BOH Tea Estate and Plantation
The most interesting jaunt we took in the Cameron Highlands was driving up to the BOH Tea Estate and Plantation.
The Highlands was founded back in 1888 by a British colonial surveyor named William Cameron. But he didn’t really do much to claim the place. (In fact, he never successfully mapped it.) It was then “officially” founded as a hill resort (not much as changed) in 1925.
But, of course, the Brit’s living in Malaysia were thinking “we want fresh tea!” (Ok, they were pretty close to India, so they were probably getting it.) But, regardless, they quickly saw potential in the Cameron Highlands region for tea.
In 1929, John Archibald Russell rolled onto the scene and founded what is, today, BOH Plantations Sdn Bhd. BOH is said to be the largest tea producer in Malaysia, representing about 70% of the tea produced in the country.
The BOH Tea Estate and Plantation (don’t confuse it with other BOH properties, because there are several!) is off the beaten path of tea houses and tourist traps. It’s up a long, windy road that takes about 20 minutes of beeping your car horn as you round blind corners to climb. BOH is said to have over 8,000 acres of land in that location, and it seems you get to see a lot of it on your way up.
Once at the top, you’re welcomed with a small cafe overlooking the misty tea crops, where you can enjoy — in true British fashion — as much sugar as you can stomach. Scones with clotted cream, carrot cake, chocolate cake, teh tarik (black tea with warm condensed milk) and, of course, plain old BOH tea (which they recommend WITHOUT sugar, advice promptly ignored).
After indulging, you can continue up a small set of stairs through a tea crop to a look-out offering 360 views of the plantation and region. With the clouds and mist rolling over the soft hills, the setting will fill you with peace.
If sedating yourself with sugar and looking over some of the most beautiful vistas in Malaysia aren’t enough for you, you can take a (very quick) tour of the factory processing plant. The most interesting learning being the equipment they are using dates back to the 1920s!
A must do in the Cameron Highlands.
Here’s what it sounds like at the cafe at BOH tea estate:
