🌊 Volunteer at a Seaside Onsen Hotel in Shimoda, Japan! 🗾✨

United Kingdom

4

If you're patient and have initiative you will enjoy this experience. The work is easy with making beds, cleaning and social media. It changed daily based on how busy the hotel is. The language barrier may come across not as welcoming, but if you show you're interested in being there you get to know the team it's okay. We hired a car for our day off to see Mt Fuji, local beaches and waterfalls. The buses into town are limited but bikes are good for short distances. You share a dorm room and have access to a very basic (not very nice) kitchen. It's a good experience to relax.

5 months ago

United Kingdom

3

Pick up provided but drop off wasn't despite remote location. There was a lack of communication-nobody aware of our hours, length of stay and pre discussed days off. we were accused of stealing and asked to leave, despite cctv showing we didn't. only a few staff spoke English. Our work was cleaning windows and making beds. Work never took 3 hours but we weren't allowed to leave early. when more volunteers arrived it was a much nicer experience-for 7 of us there was no where near enough work. We got use of bikes and onsens after 10pm but cooking facilities are unusable and no shops nearby.

5 months ago

United States

2

The hotel is in a more remote area and theres no grocery or convenience stores nearby so you really have to plan ahead for all your meals. The work itself was easy, only 3 hrs a day making beds and cleaning the glass windows. Overall a ok place to volunteer if you like solitude, nature, and don't mind possibly getting kicked out for no reason with less than 24 hr notice. Owner told me I had to leave a day earlier than I was supposed to because he had “booked out the volunteer dorm” but if I wanted to stay the last night I could pay 5000 yen for it instead?? That's not ok.

5 months ago

New Zealand

4

This was a nice experience with very little work to be done each day didn't take to long and then could relax or explore the area overall this was a nice place. The manager and his wife at the hotel were very nice people.

5 months ago

Belgium

4

I liked staying at Hiroma the hotel. The work wasn't too hard and on slow days we would make Instagram stories. I assume in high tourist season there is more work to do. We had to help clean to rooms by changing the sheets, we worked together with the other staff who cleaned the rest of the room. While I was staying here, there were 5 other volunteers so this place is great for meeting other travellers. When we didn't have to work we were free to explore the surroundings and use the bikes of the hotel. The hotel is located remotely so if you have your own transport, it will be very useful.

6 months ago

United Kingdom

3

Expect to ask a lot of questions because we weren't even told when we'd be working or what facilities we could use, hopefully in future they will make a handbook or something to help with this. Expect to work every day, we worked 10-1 each day so couldn't do too much after as it was dark by 5:30 and the buses are limited and bikes have no lights. If you are doing social media it isn't so much of an issue. The staff were kind but the communication made it difficult in most situations, we could only cook at certain times and it felt very awkward to cook while they cleaned/prepped but it was ok.

7 months ago

United Kingdom

3

We enjoyed the majority of our stay, the dorms were nice but the lockers are thin so expect to leave bags on the floor. Area is beautiful but the bus doesn't come often so the e-bikes were perfect to go into town. The work was relatively easy but we were told we'd be doing social media but ended up cleaning everyday, we even had to climb out of a six-story window onto a balcony to clean the windows from the outside which did not feel safe. The communication was not good at all. Although the cannot speak english, they used google translate efficiently but did not communicate tasks, hours,etc..

7 months ago

Chile

4

The experience was really good but because the hotel is located in an amazing place, right on the coast, so most days are chill, slow, and relaxing. You can go to the many beaches that are around on the bikes that are at disposal in the hotel. The work wasn't hard, it varied between posting on social media or housekeeping. The only thing to have in consideration, is that the hosts speak no english, so the communication isn't the best, so you have to ask about everything, from hours, to rules and what facilities you can use, if not they won't say anything. More of a short stay, 1-2 weeks.

7 months ago

Italy

5

L'esperienza è stata del tutto positiva, l'hotel è molto bello e mette a disposizione l'onsen termale dopo le ore 22 per i volontari. Il proprietario è una persona molto gentile e ci ha sempre aiutato, abbiamo anche avuto bisogno di far recapitare un pacco amazon e lui è stato molto gentile, ci ha aiutato a far recapitare il pacco nella sua seconda sede di Atami essendo che noi dovevamo risalire in quella zona. La zona offre molte possibilita di visitare siti naturalistici e culturali. Consigliato avere un mezzo di trasporto per visitare meglio la penisola, l'hotel mette a disposizione e-bike!

6 months ago

Spain

5

Shimoda es un sitio precioso que hizo de mi viaje a Japón uno de los mejores hasta el momento. El hotel es prácticamente nuevo y mi labor fue ayudar a darlo a conocer al mundo, mostrando en redes sociales los servicios, habitaciones y comodidades que ofrece además de la cantidad de opciones que tiene Shimoda para turistas de todas partes. El equipo del hotel fue muy agradable y me hizo sentir uno más, una experiencia que me llevo para toda la vida y estoy muy agradecido de haber podido vivir.

7 months ago

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