| China, the "Middle Kingdom" and "Homeland of Tea" is a country of great antiquity and vast size where the people of many different ethnic backgrounds and national traditions have come together to create a culture of lasting grandeur and significance - from the courts of the Imperial dynasties to the founding of a modern socialist republic.
Throughout this long history the Chinese people's constant and ever-present companion has been the soothing infusion of leaves from their native plant which we call tea. In many ways the history of tea represents the history of China itself and it is as an introduction to these thousands of years of tradition that Imperial Tea Court offers its annual CHINA TEA & CULTURE TOUR. . .
The trip begins in the metropolitan center of Shanghai and moves on to the world-famous pottery workshops of Yixing, and then to Hangzhou - where we visit the National China Tea Museum, cruise the legendary West Lake, and help pick and process Dragon Well tea.
From Hangzhou it's on to Fujian provence - the birthplace of oolong tea: first a quick flight to the capital city of Fuzhou and then by scenic rail on to the breathtaking Wuyi Mountains of the north. Here we will visit the famous "Thread in the Sky" crevasse, the "Cloud's Lair" mountain over-look, and the secluded Ming Dynasty "rock tea" garden known as Da Hong Pao ("Big Red Robe"). Two tour highlights are our hike into the mountains to visit local oolong tea gardens and bamboo rafting past the amazing rock formations along the banks of the Nine-Bends River through the Wu Yi Mountain National Nature Reserve.
From Wu Yi the tour continues on by air to China's capital city - Beijing where we visit the exquisite Temple of Heaven, the beautiful and exotic Yong He Gong Tibetan temple, the former Imperial Palace (a.k.a. the "Forbidden City"), and also the beautiful lake, gardens, and pleasure pavilions of the Summer Palace. The tour culminates in what is sure to be one of the culinary highlights of a lifetime with the farewell Imperial Banquet meticulously prepared and served in an Empress's dining room beside the lake of the ancient Beihai Garden. | 
