Strung out along the edge of the Black Sea where the mountains of northern Turkey dip down from humid highlands, Rize is a pretty place that's scented with the leaves of innumerable tea bushes. In fact, it's hailed as the country's tea capital thanks to all the verdant plantations that cradle into the folds of the Kaçkar Mountains above the center. Of course, a sampling of the local çay is a must. Rize tour guides can take you to their favourite earthy teahouses, or straight up to the fields peppering the peaks of the Kaçkar in the cooler plateaux where the crop is grown. For the most part, they are traditional farmsteads with tea-brewing and processing rooms attached for travelers who come in search of a tipple.

Moreover, Rize lays claim to a proud political legacy, and history buffs can delve into the crumbling keeps of Rize Castle, where the Byzantine bulwarks offer panoramas over the city and the Black Sea. Beyond that, hikers can strap on the boots for the true heights of the Kaçkar Dağları – a series of mountains that turns positively alpine with glacier-carved summits and flower-blooming meadows.