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Discover the roots and flavors of Matsue’s centuries of tea ceremony culture at the Meimei-an tea house
Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture
The Meimei-an Tea House is just a 10-minute stroll from Matsue Castle, passing through the city’s former samurai district.
Meimei-an was built in 1779 at the request of the feudal lord of Matsue, Harusato Matsudaira, also known by his tea master name of Lord Fumai.
A distinguished scholar and authoritative master of tea ceremony, Lord Fumai laid the foundations of Matsue’s tea ceremony culture, including the city’s traditional wagashi sweets that are essential accompaniments to the practice and highly prized in Japan. Matsue is famous for wagashi, on par with cities like Kyoto and Kanazawa.
The Meimei-an Tea House sits atop a hill overlooking Matsue Castle. In the adjoining tatami room, you can sip matcha tea and sample Matsue’s intricate traditional sweets while peering out into the peaceful dry landscape garden.
While tea ceremony may appear quite formal, in Matsue the style is much more relaxed, and it is open to anyone who wants a moment of contemplation and quiet.
Be sure to look for the many local wagashi shops and tea rooms as you explore Matsue City.
How to get there
Take the Sanyo Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka Station bound for Hakata (about 1 hour). Get off at Okayama Station and transfer to the JR Yakumo limited express train bound for Izumo (about 2 hours and 40 minutes), disembarking at Matsue Station. Switch to the Matsue Lake Line bus (about 15 minutes), getting off at the Shiomi Nawate stop. The tea house is a 5-minute walk away.
278 Kitahori-cho, Matsue-shi, Shimane-ken
