Steamn Co., Ltd.
[Manazuru Town, Kanagawa Prefecture] Family-friendly glamping “Kusuku Glamping Manazuru” is finally open
[Opening date] Wednesday, October 25, 2023
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Steam’n Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Manazuru-cho, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture, Representative: Ken Fujita), a startup company aiming to develop and operate an ecotourism business, is located in Manazuru-cho, Kanagawa Prefecture with the three pillars of
“sustainability,” “social good,” and “hospitality.” COUSCOUS Glamping Manazuru, a family-friendly glamping facility based on the concept, will open on Wednesday, October 25, 2023. In advance of this, we have started accepting reservations and recruiting opening staff from Friday, September 15, 2023.
Home page: https://couscousglamping.com
[Background to the opening]
The team members of Steam’n Co., Ltd. are childhood friends and their brothers and sisters who call Kanagawa Prefecture home, and are also camp buddies.
Co-representative Fujita has experience in starting a business in Central America and Belize, planning and marketing domestic IT and overseas expansion support projects, and co-representative Kumazawa has experience in nature conservation and at an environmental certification agency and environmental protection organization. We have been working on corporate social responsibility. In addition, our team members are professionals in the restaurant and hospitality industries.
After going through these experiences, it was rather natural for us to propose a glamping project that would revitalize the region in the western part of Kanagawa Prefecture, where we had been familiar since childhood, when we were planning a project for the rest of our lives.
[Image 1: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-56c6c1d20f701fdc72f5-1.jpg&s3=120714-2-657215e89404a04fed87370baf7e9cfc-1200×866.jpg] After establishing the company, we went through many twists and turns until we found a suitable location in Manazuru Town, which is the only depopulated area in Kanagawa Prefecture. We have been developing Kusuku Glamping Manazuru, with the aim of opening in May 2023, in order to revitalize the region through “diversity employment, including mothers raising children, the elderly, and people with disabilities.”
However, the construction company that had commissioned the
construction went bankrupt after paying the initial and interim payments, leaving the project unfinished, and the project came to a halt in April 2013.
Therefore, we revived the business by obtaining the cooperation of various construction companies around Manazuru Town and raising funds through crowdfunding and financing from financial institutions. Although construction has been delayed since then, it is finally scheduled to open in October 2023.
Crowdfunding page: https://readyfor.jp/projects/couscous
We will begin accepting reservations and recruiting opening staff on Friday, September 15, 2023.
Reservation page: https://app.satoyama-travel.com/booking/SGCSB/couscous/plans Recruitment page: https://couscous.jbplt.jp/
[About Kusuku Glamping Manazuru]
Kuscous Glamping Manazuru is based on three concepts:
“sustainability,” “social good,” and “hospitality.”
The original topography and vegetation were maintained without much change, and the vacant house was renovated and used as a center house. Old materials are used for building materials, and the walkways are lined with wood chips made from driftwood washed up at a dam in Kanagawa Prefecture. We will select sustainable sources for
electricity, ingredients, amenities, etc., and work together with our guests to think about the future of the environment and society for the next generation.
[Image 2: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-ae3251456349433426f5-2.jpg&s3=120714-2-3160adaaed5eaac32abc3cedf7432167-736×453.jpg] Manazuru Town is the only town in Kanagawa Prefecture designated as a “depopulated area,” and countermeasures against population decline and the declining birthrate and aging population are issues. Kusukus Glamping Manazuru aims to revitalize the region through
“communicating the charm of the region,” “local production and local consumption of food and building materials,” and “employing diversity, including mothers raising children, the elderly, and people with disabilities,” and addressing these social issues. We will work to resolve the issue.
COUSCOUS Sustainable Challenges
[Image 3: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-a25ced19f3104f8cbf2d-3.png&s3=120714-2-7b4f44edf5f0de7e9c56c57b0fa3a0b0-736×491.png ]
●Origin of facility name
The name “COUSCOUS Glamping Manazuru” comes from the sound of children’s laughter, “couscous”, which is a Mediterranean ingredient that is associated with Manazuru town, and the town tree of Manazuru. The name comes from three large trees, the camphor tree. Our hope is that those who visit our facility can enjoy delicious food and activities in the midst of nature.
Facility logo depicting the blessings of the sea and mountains and the smiles of children
[Image 4: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-1a268866a2a0fbf2950d-4.jpg&s3=120714-2-b1d094a0943ccb81374c83ec97708aa6-736×491.jpg] ●Couscous Glamping Manazuru Facility Overview
[Table 3: https://prtimes.jp/data/corp/120714/table/2_1_f37d4b8c1e2bf6cad1d342901c0fd24a.jpg ]
[Characteristics of Couscous Glamping Manazuru]
●Facilities/View
Kusuku Glamping Manazuru is located on a hill with a beautiful view at the base of the Manazuru Peninsula, surrounded by the sea on three sides. The approximately 5,700 square meter venue has a variety of facilities, including seven unique accommodation tents, a center house with showers, toilets, a restaurant, and a bar, a playground with outdoor play equipment, and a fire place where guests can interact with each other. I’ll welcome you.
We also have a tent with a private dog run, so you can bring your dog with you. Facility map
[Image 5: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-1d8a3f73b739bc8287f3-5.jpg&s3=120714-2-51aecd228f8fd56c50574b433c20ec0e-1200×849.jpg] From the facility, you can see the Miura Peninsula, Boso Peninsula, Izu Peninsula, and Izu Islands across Sagami Bay.
