This is the 3rd time at Hiro's place and we always come back. The area has FANTASTIC food. OMG okonomiyaki!!! Just ask him. He always is so helpful with anything we need and the place has such a chilled atmosphere. I couldn't recommend enough.
I haven't been to them all so I can't say for certain. Hiro is a great guy. I stayed with him for 6 months! I should know. His rate is perfect enough to be both affordable.... yet keep out the riff-raff. Hiro keeps the place clean and tidy. When I was there, he allowed access to the laundry machines on the ROOF! He runs a cafe/bar, most days, out of the first floor with the guest quarters on floors 2 and 3. He has 1 private room for rent. And the rest is bunk/barracks style that was good for me. This place is a bit off the beaten path. About 12 minutes fast walk from Tsuruhashi station. Also, he can be a stickler about electric usage..... i.e. shutting off lights and keeping the heater down. Good food along his 'korea town' road. The neighborhood is lively during the day... but then becomes a ghost town at night. But access to the main entertainment areas, from Hiro's, is about the same as most other guest houses.
Every time I come to Japan, I make sure I stop by Hiro's Guest House for a few days. Its got a good location in Osaka and is surrounded by many amenities. Hiro is always willing to share his knowledge of Osaka, in particular the surrounding suburb of Tsuruhashi. Hiro can tell you exactly where the good food is. I also always recommend this place to my family and friends as it is consistently excellent! Please use Hiro's guest House as your accommodation in Osaka!! I promise you won't be disappointed.
I stayed for a little over a week in Osaka. Hiro's Guest House is where I ended up spending my nights, since I wanted cheap accommodation, and it ended up being a fantastic decision. This is the place you pick if you are not only just looking for a place to check-in and spend the night, but you also want a genuine experience that you don't get often while traveling: seeing the bustling local hotspot of restaurants and shops that is Korea Town, knowing where all of the best ramen, onsen, yakitori, okonomiyaki, bbq and more are around the neighborhood in walking distance, and the best of all, a friend who is happy to share all of this.
The place is located a 15 min walk from Tsuruhashi station, It's very easy to find and the station leads directly to the subway and the local JR Osaka Loop line, which makes it all the more easier for JR Rail Pass holders. You could even take the 40 min walk to the popular Namba area of Osaka. The dormitory rooms are comfortable and equipped with curtains, and there's a tatami styled room on the third floor. You can do laundry, there's a full kitchenette for all of your culinary needs, a shared fridge, and all rooms have AC. Unlike some guest houses, this place has no curfew due to the automated password lock, so you just have to be mindful of the other guests. The downstairs lobby area is perfect for hanging out or having a drink even when the host is out. The humble nature of the area will most likely make it that you might have the entire dormitory to yourself as well.
However, the focus isn't all the tangible facts. What this place offers is something much more precious. The Guest House is run solely by a humble man named Hiro. He speaks English, Korean, and Japanese well so you don't have to worry about communication. He is what would make your journey into Osaka whole. He has folders with all the local transport detailed out, a whiteboard of the nearby area around Korea Town with all of the good local restaurants highlighted with their operating hours on top of Hiro's recommendations (and cool tidbits from guests around the world), you can talk to him about your plans and he could tell you his two cents about what to do, but best of all, if you can make it back before his closing hour, you can have a nice evening talk and maybe even share a few drinks with him. I've only known him for a short while, but it's enough to make you feel that you are both friends and that you belong.
If you pick this place, you won't be staying at a Guest House. You'll be staying over at Hiro's, as a welcome guest and friend.
This was my second stay at Hiro's. I stayed only a week this time, and while the layout has changed a little, I still experienced all the good things I found at Hiro's last time: comfort, safety, delicious food a hop away, interesting conversation partners, and the most hospitable guest house owner in all of Osaka.
To comply with standards, a few renovations were made, but the overall feeling remains the same. I felt right at home again, despite more than a year having passed. There is now only one shower, which is really only a concern if there are many people staying (which there weren't while I was there). Even if there were many people and shower access got more difficult, Hiro has some amazing public baths and local hot springs to recommend. Honestly, it's more fun to just go to those anyways.
I've gotten to know Hiro and this guest house a bit more, and I've stayed in more hotels and other forms of accommodation in Japan, and I can definitely say it is the only place I would want to stay in Osaka. All kinds of things happen when you travel, but I have a lot less to worry about by staying here: everything's just awesome, to the point that it's been hard for me to leave. Plus, having stayed in Korea Town has often become a conversation piece with other Japanese people for me. Even if you aren't able to stay here, do drop by for a drink and get something to eat in Korea Town. It's a good place to see a side of Japan that most travelers, unfortunately, don't.
