A graceful fusion of European sophistication and unrivalled Japanese hospitality, the palatial St. Regis Osaka is a beacon of old-world luxury in the heart of Japan’s second-largest city. With grand architecture, affable service, and an assemblage of contemporary art that any discerning collector would envy, the hotel’s modern sensibility, elegant opulence, and dignified atmosphere are enough to make any guest reluctantly drag his feet to the check-out desk when it comes time to leave.
Set on the upmarket Midōsuji thoroughfare, the hotel affords proximity to such destinations as the ancient Shitennōji Temple, the Municipal Museum of Fine Art, and the city’s most exclusive shopping boulevard, Midōsuji Street. Expansive views of the skyline can be taken in from the garden terrace, or better yet, by pulling back the curtains in the plush, comfortable, and handsomely decorated suites. Spacious rooms with deep-set windows and marble bathrooms feature flat-screen televisions, sofas, writing desks, dining rooms, and sitting areas. The hotel’s design is decidedly smart and regal in a way that conjures pleasant thoughts of pipe smoke and leather. One imagines that foreign dignitaries might be planning trade treaties in the rooms across the hall.
With a population of 2.6 million, Osaka is second only to Tokyo in size and has a distinctively different vibe than its big sister; it is warmer and even more welcoming to visitors. Colloquially known as the “nation’s kitchen,” Osaka offers a myriad of Japanese cuisines for travellers to indulge in. If local fare isn’t being craved, The St. Regis offers gourmet French and Italian food in a dining area that is adorned with several enormous chandeliers and top-tier modern art. For cocktails avant or aprés dinner (or both), enormous wooden doors open up to a sophisticated bar with a grand piano, towering ceilings, and colossal décor. To sip a martini in this dimly lit room is to feel as though one is an extra in a classic film where something deliciously mysterious is about to take place.
With The St. Regis Butler Service, available in all St. Regis hotels worldwide, one must prepare to feel utterly spoiled. The Butler Service has been a signature of the hotels for more than a century and provides discreet, personalized, anticipatory attention. A personal attendant is available to satisfy needs at any hour, from packing and unpacking luggage, to finding perfect gifts for loved ones, or delivering midnight treats (one never knows when a craving for milk and cookies in a sumptuous hotel bed may hit). For even further pampering, complete spa services are available at the exclusive Iridium featuring Sothys spa, located on the same floor as the hotel’s fully outfitted fitness centre.
Opened in 2010, the hotel is one of over 50 in The St. Regis family. Crafted for modern connoisseurs who desire the finest experiences, the first St. Regis hotel was opened in New York more than 100 years ago. Each subsequent St. Regis hotel has been opened in the most desirable addresses of major cities and exotic destinations, reflecting the distinct cultural influences and flavours of their locales. If one is looking for the perfect combination of past and future, rare and refined, during their stay in Japan, The St. Regis Osaka delivers with splendour and style.
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