Visiting the tea fields of Puer (Yunnan, China)
On one of our trips through Yunnan we went to visit the Puer tea fields. Puer (普洱) is located southwest of Yunnan. It is an area known for being the place where the famous Puer tea is grown and named (普洱茶).
I took advantage of my first week of Christmas vacation (just four days) to travel to Puer with a few friends I had recently met in Kunming (two Spaniards and an Argentine). It’s a place with very little tourism, so we were about to delve even deeper into the heart of China. Here’s the story of our experience:
From Kunming, how to go to Puer?
1. By sleeper bus
To get from Kunming to Puer, previously, there was only the option of going by bus. You had to take the bus from Kunming South Bus Station. The underground ride from Kunming city center to the south station takes about 45 minutes.
In our case, we took the night bus (sleeper) to Puer. We left at 10 p.m. and arrived around 6.30 in the morning. The journey itself takes about 6 hours, although the bus stops for 3 hours for the driver to rest.
2. Better option: now there is a Bullet Train
Since 2022, fortunately, there’s a high-speed train that takes you to Puer from Kunming’s train station. The journey takes just 2 hours and 30 minutes. The price can range around 20 euros, and there are trains running from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thanks to this, Puer is much better connected and more accessible to tourists, although it still remains a very authentic destination.
What to do in the city of Puer?
We arrived on New Year’s Eve in the city of Puer. After checking into the hotel, we went for a walk around the city. It was clear that this was a place with very few tourists, as people stared at us even more than usual.
We didn’t find anything particularly interesting in the city center except for a very authentic street market, so we decided to head to a village an hour and a half away from the city to see the tea fields where my friend Héctor had been recently.
We took the bus at 12:00 p.m., knowing that the last one to return to the city was at 2:00 p.m. Even so, we decided to go. After getting off the bus and walking for quite a while, we finally reached the village. By then, it was 2:00 p.m., and we already knew we wouldn’t be able to return by bus. We had to either walk back or hitchhike. Staying there on New Year’s Eve without knowing where to sleep wasn’t an option—or so we thought.
Visiting the tea fields of Puer
Even so, we tried not to think about it and went to visit the home of a family that one of my friends had met during his first visit there. They cultivated Puer tea and lived right above the tea fields. The family invited us to have tea with them. They didn’t speak Mandarin, but rather a local dialect, so communication was more than a bit complicated. The good thing is that in China, you quickly learn how important non-verbal communication can be.
After a while, as we tried to explain that we had no way to return to Puer, they eventually found someone from the village to take us back before nightfall for about 200 RMB (25 euros). However, not before offering us several times to stay at their home overnight.
Once we were calm, we went for a walk around the tea fields and the village. After a while, we were invited to eat with the family and almost without realizing it, we ended up getting drunk with baijiu (the most typical alcohol of China). It was homemade, so we couldn’t refuse it.
In the end, around 6 p.m. we went down to the city by truck. We were a bit drunk and very happy with the final result of our adventure. In the evening, we went for a barbecue dinner (very typical in China) and after the party to celebrate the new year in the only discotheque in town. Without a doubt we were the attraction of the night.
What to see around Puer?
Ninger, an authentic Chinese town
The next day we went to Ninger, to see Hector’s girlfriend. The village is an hour from Puer, surrounded by mountains and, in my opinion, much nicer than Puer.
Just arriving, we were invited to a popular meal and while we were swelling up to eat. Every now and then someone from the village would come and welcome us with a toast, of course with baijiu. After lunch the day went by normally, walking around the village while people were looking at us.
On the third day, we went to see a temple and barbecue by the river. Then we ate again, this time with Ivy’s friends and they kept inviting us to drink baijiu. In the evening, we went to party again. We were in a bar playing Chinese drinking games, and ended up going to a pub where everything became blurred.
On the last day of the trip we visited a pagoda at the top of the mountain. Right next to it was a beautiful viewpoint. In the afternoon we decided to return to Kunming because, after four days we were a bit tired, especially after so much eating and drinking. If one thing became clear on this trip to Puer, it is that the Chinese love to drink alcohol and in rural areas their hospitality borders on the extreme.
Return to Kunming from Puer
We returned the same way we had come, on a sleeper bus. And although it was another very long journey, we spent the time reminiscing about moments from our new experience. If you ever visit Puer, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Without a doubt, you’ll be surprised by the villagers’ hospitality and kindness, and you’ll love the breathtaking Puer Tea Fields.
If you’re planning a trip to China and want to visit the Puer tea fields, you might be interested in our route with a driver and guide through Yunnan. Also, if you’d like to learn more about Yunnan, check out my list of the 5 things that surprised me the most about living in China or my post about Yuanyang, the rice terraces of Yunnan.
There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.
– Robert Louis Stevenson, The Silverado Squatters –
