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Review: Peninsula Beijing Afternoon Tea
My family loves to do afternoon tea, and since we are on a surprise trip around the world for my mom’s birthday, we’ve found a lot of excuses to seek out GREAT afternoon teas. Our first Afternoon Tea is Beijing. China has taken to afternoon tea with such fervor that you can “enjoy” it at KFC and Pizza Hut. We were looking for a nicer ambience and wanted something that would pay close attention to detail and my mom’s birthday. We sought out the Peninsula. Peninsula hotels are in a rarified air…they aren’t just 5 star, they’re in their own league. Several years ago we had an iconic afternoon tea at the flagship Peninsula Hong Kong, and I had Afternoon Tea at the Peninsula Bangkok while I stayed there in 2013. I’d read, recently, that the Peninsula Beijing had renovated their rooms and had spruced up some of the common areas as well so I figured it’d be the perfect spot to relax, sip, and enjoy. Let’s take a look at the Peninsula Beijing Afternoon Tea. ( If you’d like to read a review of the hotel, go here)
It’s set in the Lobby Lounge.
The essence of the Peninsula is quiet, unassuming, luxury. Everything is serene and guest oriented. With that being said…I think the common areas still show some age. They are extremely well maintained and the service is second to none, but feel a bit dated.
The price is unbeatable. 398 RMB for two or ~$30 a piece.
An afternoon tea at one of the nicest hotels in Beijing annnnnnnd at the Peninsula for $30 a piece? That is unbelievable.
Everything was decorated for Easter which is this coming Sunday.
The Afternoon Tea presentation.
Sterling silver, fine china, and a live, three piece band. Since we don’t eat any meat, but fish, they accommodated us with extra vegetable and tuna sandwiches.
We chose The Peninsula Signature tea and a Whole Chrysanthemum flower which was delicious.
They brought out a special cake. The attention to detail is exactly what we had hoped for 🙂
And comped Champagne
Overall:
The Peninsula continues to impress. The food was very good, the ambience was superb, and the service….The service was second to none. We were tended to by the Assistant Manager of the Lobby Lounge, Mary, and she exuded the Peninsula pedigree: discreet, detail oriented, luxurious, and gracious. I’d highly recommend indulging in a Peninsula Beijing Afternoon Tea, and for only $30 a head…the price is unbeatable.
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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