Memoirs of Aleisha

Last Wednesday was Culture Day in Japan – another public holiday and day off in which to enjoy another afternoon tea. Culture Day it was, and cultured up I did, by drinking more tea.

From Courtyard Marriot tea

In a period of 11 days, this was my third partaking in afternoon tea. The request this time was for a cheap afternoon tea, and cheap it was. We went to possibly the cheapest afternoon tea establishment in Tokyo. However, it is nice to know that cheap does not necessarily mean bad. I had consulted my High Tea spreadsheet and came up with the Courtyard Marriot hotel in Ginza. Here you can partake in afternoon tea for 1680yen. Print off the offline coupon and you can score yourself an additional 10% discount.

From Courtyard Marriot tea

The lounge was nothing fancy, more like a really, really nice cafe/coffee shop in the lobby of a hotel. The three of us all ordered an afternoon tea set which consisted of sandwiches, one scone, pumpkin pie, and 2 little cakes. The food was tasty, very good. Nothing gourmet, but simple and delicious. There are only four basic teas that you can choose from – darjeeling, assam, earl grey or UVA. We all went the UVA (a Ceylon tea) which was perfect. UVA is a lighter tasting, less astringent black tea. Just what I was in the mood for. Here they tea is served in cups, and you can get as many cup refills as you like, but only of your one choice of tea. So you need to choose one tea and stick with it for the whole session. No tea sampling here.

From Courtyard Marriot tea

From Courtyard Marriot tea

From Courtyard Marriot tea

Afternoon tea at the Courtyard Marriot hotel is relaxing. It’s low key and no frills and very affordable. Afternoon tea without it’s pretentiousness. Endless cups of tea, yummy food, and no time limit. A pretty delightful experience. After about 4 hours of tea, we stayed to enjoy their 300yen glasses of wine.

From Courtyard Marriot tea

From Courtyard Marriot tea

Ginza is always a buzzing, glamorous district. The lights all come on during the evening, and Christmas illuminations will soon be up. After spending over 6 hours at the hotel, I walked then from Ginza to Tokyo station (about a 25-30min walk) through the cool, crisp Autumn night, slightly buzzing from the three glasses of wine. Courtyard Marriot Hotel, Ginza – Oasis Lounge Website in Japanese is here. The discount applies to their whole menu. More photos here