View from the suite tent
[Image 6: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-adb542146ed7de52486a-6.jpg&s3=120714-2-be5e3786ea979029325f48c8126959da-1200×900.jpg] ●Activities
The Couscous Kids Club offers a program where guest children can enjoy hands-on learning away from their parents.
We foster children’s spontaneity, independence, sensitivity, flexibility, imagination, and problem-solving skills through activities in nature that incorporate experiential programs in science and mathematics developed overseas. In addition, by interacting with participants of various ages and from various backgrounds, you will be able to understand diversity and develop a sense of cooperation. Parents can relax and enjoy adult activities while attending the kids club. We also have a great working environment, with free high-speed Wi-Fi available in all areas of the facility. You can conduct web
conferences stress-free. By working remotely in a different
environment than usual, you can generate new ideas and improve your efficiency! Workation members can mingle around the bonfire, leading to new collaborations.
Even if you are traveling with children, you can leave them at the kids club, so you can concentrate on your work.
[Image 7: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-ebe6d4193279b9167cce-7.jpg&s3=120714-2-ce6cc1631e3c98b87347284cf5181b28-1200×800.jpg] ●Accommodation
At Kuscous Glamping Manazuru, you will stay in a tent set up on the wooden deck. The inside of each of the seven unique tents is always kept at a comfortable temperature, and you can have a good night’s sleep on the fluffy beds. There is a living-dining area in front of each tent, where you can enjoy dinner and breakfast in a private space.
Harappa regular tent
[Image 8: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-2314908a7f01a087ec49-8.jpg&s3=120714-2-df5561e1e3c2a3189f51cc691358293f-3900×2925.jpg] Sweet tent on the hill
[Image 9: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-fbce9061d96033d13388-9.jpg&s3=120714-2-81482e1fb5c04669946786131f5c2375-1800×1350.jpg] ●Meals
Meals are “home-cooked camp meals” using locally sourced ingredients such as seafood, wild game, and locally grown vegetables. Each accommodation tent has a grill where you can enjoy BBQ and Dutch oven dishes.
All ingredients, cooking utensils, tableware, drinks, etc. will be provided by the facility, so you can come empty-handed.
The restaurant in the center house, which has an open wooden deck, serves lunch, light meals, and a variety of drinks. After dinner, there will be bar time where drinks and snacks will be served. At Couscous Glamping Manazuru, we serve game ingredients, mainly venison, for dinner and lunch.
Deer meat is not something you are used to eating, but it is actually good for your health, beauty, and the environment. Some people have the impression that venison is “smelly” and “tough,” but properly processed and carefully cooked venison is exquisite.
Eating deer meat, which is hunted for pest control, which is currently only used for about 10% of the time, helps improve the local environment.
The deer meat will be provided by “Japan Hunter Girls,” a company in Minamiashigara City that conducts hunting, extermination of harmful birds and animals, and operates a processing plant. At Kusuku Glamping Manazuru, we support the activities of the Japan Hunter Girls, who preserve the rich forests that foster biodiversity through hunting, and recycle the life of captured animals in order to maintain the balance of the ecosystem and protect people’s lives. We empathize with this and will work to increase the use and awareness of gibier. Venison barbecue and deer stew
[Image 10: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-e7893d575c1cbb97402e-10.jpg&s3=120714-2-b48774218ae07f8c41b1daf602e1d427-1300×800.jpg] [Charm of Manazuru]
Manazuru is also known as the place where Minamoto no Yoritomo set out to make a comeback in ancient times. With a warm climate throughout the year, it has been loved by many cultural figures as a resort destination since ancient times. Katsumi Miyake, a painter who lived in Manazuru during the Meiji period, compared its scenic beauty to the scenic spots of the Mediterranean Sea and praised it as the “Riviera of the East.”
Manazuru has good access from Tokyo and Yokohama, and can also be used as a base for nearby tourist destinations such as Yugawara, Hakone, Odawara, and Atami.However, Manazuru has set its own “beauty standards” and has avoided the wave of resort development during the bubble period. The city has also maintained a townscape that is in harmony with nature.
Manazuru Port scenery
[Image 11: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-1ad67f096ef7f8cfec6a-11.jpg&s3=120714-2-958194621615f02c6ada155334e4e4a0-1200×800.jpg] Manazuru is also a gourmet and leisure town.
Thanks to the nutrients that flow in from the “Obayashi” protected forest, where trees are over 300 years old, and the “deep” topography that suddenly deepens from near the shore, you can catch a rich variety of fish and delicious fish. At Toyosu Market, it is said that you can never go wrong with fish caught in Manazuru. Citrus cultivation is also popular, taking advantage of the warm climate and slopes.
Manazuru is also said to be the birthplace of fun diving, and in addition to diving, adults and children can enjoy a variety of leisure activities regardless of the season, such as swimming in the sea, playing on the shore, fishing, boating, and picking oranges. Sunrise at Mitsuishi, a scenic spot that is also a mecca for rock fishing
[Image 12: https://prtimes.jp/i/120714/2/resize/d120714-2-3010f8717b68f36c3fa7-12.jpg&s3=120714-2-94747eb1a5f46215af5dee51fee000f4-1200×800.jpg] [Operating company information]
[Table 4: https://prtimes.jp/data/corp/120714/table/2_2_7474e4a61c356458f97a46cf6734d432.jpg]
More details about this release:
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000002.000120714.html