Tea Culture

Price Varies by Group Size

7 Days or More

Friendly to All Age

1-10 Pax

From ancient mountain paths to mist-covered tea gardens, Yunnan is where tea’s story begins. For thousands of years, communities here have cultivated and consumed tea not just as a drink—but as medicine, ritual, connection, and culture.

This is more than a tea-tasting trip. It’s a chance to walk the land where tea was born, to pick leaves from thousand-year-old trees, to roast your own puer cake by hand, and to hear songs shared over tea fires for generations.

On this immersive journey, we’ll explore both the Six Ancient Tea Mountains—where imperial tribute tea was once harvested—and the Six New Tea Mountains, known today for bold, highland-grown leaves and forest-grown traditions. Each stop reveals a different facet of Yunnan’s living tea culture, one cup and one story at a time.

Why a Tea Culture Trip in Yunnan?

Yunnan is the birthplace of Camellia sinensis, the tea plant.
It produces over 95% of China’s puer tea, known for aging and deep complexity.
Many tea trees are still semi-wild or ancient—some over 1000 years old.
Ethnic groups like the Bulang, Dai, Hani, and Jinuo have built entire ways of life around tea.
You’ll not only taste tea—you’ll live it.

Sample 1 Day Itinerary
(from a 7-Day Trip)

While our tours can always be customized to fit your schedule, we recommend a 7–14 day journey for a truly in-depth Yunnan experience.

Day 1

Forest to Fire — A Day in the Life of Tea

Morning: Guided forest hike into ancient tea tree habitat; forage for wild herbs, vegetables, or mushrooms.

Lunch: Return to the village and cook a plant forward feast using forest finds and fresh mountain ingredients.

Afternoon: Visit local tea gardens. Hand-pick leaves and learn to roast, roll, and press them into puer cakes or dragon pearls.

Taste freshly made teas and compare flavor profiles from different mountain terroirs.

Evening: Tea & Culture Under the Stars

Enjoy a bonfire party in the village courtyard.

Share tea and join local Yi villagers in string music, mountain song duets, and reed-pipe dancing.

Sleep in a peaceful eco-lodge or family homestay surrounded by tea gardens.

Note: Itineraries can be customized based on the season (spring or autumn harvest), your pace, and special interests (e.g. tea ceremony, tea blending, biodiversity walks).

We will commence our journey in Xishuangbanna. Kindly ensure your arrival in Xishuangbanna for first dinner and hotel check-in.

We prioritize locally sourced, ecological, and organic ingredients, advocating for a low-carbon, eco-friendly, and healthy diet. The meals provided during the tour will predominantly consist of plant-based options, supplemented by select high-quality local non-vegan choices or fully vegan alternatives. We accommodate vegan, vegetarian diets, gluten-free or other requests.

Throughout the tour, public or local-style restroom facilities are accessible, while western-style toilets are predominantly available in hotels and large shopping complexes.

For a more authentic experience and to really support the local business, we usually choose clean, characteristic and comfortable local accommodation over international hotels, but when there are no local options, we would stay in regular local or international hotels. Every room is usually shared by two people. For single room supplement, please consult us prior to booking for pricing.

Ensure you pack comfortable footwear, waterproof hiking boots, a rain jacket, a swimsuit, towels, a toothbrush. Additionally, we suggest bringing along a reusable shopping bag.

Reusable bowls, bamboo chopsticks, spoons will be provided for guests. However, we strongly encourage you to bring your own reusable items.

As part of our eco-friendly initiative, we will furnish you with an eco-travel gift box for use during the tour. This includes items such as a bamboo toothbrush, tooth tablets, and soap bars.

During this tour, our guide will introduce you to our low impact lifestyle. We will assist you in minimizing the use of single-use plastic disposables by encouraging refusal and offering alternatives.

Price List Varies by Group Size

Tour Type: private tour
1500-3000 RMB per person per day
please consult us first about the pricing prior to booking

All Food and Water(Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks)
All Workshops
Tickets to all the Sights(included in the tour)
Experienced Local English-Speaking Guide
Licensed Electric Car or Van with Professional and Responsible Driver
Airport or Train Station Pickup
Accommodation(7 nights)
Mandatory Insurance

【Price Includes】

【Price Excludes】

Ready to Sip at the Source?

Whether you’re a tea collector, café owner, wellness traveler, or nature lover—this is your invitation to connect with tea in the most intimate, hands-on way possible.

📩 Let us craft your tea origin journey.

From forest foraging to village stays and artisanal tea making—we’ll build a custom Yunnan tea tour just for you.