“Between each willow stands a peach, making the West Lake a big teahouse.” A distinctive tea-finding route, connecting the pavilions to transform the lake area into a vast teahouse, is a delightful surprise to people from afar with the lake’s “Two Specials” – tea named Longjing and spring called Hupao”.

Another event featuring Longjing Tea, “Sail for Hearts”, rises its curtain this week as the third session of 2024 West Lake Longjing Carnival series. Staff from China National Tea Museum said the event calls for a boat-and-tea ride to some islet at the heart of the lake. It will be a gathering of heritage tea brands, such as Lion, Dragon, Cloud, Tiger, and Plum, along with the self-grown tea from the Longjing division of the museum. Some tea artist craft brews before your eyes, inviting you to savor the flavor as you bask in the lakeside vista. Amidst an ambiance that marries tranquility with pure joys, each sip will be infused with a distinctive, mesmerizing encounter. 

The boat is new, a smart barge offered by the West Lake Boating coated with the Chinese phoenix elements and vintage patterns like “ancient city walls” and “river tides.” This is a floating stage to host activities for tea culture experience. Join the tea master in the art of “hou-tang” (temperature control) and “ji-fei” (whisking), as we blend the finest West Lake Longjing with balled tea powders to create mesmerizing designs on the brew surface. There you may also come across heritage incenses, special tea drinks, and the timeless “Hundreds of Tricks of Tea” (a knack of creating tea brew designs). Besides, special “Sail for Hearts” badges can be available for collection and event check-ins.

Such fruitful events grace the West Lake and Longjing Tea with an unparalleled glory. You would command a fresh view of the West Lake from entirely different perspectives thanks to the lake’s tea, hills, springs, and attractions, according to the lake administration.   

Free access to the boat ride will be given by the West Lake administration and Hangzhou Daily. Log in to the Hangzhou News (APP), find the “Points for Goods”, and grab the chance at 12:00 on April 24.