Envision a place that takes you through an amazing sensory expedition and every time you take a step further, it holds you back to soak in the aroma one last time. Brightly colored houses, lush green tea estates, low lying clouds, shy but ever-smiling locals - Munnar is a different world of its own full of beauty, charm, and surprises
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You must be thinking why one needs to read about such a popular destination beforehand. With Munnar being one of the most preferred destinations where tourists flock from all parts of the world, it still has some unexplored parts slightly less untouched. And it goes without saying that one gets the perk of soaking in the beauty of these places in solitude. So let's get started.
1. Staying at the Wind, Chinnakanal, Munnar
Imagine waking up every morning to hear the chirping of the birds, see the sun's golden rays kiss the mist-clad hills. watch the clouds as they drift away slowly and sip tea on the balcony with a panoramic view of the green valley. We got to experience all of this during our stay at the Wind. 23 km away from Munnar town, the resort is secluded from the city hustle bustle and is nestled on the cliff's edge.
We stayed in the cliff edge cottage that offered tantalizing views of the green valleys and misty mountains. With a limited number of cottages, you also tend to enjoy the solitude at the resort. However, the downside is that you have to book way in advance to get to stay here. Funnily though, we were so intent on staying here that we postponed our Munnar trip once due to unavailability of any rooms here.
A special mention to George, the hotel manager who accommodated all of our requests, the hotel chef who customized all our meals as per our liking and the staff who always wore a smile and made us feel like at home.
2. Sunrise from the Kolukkumalai Peak
I feel the sky above changing colors, I feel the mist in the air, I feel the mountains around me, I feel the flora and fauna awakening, I feel the rays of the rising sun, I feel blessed, I feel contended !!
Some places should be seen with your own eyes to believe that they do exist. One and a half hours away from our resort, the Kolukkumalai Peak is snuggled in the clouds and is more magical than what we could manage to capture. We still remember this morning as if it was yesterday - the chill in the air, the serenity and the magic unwrapping as the sun rose and lit the mountains.
Kolukkumalai is home to the highest tea plantations in the world and is also famous for its panoramic views and the rugged mountains that surround it. Undoubtedly the best Sunrise spot in Munnar.
Kolukkumalai was around one and a half hours away from our resort (if staying around Munnar town do start two hours before the sunrise, you don't want to reach the peak after a bumpy ride and still miss the magical sunrise). George was kind enough to arrange for a Jeep for us and we woke up and started from the resort before the crack of the dawn around 4:30 AM. After 60 min of an extremely bumpy ride and a couple of hairpin bends, we reached the Kolukkumalai pea
Believe us you won't regret starting at 4 AM and going up a rugged road, the magical sunrise and panoramic views at the peak make up for it
3. Chinnakanal
Chinnakanal has some stunning panoramic landscapes in its vicinity with some major attractions like Lockhart Tea Estate, Periyakanal Tea Factory, Power House Waterfalls and Anayirangal Dam amongst others which one can enjoy by avoiding the hordes of tourists. We found Chinnakanal to be more calm and serene than Munnar. We spent hours driving around in Chinnakanal and stopping at every nook and corner to capture its beauty through the lens
4. Lockhart Tea Estate
"Our happiest moments as tourists always seem to come when we stumble upon one thing while in pursuit of something else"
We realized the true meaning of the wise words by Lawrence Block in Munnar. After having a great time in Chinnakanal, we decided to explore some popular tourist spots around Munnar town on the third day. Being a weekend that day, we hired a chauffeured car for the whole day to save ourselves from driving in heavy traffic and wasting time in looking for parking spots. Although after witnessing hordes of tourists at all the spots we decided to head back early. But as luck would have it, we crossed one of the most charming and picturesque tea estates of Munnar on our way back to Chinnakanal - The Lockhart Tea Estate. And we got really lucky to watch the sun setting behind the manicured tea estates across the rolling hills.
Quick Tip: We paid around 1200 bucks for the full day car rental and would strongly recommend hiring a car if you plan to peacefully visit the tourist spots near the Munnar town over the weekend
Apart from the pristine Tea Estates, here's a list of other things to see and do in the area:
Mattupetty Dam and Lake
Anayirankal Dam and Lake
Echo Point
Spice Garden
Horticulture Garden
Top Station
Getting There
The most convenient way to reach Munnar is to fly to Kochi and rent a car from there (Munnar is approx 160 km away from Kochi). But given the excellent conditions of highways in South India, we decided to do a road trip all the way to Munnar from Bangalore. With Shivani not well versed in highway driving meant that I only had to drive all the way to Munnar. Since our resort was in Chinnakanal (23 km from Munnar towards South) we decided to break our journey at Dindigul. We started from Bangalore in the afternoon hours to halt and spend the night at Dindigul and cover the rest of the distance in the morning to reach Munnar. Dindigul was a much bigger town than we expected. We stayed at Praniv Plaza, a budgeted hotel, located in the heart of the town and okay to spend a night. When in Dindigul, you can also treat your taste buds with the Thalapakattu biryani but brace yourself with some spiciness
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