Obubu’s Japanese Tea Internship
Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms is an agricultural social enterprise. We want to use our tea to contribute to society and spread our passion for tea around the world. We are looking for passionate individuals who love tea and wish to improve their knowledge and understanding of Japanese tea and culture. Our program offers a unique opportunity to connect with people from all over the world, to gain intercultural experiences and build meaningful relationships.
During your time at Obubu, you will gain hands-on experience in tea cultivation, production, and brewing, while discovering the hospitality and cultural experiences built around Japanese tea. You will have the opportunity to follow tea’s journey from leaf to cup and gain insight into how a tea farm and tea business operate in rural Japan.
This internship does not provide Japanese language education. However, you will have the opportunity to interact with our Japanese employees, farmers and local community members. You will experience Japanese culture firsthand through events, social interaction, and daily living.
We offer an internship with a twist. Daily schedules are dependent on the seasons. A typical day can consist of tea tour hosting, café management farming, packing, tea processing, or other related activities. You may also contribute your own skills through individual and group tasks and projects. However, within your schedule there will be regular contact with Obubu assistant managers and staff members, who will offer guidance and access to relevant resources.
Obubu interns will be involved in the following activities, listed in approximate order of how much time they are expected to spend on each:
- Hospitality for clients and guests
- Tea tours
- Café and tea tours’ lunch preparation
- Tea farming
- Social media and publicity
- Program management
- Tea packing
- Website content
- Community events
- Facilities maintenance
Individuals in the past have contributed through:
- Tea farming
- Blogging
- Photography
- Graphic design
- Filming and video editing
- Web design and management
- Translation
- Community outreach
- Event management
We’re looking for individuals who are prepared to immerse themselves within a different culture, with cultural awareness and an open mind. Fluency in English is a requirement and basic Japanese is appreciated but not a requirement. You must have patience when faced with cultural and language barriers as well as living in a peaceful, small, farming town.
Please note: As our activities are expanding to a new location in Kyoto, interns will be assigned to work there on a rotation basis. On Kyoto-assigned days, about once or twice a week, the journey will take approximately 1h20 each way, in the morning and evening. The journey will be done with our bus.
Farming remains a key part of the internship, and interns will continue to gain hands-on experience in tea farming and related activities. However, as our activities expand, there may be slightly fewer farming days than in previous internship periods.
Seasonal specifics
Spring: Starting in March, tourism increases and tea tours become more frequent with a higher number of guests. Farming picks up around the beginning of April and even more so when the spring harvest starts at the end of April. Expect lots of tea tours and lots of farming. There is not much insider time during the spring.
Summer: Tourism is lower in this season. After the end of the spring harvest, farming activities are calmer with mostly weeding and trimming until the start of the summer harvest in July. The harvesting and processing can be very physical during this time, as Japan is very hot and humid. Once the harvest is over, we work on various construction projects around Obubu. In August, we also have more time for creative projects.
Autumn: From September, tourism picks up once again. In this season, tea tours take place daily with larger groups. Farming is calmer in September, with just some weeding and trimming in the remaining summer heat. October and November are much busier due to the Autumn harvest where harvesting and processing are the core of our work.
Internship Duration and Application Deadline
The duration of the internship program is around 85 days (~3 months). In most countries, foreigners are allowed to stay in Japan for up to 90 days on a “Temporary Visitor Visa” without any additional application or paperwork. For more information, please contact your local Japanese Consulate General.
Also, please only apply if you can come by the start date, have no special plans during any days of the week (Monday to Sunday) the weekdays from 9:00 to 18:00, and can stay until the end of the internship. Interns always have 2 days off a week, but the days might be subject to change between each weeks. You are expected to check in at your accommodation in Wazuka one day before the Program Start Date before 16:00. The first day of the internship will start with an orientation at 14:00.
Internship 2026/2027 Schedule (Dates subject to change):
| Slot | Expected Arrival Date and Time | Program Start Date | Program End Date | Application Deadline |
| 4 | 28th September 2026 | 10:00 – 17:00 | 29th September 2026 | 17th December 2026 | CLOSED |
| 1 | 8th March 2027 | 10:00 – 17:00 | 9th March 2027 | 1st June 2027 | 8th November 2026 |
| 2 | 19th April 2027 | 10:00 – 17:00 | 20th April 2027 | 13th July 2027 | 31st January 2027 |
| 3 | 7th June 2027 | 10:00 – 17:00 | 8th June 2027 | 31st August 2027 | 7th March 2027 |
| 4 | 13th September 2027 | 10:00 – 17:00 | 14th September 2027 | 7th December 2027 | 20th June 2027 |
If you wish to spend more than 3 months on a Japanese tea farm learning more in depth about tea, as well as developing leadership skills, please check out our Assistant Manager position! The August slot dates in 2027 are the following:
| Arrival date: 23rd August 2027 | Start Date: 24th August 2027 | End Date: 3rd August 2028 | Deadline: 27th March 2027 |
International Applicants & Visa Requirements
This internship is open to applicants from all around the world. However, depending on your nationality and circumstances, you may be required to obtain a visa or other appropriate authorisation to undertake the ~85-day internship in Japan.
