Kodaikanal - Gift of the Forest

... with winter sets in the wander-thirst.

Kodaikanal, meaning "gift of the forest" in the local language is a destination best visited in the winter months if you are looking for serenity, freshness and solitude.

This post primarily intends to shed light on the logistics and help fellow travellers plan an itinerary.

I had a 2-day itinerary. This is the bare minimum you need just to visit the "prime locations" in and around Kodaikanal.

Transport ????????✈️ :

Distance from Bangalore : 460

Distance from Chennai : 530

Nearest railway station : Kodai Road ( 80kms )

Road transport : Good roads, efficient transport system.

We took an overnight bus from Bangalore ( 1500 per person approx ). This reaches Kodaikanal around 8 am the next day. This basically gives you the entire day for local sight seeing or leisure.

Sight seeing ????????:

The major tourist points can be categorized into 2 parts :

1. Everything else - gardens, few water falls, pillar rocks, golf course, few view points, kodai lake, pine forest, guna cave etc etc. Standard package cost is around 1650 for a car taxi and typically covers ~15 spots ( few are a scam though ).

Time to complete this : 3.5 hours in leisure.

2. Dolphin's Nose trek : this covers the famous dolphin's nose, echo point, Vatakkanal falls and typically is a short trek. Do not miss the delicious maggi at Altaf's cafe after the uphill climb back.

Time required : 2.5 hours in total with moderate halts.

1&2 can be combined in 1 single day if you are too adventurous and moderately fit. Need to start early though ( not beyond 9 am ).

Note : Due to winters and fog, most of the viewpoints will be worthless to visit. The trek is definitely recommended though.

Weather ❄️????️ :

Bright sunlight will be a rarity. But is that not the fun part ? The lowest we witnessed was 11 degree C. Moderately windy. It gets dark by 5:30 pm. Plan accordingly.

Stay ????????️:

If you are visiting in winter, I would recommened to set aside all your local sight seeing plans and rather get a cozy place, get that bon-fire lit and just relax !

We found a gem of a place/bunglow named - "Ellesmera" . This is owned and managed by Mr. Babu Cherian. Very spacious rooms, has a fire place, all amenities available, beautiful garden, close to the city and still away from the hustle and bustle and most importantly - amazing caretakers. The food - second to none. The caretakers pampered us with such delicious food and hospitality. Link

Follow this page for my latest travel photo blogs.

_photuwala