Green Tea and Homestay: a New Concept
A perfect way to discover Kyushu and its wonderful gems is to look up for homestay programs. Residents of local communities are delighted to welcome guests from overseas. They introduce them to the beauty of their regions through immersive activities and gracious hospitality.
Higashi-Sonogi, the biggest tea production area of Nagasaki pref., launched in 2016 the “Green Tea Homestay” project in Nakao village. Green tea is at the center of their program. The goal is to develop a new kind of tourism, called “Green Tearism”.
Visitors stay can discover by themselves the health benefits of green tea and its qualities. At the same time, they stay at the home of tea farming families. This is a perfect alternative to inns and hotels and guarantees an authentic experience.
Discover the Tamaryokucha
A Rare Green Tea in an Exceptional SettingLike with any homestay, visitors who enroll in this program get to experience the daily life of their hosts. They eat breakfast and dinner at the family table and sleep on futons in tatami rooms. But in Higashi-Sonogi, they also take part to the entire tea-making process.
The location of this program will delight green tea lovers. They will get the chance to taste and find out about a special and rare kind of green tea. Higashi-Sonogi is indeed specialized in the production of tamaryokucha, “coiled tea”, also known as guricha, “curly tea”.
On top of that, what makes Higashi-Sonogi particularly appealing are its rows of stone terraces. The first tea farmers of that region built them centuries ago. The result is a breathtaking view of intense emerald green fields overlooking the Omura bay in the distance. Furthermore waterfalls and rivers run through the misty mountains surrounding the fields offering visitors a welcome respite during the hot summer days.
If you want to find out a different way of enjoying Japan and green tea, why not stop at Higashi-Sonogi?
How to sign up for the Green Tea Homestay ?
Interested in this homestay program? The Higashi-Sonogi Green Tea Tourism Association welcomes inquiries and as registration via this contact form.
Please sign up no later than 10 days before your planned trip.
