Around the world in 8 cups of tea

Whether you’re a chai green tea, earl grey, or rooibos drinker, we’ve rounded up the destinations that travellers like you have picked as being the best place for a decent cup of tea. *

Doi Mae Salong in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand

Doi Mae Salong is a small mountain in Thailand that was occupied by Chinese Soldiers and briefly became part of the Golden Triangle, one of Asia’s two main opium-producing areas. Local farmers were pressed into growing opium by the occupier, but after being liberated they were happy to swap opium for oolong. Today the Wang Put Tan tea plantation is considered to be the best place in the world * to grab a cup of tea. Stay nearby at the Phumektawan Resort.

Haputale in Badulla District, Sri Lanka

Haputale is home to the Dambatenne Tea Factory, also known as the producers of Lipton Tea. The Lipton family established the original Dambatenne estate and visitors can still visit Lipton’s Seat (1,970 metres above sea level) and take their tea al fresco. Enjoy unlimited refills of locally-produced tea at the Olive Hill Top Hotel.

Darjeeling in West Bengal, India

The small city of Darjeeling was originally a cluster of independent villages that were centralised when the British, drawn by the region’s mild temperatures, established an administrative base there. Today visitors can reach the local tea plantations via The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway and can purchase packets of freshest leaves to carry back home or savour on the spot. Enjoy an uninterrupted view of the tea fields at Ging Tea House.

Nuwara Eliya in Nuwara Eliya District, Sri Lanka

Like the Indian city of Darjeeling, Nuwara Eliya in Sri Lanka became a colonial hub during the British occupation. Today the Pedro Tea Factory runs tours that cover the region’s colonial history and chart the development of the tea industry up to the present day. Visitors can finish the day with a refreshing cup of tea atop the Single Tree Mountain, before adjourning to one of the tea plantations’ colonial bungalows, like La Grande Villa.

Tanah Rata in Pahang, Malaysia

One of the largest producers in Malaysia, the Bharat Tea Estate of Tanah Rata is known for the rich, aromatic and vaguely Scottish flavour of its tea. The plantation’s Cameron Valley Tea is served daily, alongside the traditional British high tea staples of fruitcake, dropped scones, cream, berry jam and slivers of lemon. Or you can have a pot of locally-produced tea at the Cameron Highlands Resort.

Ooty in Tamil Nadu, India

The green tea-plantations of Ooty (an Anglicized nickname for Udhagamandalam) are famous for the high quality of their black tea. Any tea-tasting tour is incomplete without a visit to the Doddabetta Tea Park (next to the Doddabetta Peak). Stay nearby at the Leopard Rock Wilderness Resort.

Hangzhou in Zhejiang, China

The green tea of the Longjing Tea Fields in Hangzhou is known throughout China and every year thousands make the pilgrimage in time for the tea harvest. From March till May the fields around Manjelong, Longjin and Mijiawu Villages are filled with tea pickers and the leaves you buy here are at their freshest and most potent. Stay within picking distance at the Van Wind Inn.

Chipping Campden in Gloucestershire, United Kingdom

A small market town in the achingly-English Cotswolds, Chipping Campden was the highest-rated destination in the UK for getting a decent cup of tea. The Chipping locals have done more than enough to earn this high praise and the main street is full of teashops and cafés competing to offer the best high tea, including scones, clotted cream and homemade jam. For a truly excellent cup of tea book a room at Badgers Hall.

** Our data analysts looked at endorsements for ‘tea’ by Booking.com customers.