Srimangal

Srimangal (often spelled Sreemangal or Srimongol) is the tea capital of Bangladesh, where hillsides are carpeted with neat rows of emerald tea bushes stretching to the horizon. The morning mist rising off the gardens is one of the most photographed scenes in the country, and the area produces a large share of the nation's tea, making it a natural pairing with nearby Lawachara National Park.

The town is famous for its seven-layer tea, a clever drink in which teas and condiments of different densities are layered to form distinct bands in a single glass. Around the gardens lie pineapple and lemon plots, rubber plantations, and the villages of the Khasia and Manipuri communities who keep their distinctive traditions and weaving alive.

Just outside town is Lawachara National Park, a patch of semi-evergreen tropical rainforest where you might hear the whooping call of the endangered Hoolock gibbon, spot colourful birds, and walk shaded trails beneath a tall canopy.

Commercial tea cultivation in this region dates to the British colonial era of the 19th century, when the cool, wet hills of greater Sylhet proved ideal for plantations. Many of the estates still operating today were established in that period.

The Khasia (Khasi) and Manipuri peoples have long lived in and around these hills, the Khasia known for their betel-leaf cultivation and the Manipuri for their fine handloom weaving and classical dance.

The cool, dry winter from October to March is the most pleasant time, with comfortable weather, misty mornings over the gardens and peak birdwatching at the wetlands.

The tea gardens are at their greenest during and just after the monsoon (June–September), but heavy rain can make trails muddy. The hot months of April–May are best avoided.