about us

The concept of Gurugulu is influenced by the slightly unfamiliar concepts of “permaculture” and “off-grid”. These keywords will be indispensable for the new lifestyle.

What does Gurugulu mean, by the way?

Gurugulu means “rotation” or “circulation” in Japanese. The name reflects our desire for our guests to feel the changing seasons in Niseko and the comfort of being in the midst of nature’s cycles. It also expresses our desire to value the relationship between the local community and us, as well as the relationships between our guests and the human community.

What kind of place is Gurugulu?

The chickens living in the spring water take a fluent walk in the small vegetable garden that appears in the forest. At GuruGuru, everyone lives a relaxed, natural life.

We create and enjoy “life” itself in nature. Then, we can feel the cycle of nature (guru-guru) that includes us. After that, we can see the essence of wealth. With this in mind, Gurugulu is moving forward.

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Permaculture?

Gurugulu is sympathetic to the concept of permaculture, which shifts preconceived notions, and has been practicing it little by little. Permaculture is a word coined from the words “permanent” and “agriculture” or “culture”, and was born in Australia in the 1970’s. It is a concept of sustainable agricultural living.

出典:Frogtown Farm

All over the world, permaculture practitioners are living in a way that makes the most of the richness of nature. They reduce consumption by observing the surrounding natural environment from a variety of perspectives and developing ways to make better use of it. We live sustainably and autonomously by reducing our dependence on non-renewable resources. This is the same as the traditional way of life in Satoyama in Japan. GuruGuru will continue to explore the satoyama and permaculture way of life.

Off-grid?

Off-grid means “off” from “grid”.

It means a state of being independent from social infrastructure such as power companies and public water systems. In Japan, it is often used to refer to residences and facilities that are operated by independent solar panels.

At GuruGuru, we think of off-grid as a way of “doing things ourselves, without leaving our lives to the social system. Off-grid includes vegetable gardening, poultry farming, and Sunday DIY! We believe that increasing the number of things we can do by ourselves will lead to the “affluence” of the next generation.

What we are trying

It took about seven years to hand-build the abandoned house, which was almost ready to be built, and continues to make use of the site of more than 7,000 ㎡ to try to lead a self-sustaining and recycling-oriented life.

Spring water is pumped directly from the Yotei spring and delivered to each tap using independent solar power. They also continue to explore off-grid lifestyles by using firewood from the local area, growing mushrooms in the backwoods, raising poultry in the garden, hunting deer, and experimenting with a natural vegetable garden. The off-grid guesthouse GuruGuru is one such experiment. With the spread of the new coronavirus, the future of the world is uncertain. Even in such a situation, you can experience a fun and strong life in the forest.

We hope that you will enjoy your stay with us as if you were in a friend’s home in the mountains, even if it is limited to one group per day.

Check the room information!

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