Live-in volunteers

Chiiori has a long history of visitors and volunteers without whom the house would not have survived. We warmly welcome guests and are happy to have your company and assistance as we work to achieve the goals of Chiiori Trust.

Here’s what to expect if you come to stay at Chiiori:

Short-term visitors at Chiiori are asked to cover their living expenses with a payment of ¥3,800/person per night. This payment covers all meals, accommodation, utilities and Internet access. At Chiiori, staff and guests cook together, eat together and, of course, wash up together too. We ask that all visitors please help with communal tasks like preparing dinner, dish washing, laying out and putting away bedding, etc.

Our meals are hearty and nutritious and often made with local ingredients like thick iwa-dofu (“rock tofu”) and fresh soba (buckwheat) noodles. We are also happy and accustomed to accommodating people with special dietary needs. Meals are a festive part of Chiiori life, and a round of sake, beer and sometimes even a song, accompany our evening meals.

As part of the Chiiori experience we also invite you to involve yourself in the Iya farmhouse lifestyle. During the daytime our staff is often busy maintaining our garden, chopping wood and improving the house and grounds. We are happy to have your help in these Chiiori activities so we can give you a sense of the life and land in this unique part of Japan. The workload is light and usually no more than four to five hours a day, and our staff has a knack at making work fun.

However, unlike the communal aspects of daily life, “volunteer help” at Chiiori is completely optional. We understand that visitors often have other plans for their trip to Iya Valley, so we ask only that you do what you can while you are at the house. We are also happy to help you plan and coordinate your sightseeing itinerary while staying at Chiiori

Visitors who stay more than one week are then asked contribute ¥2,800/person per night. This rate starts after the 7th consecutive night of staying at Chiiori.

We are also interested in meeting long-term visitors wanting to stay over 30 days and get more involved in Chiiori life. It’s long-term visitors to Chiiori who really have the power to help us enact change in the region and build strong connections with the community. However, we understand that this might not be financially possible for some people, and are open to discussing a more accessible payment plan on a person-by-person basis.

Contact us by email or phone for more information about visiting Chiiori. When applying as a medium-to-long-term visitor, please let us know if you can speak Japanese, and also if you have a driver’s license valid for Japan.

We look forward to seeing you around the irori (floor hearth).