Sri Lanka is well known for a lot of things; wildlife, beaches, mountains, as well as tea plantations. However, when it comes to tea production, Sri Lanka tops the chart. Thanks to its massive tea estates in Nuwara Eliya. The best part about the tea empires of Nuwara Eliya is, not only do you get to taste the flavorsome tea but you also get to take a tour around the places where Ceylon’s finest tea is produced. Because of Sri Lanka’s booming tourism, many tea estates have decided to open their gates for tourists.
When you visit these massive tea plantations you will be able to experience the soothing effect it has on you. After all, you’re on a vacation, what more would you expect than a perfect way to relax and rejuvenate?! Furthermore, Nuwara Eliya is one of the greenest places in the entire country. And it is full of amazing tea boutiques and tea estates. This is mainly because the soil and the climate in Nuwara Eliya are ideal for growing tea. If you happen to visit Sri Lanka and you’re looking for a getaway from busy streets and cities, make sure to visit the below-listed tea empires of Nuwara Eliya.
Tea Estates of Nuwara Eliya
Mackwoods
Mackwoods is one of many tea empires of Nuwara Eliya. This tea estate is one of the most awe-inspiring and mysterious landscapes you will ever come across. The Mackwoods Tea factory is situated on the A5 road that leads to Nuwara Eliya from Kandy. Mackwoods is definitely hard to miss as it sits on a bend on the road, all white and green.
With rows of swirling plantations, the lush green hillsides are surrounded by tea bushes with tea pickers here and there in the entire plantation. Even though some people are not very fond of visiting museums, the Mackwoods tea museum is a place that anyone would enjoy visiting. In this place, you get to experience tea tasting on a variety of delicious flavors.
While at Mackwoods sample teas infused with cinnamon, cherry, strawberry, orange, and apple flavors.
When you go on the tour the entire tea-making process will be explained to you which is very impressive. And learning a few things while on vacation can be quite interesting. Overall, this beautiful tea garden is the perfect place for anyone to relax with a warm cup of tea while watching the wonderful views of the estate.
Pedro Tea Estate
Located 3km east of Nuwara Eliya is the beautiful Pedro Tea Estate, another estate among many other spectacular tea empires of Nuwara Eliya. When you arrive at this destination, you will realize that you’re right in the middle of the estate. With the beautiful scenery of green plantations of tea surrounding you, it is indeed some of the most amazing views that you will ever witness.
When you take a closer look at the tea fields, you will notice various tea pickers carefully picking the leaves that eventually go into the process of tea making. Once you enter the tea factory then real experience begins. You get to witness what happens to the leaves after the tea picker hands them over for the process. Inside the Pedro tea factory, you will be given a guided tour of the entire factory. There you get to learn about the stages of tea production. These include plucking of tea leaves, withering, rolling, fermenting, firing, and lastly, grading.
However, most of the tea production is done during the nighttime when the temperature is cooler. Unfortunately, due to this, it is not possible to see the machines at work during your guided tour of the factory. But you will definitely get to witness the staff cleaning and sorting tea leaves. Something you will learn at this point is how the large tea leaves tend to have expensive prices in comparison to the dust grades. At the end of your tour, you will be shown back to the beautiful views of “lovers leap.” Then cap of the tour with a warm cup of tea. Overall, it’s a quite fascinating tour which will keep you wanting to find out more.
Damro Tea Estate
The next best among the many tea empires of Nuwara Eliya is the Damro tea plantations. Damro Tea is one of the oldest tea centers on the Island. This plantation covers almost 5000 hectares of lush tea plantations and 1000+ pluckers. The best part about this particular tea plantation is that you get to walk through the tea fields and experience the scenery.
At this point, you get the opportunity to observe the tea leaves from up close. Watching the tea pluckers plucking the tea leaves at such a speed that can only be gained with years of experience. All in all, it is quite fascinating. The Damro tea plantation looks a bit more commercial in comparison to the others. It is quite large with many tourists.
Just like every other tea factory, Damro too provides a factory tour for all their visitors. In this factory tour, tourists, as well as locals, get to observe different processes of making tea. The tour ends with cake tasting along with a delicious cup of warm tea.
Ceylon Tea Estate Recap
Overall, the many tea empires of Nuwara Eliya are a “must-visit.” Especially, for anyone that’s looking to relax and rejuvenate from the busy streets and warm weather of Sri Lanka. Spending a couple of hours in the greenery of Nuwara Eliya, tasting different flavors of tea with amazing views is something that you should not miss on your visit to this beautiful Island.