Living with a Japanese Family: a great experience!

In Fukuoka you have the possibility of choosing between the accommodation in a hotel or in the host Family's house, the perfect occasion for putting into practice immediately what you learned during the language course.

Why a host family?

A stay in the host family is for sure a special experience because you get the chance to see the ordinary life of a Japanese family. Every single family has its own habits and characteristics,
therefore it is impossible to describe a "typical" one. But all of them have something in common they are all interested in foreign countries and cultures.

Something to take into account…

You need to beaware of the fact thata stayin a host family doesn't mean that you can behave as if you were at home. The shoes must be left at the entrance; inside the house you can wear only slippers. Even today many houses or apartments still have a traditional room with the floor covered by soft straw mats and by the Tatami, on which you can walk only wearing socks or barefoot. For the bathroom there are special slippers which are used only for this room.

Usually you have to stay alone in the host family's house but in exceptional cases it is also possible to stay two persons together. You are going to sleep either on a normal bed or on a futon. It is not always so, but often the tidiness doesn't come first in the ordinary life's activities; therefore don't get surprised if the room is not perfectly tidied up, it is all normal.

The breakfast is always done all together. Sometimes you might eat rice soup with Miso, as the tradition wants, toast with jam or sausage. If you have special preferences you are pleased to communicate them in advance.

Usually the host families take care in a friendly way about their guests. They feel responsible for you and sometimes they even await you in the night till you come back home. Showing respect to this altruism, you should try not to be too late home. The last trains, metros and trams leave the center at about midnight.

The stay in the host family requires honesty, flexibility, comprehension and tolerance from both parties. With an adequate behavior and by leaving home all the biases you will certainly live an unforgettable experience!

We ask you to communicate, at the moment of registration or at the latest three months before the trip starts, if you prefer to stay with the host family or in a hotel of Fukuoka. If you have some doubt and you cannot decide, please feel free to contact our team: they will be able to advice you and guide you to the best choice