Applicants are responsible for checking whether they require a visa to enter and stay in Japan for up to 90 days as a tourist. We don’t require any type of business visa. Tourist visas may require some documents on our end. 90 days tourist visas may also not be available for your country, and you may be required to apply for a Certificate Of Eligibility (COE) to obtain a Cultural Activity Visa. Please consult the relevant Japanese embassy or consulate in your country, or the official Japanese immigration authorities, to confirm the requirements applicable to your situation.
For applicants who require a visa:
- Visa processing must be completed in advance of the internship and may require significant preparation and processing time on our side. The processing time might take up to 3 months.
- Due to current visa procedures and recent changes to relevant policies, we are only able to support visa processing for Internship Slots 1 and 2 of the year.
- Applicants who require a visa are therefore strongly encouraged to apply as early as possible and allow sufficient time for the necessary procedures.
- Applications for later internship slots may not be eligible for visa support if the required processing cannot be completed within the available timeframe.
Please note that visa requirements and processing times may vary depending on nationality and individual circumstances. Applicants should verify their own visa requirements as early as possible before applying.
Application Process
Applicants that pass the written application and video review will be invited for a Zoom interview after the application deadline. After the interview, selected applicants will receive a confirmation email with documents to fill out and an invoice to pay the participation fee (90,000 JPY) for the internship period. You can expect to know the result within a month after the application deadline.
Travel Insurance
It is a requirement to have travel insurance upon arrival. We advise you to look into options independently, to find the level of insurance that suits you. You must be covered for the duration of your stay. Your plan should also cover farm work.
What you need to bring
- PC (required to work on a project) * Please note that you will be required to bring a PC to work on a project and make sure that it has enough capacity since we use several cloud services (Google Calendar, Google Drive, Asana etc.) for schedule management and project management.
- Farming clothes, raingear and waterproof boots, towels, Personal belongings
If you hold a valid driving license in your country you will need to apply for an international driving license before your arrival at Obubu. For some countries there will be additional paperwork to be done before you are allowed to drive in Japan.
Accommodation
Obubu’s accommodations have common spaces, a shared kitchen, and bedrooms. Tatami mats with futon, mattresses, bedding and linen are provided in each bedroom. Each intern has their own private bedroom within the house. The houses have two toilets and a bathroom to be shared with all residents.
Cost
- The participation fee, which also covers facility fees and rent, will be 30,000JPY per month.
- The participation fee for 3 months (90,000 JPY) must be paid into the Obubu account via WISE as a program cost before arrival.
- The participation fee will also include rice and basic condiments.
- There are two small grocery stores in the town, a short walk away. Food can range from 3000 JPY – 7000 JPY per week depending on your diet.
- Travel to and from Nara, Osaka, and Kyoto (the Kansai Region) will range from about 2000 JPY – 3500 JPY.
For a more detailed guide to our Internship Program check out our Obubu Intern Handbook !
If you want to know more about day to day activities, check out our blog “Five Types Of Activities At Obubu For Interns”! If you want to know our previous interns experiences please watch Amazing Tea Internship In Japan and visit Previous Interns Page!
If you are interested in joining us, please record a video application and fill out the application form below. The video application needs to answer the following questions: Video Application Questions and needs to be within 5 – 10 minutes max. Please note that if your video is more than 11 minutes, we will be unable to consider your application.
Once your video is completed, please upload it to a platform like YouTube as an unlisted video (so only people with the link can access it) and submit the link in the application form
Application Form
DISCLAIMER: Living and working in the small town of Wazuka may be very different than what you are used to. If you do not speak Japanese, there will be language barriers that require patience and understanding. If you wish to work in the fields, you must be physically capable and understand that the conditions can be less than comfortable (hot and humid weather in the summer, heavy machinery, wildlife etc.) By completing this application you are acknowledging these factors in the experience and confirming that you are fit and able for the job.
Learn more about intern’s projects and work: