Overview
Cool and Refreshing Tea Estate Retreat
Best time to visit (High & peak months) :
All the year round except for the monsoons
Experiences :
Hill Station, wild life, immense scenic beauty
City calling code :
+91-4865
Recommended no. of days for a tourist :
2-3 days
Best buys :
Obviously the tasty tea from Tata Tea Sales Outlet and juicy strawberries.
Essentials to be carried along :
Cotton wears, Light Woolens for winters, sun blocks, cameras and binoculars
All about the city :
If your predilection is for the woods, waterfalls and mountains, one place that will always remain close to your heart, ever after you have visited it, is the quintessential hill town of Munnar. As the highly esteemed 'National Geographic Traveler' puts - Munnar is " one of the fifty must see destinations of a lifetime and one of the ten paradises of the world." Swathed in the velvety green carpet of tea plantations, it is one of the most romantic landscapes of the world. Eternal beauty and serenity that pervades all round penetrates through your senses to touch your soul.
The name Munnar (which means "three rivers" in Tamil) is derived from its location at the confluence of three mountain streams - Kundala, Mudrapuzha and Nallathanni. Encircled by wooded hills of the Annamalai ranges, it is crowned with the highest peak of South India, the Anaimudi (2695 m). The entire area of Munnar, about 557 square kilometer, belonged to and still belongs to the royal family of Poonjar and was given on lease for 99 years by the Poover king Kerala Varman to the British government in 1887. The Scottish planters used it as their summer resort in South India and also developed it for cultivation of coffee, spices and tea - Munnar's main claim to fame. Just give wings to your imagination and see if the tea plantations over the undulating hills appear to you as a tortoise back or a carpet rolled out in the honour of the several guests that flock every year from several parts of the world.
The show does not end with the mist shrouded tea estates; Munnar has many things up its sleeves to sweep the tourists off their feet. The Neelakurunji (a blue colour flower) that springs once in 12 years to blanket the entire region and the highly endangered Nilgiri Tahr (mountain goat) are the main draws of this very touristy place. So, beware! You can avoid a trip to Munnar only till you are ignorant of it or you have not had a glimpse of it while surfing through the television channels or internet or simply leafing through a magazine.
