38 Places to Visit in Kodaikanal

38 Places to Visit in KODAIKANAL

OTHER HILL STATIONS IN TAMIL NADU

HILL STATIONS IN INDIA

TOURIST PLACES IN INDIA

TOURIST PLACES IN THE WORLD

KODAIKANAL, a popular romantic destination and one of the best hill stations in South India, is in Dindigul district of Tamil Nadu, India. This beautiful scenic natural tourist spot is located on the Southern tip of Palani hills at an altitude of 7000 feet. According to local language Tamil, kodai means "summer" and kanal means "to see". You can visit this place even during summer time. The weather which is very pleasant through out the year, attracts thousands of nature lovers every month including summer time. Even in peak summer the maximum temperature will be around 22*C. "Kodai" is another name of this hill town. Unlike other hill stations, this incredible location is not commercialized. Most of the locals depend on the income from tourism to run their day to day life. Road trip is the only option to reach Kodai. There are 21 hairpin bends on the way from Palani to this place, which make your trip more thrilling and exciting. Food and stay should not be a problem as there are plenty of options available to suit any budget. Even though you can cover most of the important and must see picnic spots in a day, my suggestion is to stay for two or three days so that you will get a chance to visit all the interesting places in and around the town leisurely. Tamil is the local language spoken here and many can understand English. Kodai is famous for Kurunji flowers that blossoms once in every 12 years. Ideal time to visit is from April to June and from August to September. First boat was brought from Tuticorin to Kodai Lake. The Kodai lake was constructed by an Irish Man. This Hill Station is very famous for its several species of flowers. 

How to Reach Kodaikanal? 

The nearest airport is Madurai airport which is 130 Kms away from your destination. Other two are Coimbatore airport which is 170 Kms away and Trichy airport which is 200 Kms away from the vacation spot. There are Government as well as private buses available from all the three places to Kodai. You can alternatively avail the cab services provided by travel operators. There are buses available to this location from almost all parts of Tamil Nadu state. Palani is the nearest Railway station which is 65 Kms away and Kodai Road Station is 80 Kms away. 

Top 38 Places to Visit in Kodaikanal: 

The must see 38 sight seeing places in Kodaikanal are Coaker's Walk, Bryant Park, Kodai Lake, Bear Shola Falls, Pillar Rocks, Silver Cascade, Chettiyar Park, Kurinji Andavar Temple, Pambar Falls, Shenbaganur Museum, Fairy Falls, Dolphin's Nose, Guna Cave, Moir  Point, Perumal Peak, Berijam Lake, Kukkal Cave, Thalaiyar Falls, Green Valley View Point, Vattakanal Falls, Observatory, Pine Tree Forest, Kodaikanal Golf Club, Vaigai Dam, Kodaikanal Lake, Palani Hills, Sacred Heart College Museum, Wax Museum, Kumbakkarai Falls, Echo Point, Upper Lake View, Telescope House, Silent Valley View, Liril Falls, Scaly Trails, Mampad, Gundar Falls and Saleth Matha Church.

KODAIKANAL LAKE, also known as KODAI LAKE, is a Manmade Fresh Water Lake. The average depth of Kodai Lake is around 9.8 feet and it spreads across 59 acres of land. This beautiful picnic spot is located at 6,998 feet above the sea level. There are Boat Club, Boat House and Boat Service available in this nature friendly location. Rowing Boats, Pedaling Boats and Public Ferry are the services available for boating lovers. The shape of the lake looks like a star and this lake is surrounded by green hills. 

PALANI HILLS, a must visit location for nature lovers, are a Mountain Range. Palani Hills covers an area of around 2,068 square kilometers. Famous Murugan Shrine is located on this hills. It stands at an elevation of 8,310 feet and Western Ghats is its Parent Range. 

WAX MUSEUM possess many interesting wax model collections. It is an unique attraction since there are not many such museums found in India. Its a small and compact museum where we get to see the wax models of Adi Shankara, Sai Baba, Mahatma Gandhiji, Lord Krishna, Few Indian Musicians, Sandalwood Smuggler Veerappan, Sri Sri Ravishankar, The Last Supper, Music Band along with few more interesting statues. 

KUMBAKKARAI FALLS is a Falls located on the foothills of the Kodaikanal Hills. It is located at an elevation of 1,300 feet. Water here originates from Kodaikanal Hills and flows through huge rocks and finally reach the foot hills of Kodaikanal. It is a famous place to take bath. 

UPPER LAKE VIEW POINT is one of the must see tourist destinations. It is one of the best View Points located just around 3 kilometers from Coaker's Walk. There are few shops available near this view point to refresh yourselves. 

TELESCOPE HOUSE KODAIKANAL offers an adorable view of the valley along with nearby attractive towns. It is located in Coaker's Walk Northern Tip. This telescope house attracts many visitors through out the year. 

SILENT VALLEY VIEW POINT is located very near to Pillar Rock. Silent valley is well known for its Astonishing and Stunning Views of Valley. It is advisable to walk cautiously as the pathway is little slippery. Best time to visit is either early in the morning or in the evening as one get the best scenic views. 

SCALY TRAILS is a place for Nature Treks and Camps. It is one of the best spot for Nature Lovers as well as Wild Life Enthusiasts. One of the best picnic location in Kodai to experience as well to know about Forests, Wet Lands, Streams and Lakes. Activities here are a day long bird watching, moderate trekking through greenish forest that is located at high altitude and multiple days trekking through valleys as well as green lush forest. Trekkers get the chance to experience the beautiful landscapes, see wild animals, enjoy the beauty of waterfalls & steams and camping. 

GUNDAR FALLS is just more than the waterfalls. The location is fully bounded by pine trees. The best time is visit during rainy season as the water flow would be at its best. It is also the best place for trekking.  

COAKER'S WALK was constructed by Lt. Coaker in the year 1872. We get the opportunity to walk on the 1 Km pedestrian stretch surrounded by green grass. One of the best location to capture nature's images. Built in 1908, 

BRYANT PARK, is a botanical garden which spreads across 20 acres with more than 740 varieties of rose flowers and around 330 species of shrubs and trees. Do not miss to see the glass house filled with flower pots and water plants filled small lake when you visit Bryant Park. 

BEAR SHOLA FALLS is a tall waterfall in a Reserve forest. It is believed that bears used to drink the sweet water at the top of the falls and hence the name. This place is best for swimming. You may have to walk for about 10 minutes from the entrance to reach the falls. There are plenty of shops available on the way to refresh yourself. 

400 feet high, three huge and majestic rocks can be seen at PILLAR ROCKS. Beautiful garden adds more treat for your eyes. Its maintained well by Tamil Nadu Forest Department. Its difficult to view the rocks during winter time because of dark clouds around. 

SILVER CASCADE is a 180 feet waterfall and is a most popular among tourists. It is the best waterfall in Kodaikanal. It is located on Laws Ghat Road. Since the quality of the water is poor, avoid taking bath in this falls. The excess water of Kodai Lake overflows here. There are few fruit vendors and few types of forest products  available here to purchase. 

CHETTIYAR PARK is famous for "Kurinji Flowers" which can be seen only once in twelve years.  

KURINJI ANDAVAR TEMPLE  is also famous for "Kurinji Flowers" which blossoms every twelve years once. Temple was built by Leelavathi Ramanathan and the main deity is Lord Murugar. 

PAMBAR FALLS is also popularly known as Grand Cascade. You have to be careful while walking to the falls, as the path is slippery. As you go downstream, you can see four adjacent small cascading falls. 

Visit SHENBAGANUR MUSEUM to know about ancient tradition and culture of this region. Display of collections are classified as Anthropology, Flora, Fauna and Handicrafts. In Herbarium sections more than 2500 varieties of plants can be seen. The Orchidoriums section is the home for more than 300 species of various plants, herbs and flowers. Various types of species like Butterflies, Moths, Snakes and Mammals can also be seen. 

FAIRY FALLS is just 5 kms from Kodai lake. To refresh yourself, you can swim at the foot of the falls. You get a warm welcome from Orange juice vendors at DOLPHIN'S NOSE. You may have to spend at least 30 minutes to enjoy this location and little amount of trekking skills are required to reach this spot. A flat rock projecting over 6600 feet deep and one corner of that rock resembles Dolphin's Nose. 

GUNA CAVE is formed between two large pillar rocks and it is one of the most visited tourist spots in Kodai. There is a large and dark space which is called as Devil's Kitchen. Cave is closed for security reasons, hence the tourists would be able to see only from distance. From the entrance, visitors may have to walk for 400 meters to reach this spot. 

MOIR POINT is named after an engineer St. Thomas Moir, who constructed the Goschen Road. This point offers views of peaks around the Princess of Hill Stations. 

PERUMAL PEAK is famous for trekking and you get the chance to cover the distance of 7 kilometers one way in 4 hours. You can have a Glimpse of Palani Hill from this location. 

BERIJAM LAKE is one of the Reservoirs located here and it is an artificial lake. Periyakulam Town get water from berijam lake. Several plants and flowers can be seen around the lake area. Rare species of floating Utricularia Australis are seen here. Apart from flora, it is also the home for birds, animals and mammals like Eagles, Kites, Rose Finch, Blue Chat, Warblers, Bison, Langur, Giant Squirrels, Indian Elephants, Porcupines, Wild Boar, Barking Deer, Sambar Deer, Mouse Deer, Crocodiles and Fishes. 

KUKKAL CAVE is trekkers favorite spot. One cannot reach THALAIYUR FALLS without trekking around 34 Kms. It is also known as Rat Tail Falls that falls from the height of 975 feet. 

GREEN VALLEY VIEW POINT, formerly known as Suicide Point, gives a panoramic view of the plains beneath the hills.The Kodaikanal Terrestrial Telescope, that gives a view of places and dams around the place is kept at the 

SOLAR OBSERVATORY and is open to the public on payment of nominal entry fee. Equipment's like Full Disc Imaging, Solar Tunnel Telescope, Lonosondes along with other facilities are available here. Astronomy Museum is located inside the observatory. Collections like Pictorial, Models, Live Solar Image and Fraunhofer Spectrum can be seen in this astronomy museum. 

VATTAKANAL FALLS is another boon location for trekkers. It may take 3 hours to cover the distance of 10 Kms. There are tourist operators who arrange for the pick up from the hotel where the tourists are staying. 

PINE TREE FOREST is one of the preserved tourist spot of Kodaikanal and is an excellent photographic location. Pine Forest 1 is located near Solar Observatory and Pine Forest 2 is located near Moir Point. Horse riding options are available for the tourist at Pine Forest 2. 

116 years old THE KODAIKANAL GOLF CLUB is located near Observatory. Golfers can have great time in this one of the pioneer clubs of Kodai.

OTHER HILL STATIONS IN TAMIL NADU

HILL STATIONS IN INDIA

TOURIST PLACES IN INDIA

TOURIST PLACES IN THE WORLD