Center for Information and Neural Networks

1-4 Yamadaoka, Suita City, Osaka, 565-0871
E-mail: info at cinet.jp

» Campus MAP (CiNet is No.27)

Directions to Center for Information and Neural Networks from Kansai International Airport

The Gist

Traveling in a foreign country can be a daunting task. So, if this is your first time to Western Japan, this document is for you. These are instructions for getting to NICT’s Center for Information and Neural Networks (CiNet) at Osaka University, Suita City, Osaka Prefecture, using public transportation from Kansai Airport, locally known as Kanku (関空). You will be given our recommendations for the easiest travel routes and learn different ways to make your trip smoother. Google Maps may be the most convenient route finder for anyone with a smartphone, but unless you’re already familiar with Japan’s efficient yet complex system of public transportation, it isn’t certain that using it will give you the most economical and easiest to follow instructions, which is what we aim to provide you with here.

From Kansai Airport by bus and monorail – a 2 hours trip

This trip will require you to first catch a bus, then transfer to a monorail train. Kansai International Airport (関西国際空港) is the major hub for all international flights to and from Western Japan—the Kansai Region. Although there is another international airport in the Kansai area, Osaka International Airport, it is now solely a domestic airport despite its name, as Kansai Airport was in fact built many years later to alleviate congestion from Osaka. In order to reach CiNet from Kanku, you will need at least 2 hours so, if your arrival time to Japan is anytime later than 15:30, it is best to get a hotel and make the trip to CiNet the next day as it is difficult to arrive there before closing hours. (We will look at hotel bookings later.)

Step 1 – arrival at Kansai Airport, getting on a Limousine Bus

If you’re coming to CiNet immediately after arriving at Kanku, the Osaka Airport Limousine Bus (空港リムジンバス(大阪空港交通/関西空港交通)) is our recommendation for the most convenient way to begin. First, get on an Airport Limousine Bus bound for Osaka Airport / Hotarugaike Station (大阪空港・蛍池駅行き) and get off at Osaka Airport. The ride from Kanku to Osaka Airport will take about 75 minutes.

International flights arrive at either one of Kanku’s 2 terminals and you can catch a Limousine Bus from either terminal.

From Terminal 1:

The Limousine Bus bound for Osaka Airport / Hotarugaike Station leaves from bus stop No. 8, located on the outside of 1F of Terminal 1. Bus tickets can be purchased at the ticket vending machines shown on the diagram below or at Information Counter B (B案内カウンター) inside Terminal 1. The cost is 2,000 yen and if you’re planning to return to Kanku within 14 days, you can purchase a discounted roundtrip bus ticket for 3,560 yen. Please remember to get off at Osaka Airport.

KANSAI AIRPORT TERMINAL 1
Bus Stop

For Osaka (Itami) Airport/Hankyu Hotarugaike Sta., No.8 located outside the 1st floor of Terminal Building.The buses to the Osaka Airport arrive on 4F. Airport facilities

How to get tickets

Please purchase a ticket from the ticket vending machine.

From Terminal 2:

The Limousine Bus bound for Osaka Airport / Hotarugaike Station leaves from bus stop No. 1, located on the outside of 1F of Terminal 2. Bus tickets can be purchased at the ticket vending machines shown on the diagram below or at Terminal 2’s Information Counter (第2ターミナル案内カウンター) inside. The cost is 2,000 yen and if you’re planning to return to Kanku within 14 days, you can purchase a discounted roundtrip bus ticket for 3,560 yen. The bus departing from Terminal 2 will make a brief stop at Terminal one. Please remember to get off at Osaka Airport.

KANSAI AIRPORT TERMINAL 2
Bus Stop

For Osaka (Itami) Airport/Hankyu Hotarugaike Sta., No.1 KANSAI AIRPORT TERMINAL2. Airport facilities

How to get tickets

Please purchase a ticket from the ticket vending machine.

Note:

There are a few more buses departing from Terminal 1 so if you’re at Terminal 2 and in a hurry, you can take the free shuttle bus to Terminal 1. The shuttle bus from Terminal 2 is located next to the Airport Limousine bus stands. It takes from 7 to 9 minutes.

Airport Limousine Bus timetables can be found here:

« Osaka Airport Limousine
« Kansai Airport Limousine

Step 2 – transfer to the Osaka Monorail (大阪モノレール)

After getting off at Osaka Airport, you’ll need to get on an Osaka Monorail train. The Limousine Bus lets you off in front of Osaka Monorail’s Station (大阪空港駅) so simply follow the signs to the monorail ticket vending machines and buy a 440 yen ticket. The final destination for this step will be to get off at Handai-byoin-mae Station (阪大病院前駅), and in order to reach here you’ll need to change monorail trains once.
First, from Osaka Airport Station follow the signs and displays to get on a train bound for Kadoma-shi (門真市行き). After about 17 minutes, the 6th stop, get off at Bampaku-kinen-koen Station (万博記念公園駅). You are only transferring monorail lines here so there’s no need to exit this station. Follow the signs and displays and get on a train bound for Saito-nishi (彩都西行き). After about 5 minutes, the 2nd stop, you’ll arrive at your last stop, Handai-byouin-mae Station. Please get off here.

Step 3 – the final step, a stroll to CiNet

Handai-byoin-mae Station has only one exit. Exit this ticket gate and turn left, the Osaka University Hospital Exit (大阪大学医学部付属病院側出口). You’ll see Osaka Hospital in front of you. Proceed forward and turn left at the road. Keeping in this direction, walk down this road. You’ll see a guard station and the road will slope downwards as you proceed. At the end of the slope the building you’ll be facing is the Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Nanobiology Building (大阪大学生命機能研究科ナノバイオロジー棟). CiNet is located behind this building so walk around it to find us. There are both front and back entrances to CiNet and you may enter from either. Reception is located near on the inside of the building near the front entrance. The staff there will help you from there on. The following are photos to guide you along this step.

Hotel, Important, and Other Useful Information

Hotel bookings – a chance to recuperate after the long flight and before the trip to CiNet

If your arrival time to Japan is late in the afternoon or in the evening, chances are you won’t be able to make it to CiNet within business hours. If this is the case, we recommend you book a night at a hotel and make the trip the following day. Although you may be tempted to spend the night in lively central Osaka, this will complicate your trip and defeat the purpose of this document to provide you with the most economical and hassle free route to CiNet, which is why we recommend searching for hotels close to Kansai Airport. Almost all of these hotels provide free shuttle bus service from the hotel to the airport and vice versa so you’ll be able to return to the airport the next day and follow the travel instructions above. The area with a number of affordable hotels near Kansai Airport is called Izumisano. The Trip Advisor website is a great way to compare hotels, book them, and even find information on restaurants in the area. Simply click on the link to the English site on the top right and enter Izumisano, Japan to compare your options: https://www.tripadvisor.com/.

Address and Useful links:

Center for Information and Neural Networks (CiNet)
1-4 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871 JAPAN
脳情報通信融合研究センター
〒565-0871 大阪府吹田市山田丘1番4号

Airport Limousine Bus timetables can be found here:

« Osaka Airport Limousine
« Kansai Airport Limousine