenger is not allowed.
- The fleet is a highway motorcoach. It has some cargo space. No worry about the baggage storage
Please see the map below to find the major routes:
As I mentioned above, you can catch the bus at the ground level. If you take the limousine bus, you can purchase a ticket at the window or the vending machine.
You may find the some more information at Itami airport official site:
Itami airport official site, Access, Bus
Train
I love the train much more than the bus. But for the access route from/to Itami airport, I cannot recommend you to take a train strongly. Because there is no direct train routes to downtown Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe. You must change trains at least once. Please see the map below:
The monorail is the first train to take wherever you go. The monorail station is located in front of the terminal building. It is connected with the terminal building by the overpass.
The name of the monorail station is not Itami Airport but it is Osaka Airport. When you check the timetable in Google Map, Hyperdia or other search engines, you may have to input “Osaka Airport”.
You can use IC card to take the monorail. ICOCA is sold at the vending machine. And other major IC cards, such as Suica, Pasmo can be used to take the monorail.
This monorail runs along the edge of Osaka city. It does not take you to downtown Osaka. And the monorail and most of train service which is connected with the monorail are the commute train service. You cannot secure your seat. Many passengers stand in the train. And there is no luggage spaces available. These are other reasons why I do not recommend you to take the trains from Itami airport.
Taxi
In case that you miss the bus or the monorail because of delayed, you may take a taxi. But it never happen at this airport. Because Itami airport is open from 07:00 to 21:00 only. This airport is located near the residential area. It is not allowed to land or take off before/after this operation time. But I will show you the taxi rate to major destinations for your convenience. These following rates are approximate and it may be varied by the traffic and the time.
Umeda (JR Osaka) | 5,000 yen |
Namba | 7,000 yen |
Tennoji (Abenobashi) | 8,000 yen |
Kobe (Sannomiya) | 10,000 yen |
Kyoto | 10,000 yen |
Nara | 12,000 yen |
Compare the bus and the train
I mentioned that the train access is not very convenient. The limousine bus is cheaper and faster to most destinations. But if you go to Umeda (JR Osaka station), the train is faster and cheaper than the limousine bus.
Train | Bus | |
Fare | 420 yen (Monorail 220 yen + Hankyu railway 200 yen) | 640 yen |
Travel time | 22 minutes | about 30 minutes |
You will take the monorail from Itami airport to Hotarugaike and then take Hankyu Railway to Umeda. Hotarugaike station is very small. Both Hankyu Railway and the monorail stations are located at the same place. You can change the trains in 5 minutes very easily. If you are okay with changing the trains there and taking the commute trains, you can choose this route to save a cost.
Comments
Very helpful! Is there anywhere to purchase an ICOCA card at ITM besides the monorail vending machine? Our flight would arrive at 18:40 and we are thinking to take the limo bus to Kyoto City Hall at 20:10. Is that enough time to do all the arrival formalities, buy an ICOCA card, and make our way to the bus stop?
Hi Andrea,
ICOCA is sold only at the monorail airport station at Itami Airport.
If your flight arrives at 18:40, you’ll be out of the gate by 19:15, so you have plenty of time to go to the monorail station and buy ICOCA.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com