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Several hotels in the United States are hosting teas for Mother’s Day, on May 14 — many of which are substantial enough to qualify as meals and more creative than the traditional scone and finger-sandwich affairs; they are also open to both hotel guests and nonguests.

Take the Danforth Inn in Portland, Maine, which has an Asian-inspired tea at its restaurant, Tempo Dulu. Guests will choose a tea from among 24 Asian varieties, such as jasmine lily, and will also be served a cocktail made with jasmine-infused gin and rose liqueur. The food menu comprises six small plates, including scallop and asparagus dumplings, five-spice-rubbed beef skewers and an Indonesian-style cake with coffee and chile crumble.

Moms will receive a take-home gift of a house-made lollipop and the menu personalized with their name. Cost is $89 a person.

This is the first year the inn is having a Mother’s Day tea, an owner, Raymond Brunyanszki, said. “We’ve always had a brunch for the holiday, but since we have a collection of Asian teas that we wanted to show off, we decided to do something different this year,” he said.

A number of hotels in New York City are also offering Mother’s Day teas. One option is the Brooklyn High Tea at the Williamsburg Hotel: A live jazz band will entertain guests, and the menu includes single-origin teas from the Brooklyn company Tea Dealers, a tea cocktail and bites such as a mascarpone quiche and sweet-potato doughnuts. Tea guests will be treated to manicures and chair massages on a first-come-first-served basis, and mothers will receive fresh flowers. Cost is $30 a person. The tea is free for hotel guests; nightly rates begin at $285 (brooker@
thewilliamsburghotel.com).

At the crystal-laden Grand Salon at the Baccarat Hotel New York in midtown, a fashion show featuring high-end clothing and accessories will be held several times throughout the afternoon. The hotel’s tea sommelier will infuse teas tableside from the renowned French tea brand Mariage Frères; bites to be served include canapés, petit fours and chouquettes — sugary pastry puffs — in an edible box. Cost is $90 a person.

The highlight of the Mary Poppins Mother’s Day Tea Party at Ocean House in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, to be held on May 13, may be the appearance of a Mary Poppins character, who will be on hand to entertain children with songs and games. The menu includes ham salad, a crabcake sandwich, strawberries and cream, red velvet cupcakes and vanilla madeleines. Cost is $42 a person. Children between ages 4 and 12 are $22 each; those 3 and under are free.

Closer to home

In Seattle, the Bookstore Bar & Cafe at the Kimpton Alexis Hotel is offering more than a dozen teas and a mimosa, as well as salads, open-faced sandwiches and desserts (rosé Popsicles and a meringue are part of the mix). Mothers take home a bouquet of paper flowers designed by a local florist, Pink & Posey. It’s $45 a person (reserve at 206-856-1315).

A tea followed by a safari? That’s the idea of the Mother’s Day Tea Time With Giraffes at Safari West Wildlife Preserve and African Tented Camp in Sonoma County, California. First, guests are offered a tea service that includes a glass of Champagne, locally made cheeses and tarts. They then board a vehicle to take a tour of the property’s more than 400-acre wildlife preserve, where they can spot giraffes, zebras, wildebeests and hundreds of varieties of other animals. It’s $75 a person. Children 2 to 12 are $40 each; children under 2 are free (reserve at 707-579-2551).

Chocolate is the draw of Pink Chocolate Afternoon Tea at the Langham Huntington, Pasadena, in California. Teas and savory sandwiches will be served, but more appealing to some may be the chocolate-infused tarts, mousse cups and crème brûlées, as well as the pink-hued chocolate fountain in the center of the room, where guests can dip fresh fruit. Cost is $62 a person. Children 2 to 12 are $32 each; those 3 and under are free (reserve at 626-585-6218).