Santa Maria Cruise

Santa Maria is a double-sized replica of the ship with which Christopher Columbus sailed to America. It cruises on the Osaka Bay, allowing you to enjoy the amazing bay views and the sunset over the sea. Besides, you can learn about the history of navigation in the ship.

What’s in Santa Maria Cruise Ship

Sarah de Colon

View of the Osaka Bay

Sarah de Colon refers to the Columbus Room on the first floor and you can watch a variety of facilities that are needed in navigation, like compasses and telescopes. Besides, you can learn about the knowledge about the Age of Sail. There is a model of a cannon in front of Columbus' map, and if you press the button, it will generate sound. 

Sala de Patio

Sarah de Colon is a large restaurant on the second floor. The restaurant provides meals, snacks, and drinks. It is a good choice to pick the seat next to the window with a cup of drink and enjoy the view of Osaka Bay.

Sarah de Vista

Sarah de Vista refers to the VIP Room on the third floor. You need to pay an extra 500 yen to enter it. It usually has less visitors and is equipped with sofas. Besides, you can get a cup of free drink. The entrance of the VIP Room is next to the Statue of Columbus. 

Top Deck

The Top Deck provides seats and you can enjoy the sea wind. Besides, it is a good choice to stand on the bow of the ship and look into the distance.  

Two Santa Maria Cruise Routes in Osaka Bay

Ticket Office of Santa Maria Cruise

Santa Maria has a day cruise route and a twilight cruise route and the two cruise routes are different. The day cruise takes about 45 minutes and the twilight cruise takes about 1 hour.  

The Santa Maria day cruise will begin and end at Kaiyukan West Wharf and passes through Tempozan Bridge, Osaka Port International Ferry Terminal, Minato Bridge, and Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan. 

Kaiyukan West Wharf is also where the twilight cruise begins and ends. In the twilight cruise, you can see more scenes than day cruise, like Konohana Bridge, Yumemai Bridge, Universal Studios Japan, and Ajigawa.

Ticket

The ticket for a day cruise is 1,800 yen, and for the twilight cruise is 2,300 yen.
*VIP tickets are available on weekends and holidays.

Sailing Time 

The day cruise departs every hour from 11:00 – 17:00.
The twilight cruise departs at 18:30. 
Notes:
*The sailing time and departure time may be changed due to the weather and other reasons. 
*Cruise stops from January 9th to February 2nd and on February 7th and 8th.

How to Get to the Santa Maria Cruise Pier 

By Metro

You can take the Osaka Metro Chuo Line and get off at Osakako Station, then come out from Exit 1. It then takes about 10 minutes to walk to the pier.

By Bus 

You can take the Kansai International Airport Limousine Bus, and get off at Tenpozan (Kaiyukan) station. A single way takes about 1 hour.

Nearby Attractions to Visit after Santa Maria Cruise

1. Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan
Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan is next to the ticket office of Santa Maria Cruise, and it is one of the largest aquariums in the world. You can watch about 30,000 marine creatures here, like penguins sharks, jellyfish, and seals.

2. Tempozan Ferris Wheel
Tempozan Ferris Wheel is the largest Ferris wheel in the world about 112.5 meters (367 feet) high. It has 60 gondolas, among which 8 gondolas have transparent floors. It takes about 15 minutes to ride it and you can overlook scenes around Osaka Bay.

3. Universal Studios Japan 

Universal Studios Japan is a large theme park that contains varied recreational facilities and famous cartoon characters. You can take Captain Line from the Kaiyukan West Pier to get to Universal Studios Japan, which takes about 10 minutes.

See More:

•  Osaka Photos