Kimono Tea Ceremony with Matcha & Sweets in Asakusa Tokyo

Asakusa, the setting for a traditional tea ceremony

Asakusa is Tokyo's most traditional district, grown up around Senso-ji, the city's oldest temple, and the busy shopping street of Nakamise that leads to it. Its lanes are full of craft shops, rickshaws and small eateries, and kimono-clad visitors are a common sight. A tea ceremony in Asakusa fits naturally into a day exploring this old quarter.

The tea house is at 1-12-2 Asakusa in Taito ward, a short walk from Asakusa Station on the Ginza and Asakusa subway lines. Sessions run throughout the day from 09:30 to 17:00, so you can book a morning ceremony before visiting the temple or an afternoon one after lunch. Make sure you go to the Asakusa branch shown in your confirmation, as the tea house has other locations in Japan.

Choosing and wearing a kimono

The experience begins with choosing a kimono. The collection follows the seasons, with patterns such as cherry blossoms in spring, cool blues in summer, maple leaves in autumn and plum blossoms in winter, the way kimono have traditionally been chosen to suit the time of year. The staff help you pick colours and a matching obi sash and then dress you properly, which is an art in itself.

Women with long hair also receive simple hair styling to complete the look. Wearing a kimono changes the way you move and sit, slower and more upright, which puts you in the right frame of mind for the tea ceremony. It is also the moment for photos: a kimono tea ceremony in Tokyo makes for some of the most beautiful pictures of any trip to Japan.

The tea ceremony and its four principles

The Japanese tea ceremony, known as chado or sado, the way of tea, developed over centuries under the influence of Zen Buddhism. Its spirit is summed up in four principles: wa, harmony between people and nature; kei, respect for others and for the objects used; sei, purity of mind and space; and jaku, the tranquillity that comes from practising the other three.

In the tea room, the tea master explains these ideas in English and demonstrates each step: cleansing the utensils, measuring the powdered tea with a bamboo scoop, pouring hot water and whisking with a bamboo whisk. Many of the tools are cherished pieces, and watching how carefully they are handled is part of the lesson. You also learn the etiquette of receiving and drinking the tea, turning the bowl and admiring it.

Whisking matcha and tasting wagashi

Then it is your turn. Under the master's guidance you whisk your own bowl of matcha, using quick wrist movements to raise a fine, even froth on the vivid green tea. It takes a little practice, and the result tastes all the better for it. Matcha has a rich, slightly bitter, grassy flavour that is balanced by the sweets served alongside it.

Those sweets are wagashi, traditional Japanese confections made mainly from sweet bean paste, rice flour and sugar and shaped to reflect the season, a cherry blossom in spring or a maple leaf in autumn. They are served before the tea so their sweetness softens the bitterness of the matcha. The whole experience lasts about 90 minutes, after which you change back and are free to continue exploring Asakusa.