Darjeeling is a town in India's West Bengal state, in the Himalayan foothills. Once a summer resort for the British Raj elite, it remains the terminus of the narrow-gauge Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, or “Toy Train,” completed in 1881. It's famed for the distinctive black tea grown on plantations that dot its surrounding slopes. Its backdrop is Mt. Kanchenjunga, among the world’s highest peaks.
Darjeeling is a city and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies in the Lesser Himalayas at an elevation of 2,000 metres (6,560 ft). It is noted for its tea industry, its scenic views of the world's third-highest mountain Kangchenjunga, and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, a narrow-gauge mountain railway which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Darjeeling is the headquarters of the Darjeeling district which has a partially autonomous status called Gorkhaland Territorial Administration within the state of West Bengal. It is also a popular tourist destination in India.
In the early 19th century during East India Company rule in India a sanatorium and a military depot were set up in the region. Subsequently, extensive tea plantations were established, the tea growers developing hybrids of black tea and creating new fermentation techniques. A distinctive Darjeeling tea emerged, which became internationally recognised and has ranked among the most popular black teas in the world.[6] The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway connecting the town with the North Bengal plains was completed in 1881 and has some of the few remaining steam locomotives in service in India.