Summer Leaves

In winter, Hakuba is a busy village welcoming skiers all over the world with 11 ski resorts and over 200 trials. In summer, Hakuba also offers adventures. There are numerous hiking routes (from easy to hard) for you to explore the Japanese alpine mountains, and the nearby lakes (Lake Aoki and Lake Kisaki) are oppcupied by Kayak and swimming clubs. The closest creek named Hime River is good for rafting, and you can choose from all different camp sites to set up a tent and smell the flowers. Hotel Summer Leaves is a 2-floor building with 14 rooms and a 20-seat restaurant. This small family hostel is 2 km away from the nearest ski resort called "Tsugaike Kogen Ski Resort". A small natural park for wild flowers, mainly the "Alpine Flower (Mizubashou)", is literally 20 meters away from its back door.

The host will offer the good food, dormitory and ski ticket in winter.
If you are a big fan of Outdoor sports or ski, Summer Leaves is a best choice.

The operator of Hotel Summer Leaves is a guy from China who speaks English and Chinese, and is learning Japanese right now. He is good at cooking, loves travelling, and he wishes to offer a small, cozy and fun space for people from different places to meet and know each other and spend a pleasant time together.

Reviews

5.0
(12 reviews)12

Staff & Host

5.0

Hours & Tasks

5.0

Hostel

5.0

Learning & Fun

5.0

United Kingdom

5

We had a wonderful time at Summer Leaves! The work is reasonable, meals are delicious and my vegetarianism was well accounted for, time to snowboard during free time was plenty and it really just felt like a little family. Mickey and Mary are really generous people and their daughter is really sweet. Would highly recommend this!

about 1 month ago

Canada

5

I loooooved spending 7 weeks here. It really feels like you become a team and family working together. Mickey, Mary and their daughter are absolute gems to live and work with. The tasks were all clear and laid out, sometimes you need to be flexible. But we got so much time to snowboard and explore Hakuba. Food was also really delicious! But if you don’t enjoy cooking or cleaning I wouldn’t recommend. Also better if you have a driver’s license. Dorms were also nice and cozy.

about 1 month ago

United Kingdom

5

My first ever experience volunteering abroad and it was amazing! Both Mickey and Mary were incredibly accommodating and everyone there were super friendly. Work load wasn't too tiring and there were plenty of free time which I used to learn how to snowboard! Hanging out with their adorable little girl Natsuha as well as the daily chats, laughs and delicious meals made it feel like one big happy family! I would recommend this to everyone!! Can't wait to come back!!!

about 2 months ago

United Kingdom

5

Our experience at Summer Leaves was incredible! A wonderful balance of doing the daily tasks of room cleaning, cooking and washing up, and then being able to explore Hakuba, go snowboarding and hang out with the other awesome volunteers in our free time. Mickey and Mary and the other volunteers made us feel welcome and part of the team from the very beginning of our stay, and it definitely felt like home by the time we had to leave! Would recommend to anyone wanting to volunteer in such a beautiful place in the mountains of Japan!

about 2 months ago

Brazil

5

I feel very lucky to have this as my first volunteering opportunity, it was an awesome experience to connect to people from all over the world in a space that feels like family. The working hours are as expected but sometimes it’s needed some help in the organization of the schedule. I always felt free to arranje the working days as it was best for me and the team, and it’s possible to go ski or snowboarding even in the days of work, depending on the shift. I would definitely recommend this experience!

3 months ago

Perfect for you if you're looking for

Contact with nature

Mountain

Wilderness

Snowy

Adventure Sports