Ilam Tea Gardens

Tea came to Nepal in Ilam in 1863, when cuttings were brought from nearby Darjeeling. Today the hills around Ilam bazaar are covered with estates and smallholder gardens producing orthodox leaf tea that is sold around the world, often at a fraction of Darjeeling prices for similar quality.

Walk the paths through the government tea estate just outside town, watch pickers at work in spring and summer, and taste fresh tea at a factory. Ilam bazaar itself has old wooden houses, and the district also grows cardamom, ginger, broom grass and the famous Ilam milk products.

What to see and do

Stroll the paths of the Ilam Tea Estate just outside the bazaar, where rows of bushes run up and down the slopes under shade trees. In the picking season you can watch women plucking leaves by hand, and tea factories around Ilam and Kanyam let visitors taste freshly processed green, black and white teas.

The bazaar has old wooden houses, the Mai Beni temple at the confluence of the Mai and Jogmai rivers, and shops selling tea, cardamom, dairy products and ilame akabare (fiery round chillies). Nearby are Mai Pokhari, Antu Danda, Kanyam and Sandakpur.

Good to know

Buy tea from reputable shops or cooperatives. Weather in Ilam is often misty — mornings are usually clearest. A two- or three-day circuit covering Kanyam, Antu Danda, Ilam bazaar and Mai Pokhari is easy by jeep or hired car from Birtamod.