Enjoy tea time on Türkiye's Black Sea coast—in pictures

The province of Rize, in northeastern Türkiye, has long been known as the country’s tea capital. Plantations cling to steep mountain slopes overlooking the Black Sea and are tended to by remote communities.

A colourful tea tray with traditional tulip-shaped glasses as someone is pouring tea into them from a silver tea pot.
The tea production in Rize is often very small scale and all done by hand, from the harvesting to the drying, fermenting and serving.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
Story and photographs byKerry Murray
January 10, 2026
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK).
Sacks of tea leaves mounted on the back of a pick-up truck.
Steep, mountainous and with high rainfall, the landscape of Rize in Türkiye’s north east is perfect for the production of tea. The challenging geography has also meant that the people of this region have always been relatively isolated from the rest of the country, and traditional ways of life are maintained much as they have been throughout the centuries.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
A simple cable car with one person riding down over a mountain gorge with thick forests and fog hanging in the clouds.
In some cases, there are no roads to access isolated hamlets and cable cars are the only means to cross the steep ravines.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
An elderly woman smiling into the camera wearing a colourful hijab, as she leans on a wooden railing, supporting her head with her hand.
A wooden mountain house with plants growing through the tiled roof as it pours rain.
Emine Yılmaz lives in the hamlet of Ortaköy and belongs to the Hemshin people, who are Armenian in origin. They wear a very distinct traditional dress and reside in large communal houses, which they call mansions.
Photograph by Kerry Murray (Top) (Left) and Photograph by Kerry Murray (Bottom) (Right)
A green mountain valley with plantations and isolated houses dotted along the hills.
The buildings are mostly wooden and found in villages high up in the mountains surrounded by tea fields.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
An arched stone bridge leading over a rocky river at the foot of a mountain hidden behind fog.
Şenyuva Bridge is an Ottoman-era stone arch that connects villages and tea plantations on either side of the Fırtına River. It’s one of more than 20 well-preserved bridges that cross the Fırtına and its tributaries, and its high arches are characteristic of the region — they’re built that way to protect them from the heavy flooding common in these valleys.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
A tea plantation with houses hidden behind thick bushes in the background, as two women pick leaves with baskets.
The tea factories are either government owned or private, but the plantations are all owned by locals. As a result, instead of a vast tea plantation monoculture, the landscape is a patchwork of small fields, each individually owned and worked by families. In some cases, the tea fields are right in town, such as Ardeşen, and surround the houses and apartments much like the allotments found in many European cities.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
A voyeuristic view onto a wide lake through a forest opening with mountains in the far distance.
The Borçka Karagöl Nature Park is in the neighbouring Artvin Province, right on the Georgian border, and is named for the picturesque Lake Karagöl (Black Lake). Known for its rich and untouched biodiversity, and wild animals such as bears and deer, the nature park has a wide variety of walking trails and picnic areas that are popular with locals and overseas visitors alike during the summer months.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
Yuchi Pirim drying tea leaves
A muslin cloth with pressed tea leaves in the middle, held a pair of hands, as the stain spreads outwards.
On plantations lining the slopes overlooking the Hemşin River, Yuchi Pirim and his family cultivate and produce organic tea for their company Chaynik Tea. The production is very small scale and is all done by hand, from the harvesting to the drying and fermenting.
Photograph by Kerry Murray (Top) (Left) and Photograph by Kerry Murray (Bottom) (Right)
A spread of dishes and tea on a white-clothed table, including cut cucumber, bread and a cheesy dip.
As part of their dedication to tea culture, they offer tours of the plantations as well as tastings paired with local dishes. Muhlama is one delicacy they offer — it’s made with local cheese, butter and cornmeal all cooked slowly on the stovetop until melted. It’s then served hot with fresh bread.
Photograph by Kerry Murray
An old-school aga oven with a double tinned tea pot sitting on top and view of the mountains stretching behind it.
An elderly woman smiling and sitting on a wooden bench with lush trees in the background.
The tea’s brewed in the traditional Turkish double teapot, simmered over coals for up to half an hour before serving. The plantations are near Hemshin villages, too, such as the one Gülsüm Yılmaz (right) lives in.
Photograph by Kerry Murray (Top) (Left) and Photograph by Kerry Murray (Bottom) (Right)
Published in the Jan/Feb 2026 issue of National Geographic Traveller (UK).

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