Taipei Tea Tour: Maokong & Thousand Island Lake Experience

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.89 (63 reviews) 89% rated it 5 stars

Free cancellation

1/7

Duration8h

GroupUp to 6

LanguagesEN · JA

PickupAt your hotel

Two tea ceremonies, two growing regions, one full day in the mountains outside Taipei

A full-day small-group tea culture tour from Taipei that ascends into the Maokong hills by gondola, visits working tea farms and meets tea masters, and includes two traditional tea ceremonies with tastings of locally grown organic teas, plus views of Thousand Island Lake. Hotel pickup and drop-off in Taipei city are included; the guide speaks English or Japanese.

Step-by-step itinerary

Taipei tea culture and sightseeing tour

Ride Maokong Gondola or scenic drive
Visit Zhinan Temple
Explore two tea growing areas
Enjoy views of Thousand Island Lake
Participate in two tea ceremonies

The Experience

The day starts with a gondola ride over the Maokong hills—a scenic ascent that sets the pace for everything that follows. From there, the guide takes you to tea farms off the beaten path, where you'll meet the people who grow and process the tea you'll taste later. Maokong is particularly famous for Tieguanyin Oolong, and the farms here sit among some of Taiwan's most productive slopes. The first tea ceremony happens at a traditional tea house in the hills, where you'll learn about Taiwan's tea history while sampling various types of locally grown organic teas.

After the morning ceremony, the route continues deeper into the mountains to explore other tea-growing areas. You'll reach Thousand Island Lake, where cascading tea terraces drop away in every direction—the name comes from the way the landscape breaks into countless small plots and ridges. The afternoon brings a second traditional tea ceremony at another tea house, giving you time to settle into the ritual and ask questions about what you're tasting. An expert in tea ceremony guides both tastings, so the experience builds rather than repeats.

The tour runs about eight hours total, with hotel pickup and drop-off included for Taipei city locations. If weather closes the Maokong Gondola, the guide substitutes a scenic drive through the same hills, so the day's structure and stops remain intact. The guide is live and speaks English or Japanese, and the Maokong Gondola admission is covered in the price.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off in Taipei city.
admission to the Maokong Gondola.
visits to two tea-growing areas with a guide.
two traditional tea ceremonies with tastings of locally grown organic teas and expert instruction in tea ceremony.

Good to know

Easy physical levelInfant seats availableNot for heart conditionsNot for back problems

Operated by MyTaiwanTour

Is this one for you?Choose this if you want a guide leading the group through two tea-growing regions and hosting introductions to tea masters—you'll move together on a set route rather than exploring independently.