Sylhet

Sylhet is Bangladesh's tea capital — rolling estates of deep green tea bushes cover the hills north and east of the city, interspersed with orange groves and rubber plantations. It's a landscape unlike anything else in the country: pastoral, lush, and almost indecently green. The Srimangal sub-district at the southern edge of the region is the heart of the tea industry and home to the famous seven-colour tea.

Beyond the estates, Sylhet holds surprises. Ratargul is a freshwater swamp forest — the only one in Bangladesh — accessible by narrow boat through a canopy of higura trees. Jaflong on the Indian border is a stone-picking river so clear you can see the smooth boulders on the bottom from your boat. Biswanath, Sunamganj, and Nikli Haor offer vast wetlands that transform into inland seas during monsoon.

Sylhet is best in winter (November–February) for clear skies and comfortable temperatures. The haors are at their most dramatic in monsoon — a different kind of beautiful.