Tea Tourism at Heritance Tea Factory, the Highest Located Tea Factory now One of the Five Best Factory Hotels in the World

27th November 2010, www.island.lk

The Tea pickers originate the long journey of "two leaves and a bud" into the cuppa, and a large number of tourists are joining them to learn Sri Lanka’s tea culture at a very special location. Picking tea is not a cushy and comfortable job as one may think. Despite their ready smiles and efficient fingers working like a swarm of bees on tea leaves, the Tea pickers brave the sun, rain and winds to earn a livelihood.

Tourists in an effort to gain an insight into the tea plucking culture often pick their own tea leaves when staying at the Heritance Tea Factory. The fresh Tea leaves that the tourists pick go through the Organic Mini Tea Factory and then presented to guests before they check out of the hotel.

Hethersett Tea Factory which is now the Heritance Tea Factory Hotel was the highest located tea factory in Sri Lanka and Kandapola railway station was the highest located railway station in Sri Lanka served by the Ceylon Government Railway when it was first commissioned in 1903.

The Heritance Tea Factory is the fist hotel in Sri Lanka to introduce bio mass renewable energy to the hospitality industry in 2007. The bio mass plant helps the hotel to reduce the carbon foot print as it saves a substantial amount of carbon emissions. Heritance Tea Factory has been recognised by Britain’s leading newspapers ‘Sunday Times’ as one of the 100 best places to stay in the world and ‘The Independent’ selected The Tea Factory as one of the 5 best factory hotels in the world.

The Heritance Tea Factory mission is to enable guests to experience a unique interaction with nature and the tea culture, while leaving a minimum impact on the environment.