Introduction:The period around the Qingming Festival is the golden time for Longjing tea harvesting, and the tea plantations in Longwu Town, Xihu District, Hangzhou attract numerous visitors. At this time, a mobile coffee truck drives into the tea fields, seamlessly blending camping-style coffee with the tea-picking scene to create a unique experience. This article will take you through this new springtime activity, the reasons behind it, and also share some knowledge about the Longjing tea picking season.

Around the Qingming Festival, during the peak period for Longjing tea picking, the tea plantations in Longwu Town, Xihu District, Hangzhou present enchanting scenery, drawing in large crowds of tourists. Amidst these tea fields, a mobile coffee truck has unexpectedly become a hit. It combines camping-style coffee with the tea-picking environment, resulting in a distinctive experience. People sit by the tea fields, sipping coffee while watching tea farmers move busily between the rows — a leisurely scene that is truly captivating.

Netizens have also been buzzing with discussion, with some wondering why it’s not a mobile teahouse instead. In fact, there are several reasons behind this, including pricing factors, the appeal of novelty, and the trend of new-style camping. For busy urban dwellers, the combination of tea fields, a coffee truck, and camping offers a moment of relaxation in their otherwise hectic lives.

"Kids choose one, adults want it all!" This saying fits perfectly here. For most green teas like Longjing, those picked before Qingming are called "pre-Qingming tea," while those picked before Grain Rain are known as "pre-Grain Rain tea." There's a popular saying: "Pre-Grain Rain tea is premium, pre-Qingming tea is a delicacy." Right now is the best time to harvest Longjing. Between the tea rows, tea pickers bustle back and forth, while lines of people buying coffee form non-stop at the edge of the fields.

Longwu Town in Xihu District, Hangzhou, is famed for producing Hangzhou Longjing, and the area has thus developed a uniquely picturesque tea plantation landscape. Every year around Qingming, a large number of tourists flock here not only to enjoy the natural scenery but also to personally experience the entire process of tea picking and processing.

Faced with such a surge in visitors, mobile coffee shop owners naturally seize the business opportunity. To allow more people to appreciate the unique charm of the twenty-four solar terms, recently a coffee truck set up by a tea field in Longwu Town, Xihu District, and started serving camping-style coffee. Here, customers can enjoy their coffee while taking in the beautiful views of the tea plantation and getting a close-up feel of the joy of tea picking.

A video released by Hangzhou Daily on March 26 shows that many spring outing tourists were drawn to this "stylistically different" coffee truck. Tea fields and coffee — two cultures collide and blend here, making this coffee truck particularly bustling with business.

People who bought coffee sit in small groups by the tea fields, enjoying the tranquility of the countryside. A gentle breeze brings the faint fragrance of freshly picked tea leaves. Netizens, after seeing this, couldn’t help but sigh: “On one side is life, and on the other side… also life.”

Some also wonder, why is there a mobile coffee shop by the tea fields and not a mobile teahouse? One netizen gave a witty answer: “Because tea can be refilled — it uses too much water.” But more netizens believe the main reason is that tea is more expensive than coffee. From online discussions, it’s clear that even ordinary Hangzhou Longjing harvested at this time costs over 600 yuan per jin. Higher-quality tea varies in price depending on the growing region — cheaper ones are three to four thousand yuan per jin, while premium varieties can be prohibitively expensive.

Coffee and tea are inherently two different crops, and comparing them purely based on price isn’t entirely reasonable, but regular consumers still tend to use price as a measure of value. Compared to the pre-Qingming Longjing being harvested in the fields, the price of coffee is clearly more acceptable to the general public.

Secondly, consumers are seeking novel experiences. Sitting by the tea fields and drinking tea might be quite ordinary, but sitting by the tea fields and having a camping-style coffee is a whole different story. On one hand, it’s a collision of tea and coffee cultures; on the other hand, the coffee truck itself is a current popular model of coffee shop operation that attracts people to come and take photos.

Moreover, "new-style camping" aligns with today’s young people’s pursuit of an "outdoor experience." Unlike traditional outdoor camping, which was once known for being "extreme" or "rigorous," new-style camping places more emphasis on aesthetics, highlighting closeness to nature while also staying as close as possible to urban lifestyles. Tea fields + coffee truck + camping — though the gear may be simple, it greatly satisfies people’s longing for an ideal way of life. Seemingly mismatched, this brief moment of watching the tea fields while sipping coffee is enough to give busy individuals a moment of respite.

The videographer left a question: While sipping coffee and watching the tea pickers work, one wonders what the aunties doing the picking might be thinking?

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.