NILGIRIS

An ancient mountain range with a 3.6 million year old rain-forest continuity. Save The Nilgiris Campaign

UDHAGAMANDALAM (OOTY)

STD Code 0423

Known as the 'Queen of the Hills', Ooty is famous for its rolling hills, covered with pine and eucalyptus forests, interspersed with sprawling grasslands and glens. It was discovered and developed as a summer retreat by British Collector John Sullivan. This meant that a British style of life ensued, with cottages, clubs, tennis, golf and riding.

BOTANICAL GARDENS: 2km east of the railway station. Opens from 0800 to 1800. 1,000 varieties of plants, trees,orchids, ferns, shrubs, medicinal plants and alpines are planted here. It has an area of 20 hectors. The small lake here which contains a fossil of a tree trunk, calculated as 20 million years old. The Annual flower show held here in the third week of May. This show is the main attraction of Ooty. The rose garden contains over 1,500 varieties of roses. It opens from 0800 to 1800.

OOTY LAKE This was constructed between 1823 to 1825 by Collector John Sullivan as an irrigation tank. The Boats are available at the Boat House for riding on the lake.

STONE HOUSE This house was built by John Sullivan. It was occupied by the Principal of the Govt. Art College. The tribals called its name as Kalu Bangla (stone bungalow).

ST. STEPHEN'S CHURCH It is the first church built in Ooty,1820. It is said that the wood for this church brought from Tipu Sultan's Lal Bagh Palace in Srirangapatnam after his final defeat. This wood had to be hauled up by the elephants from the plains. It has a clock tower, nine tubular bells and a gallery. 

 Charring Cross is the central point of Ooty, and is one of the oolder monuments erected by the British colonists. It initially stood at the Collectorate junction in front of St.Stephens Church, and was subsequently shifted to it's present location.

COONOOR

STD Code 04266

It is the second largest of the three townships in the Nilgiri hills. This place has a very pleasant climate geared fully to the relax mode. Coonoor also has an old and quaint market.

SIM PARK: Situated at Upper coonoor is a state owned botanical garden designed partly in the Japanese style. About 330 varieties of roses are cultivated on it's premises. A week after the Flower Show in Ooty, the fruit and vegetable show is held here in the month of May. The Pasteur Institute opposite the main entrance to Sim's Park conducts ongoing research on producing Anti-Rabies Vaccines, and also manufactures a polio vaccine.

LAMB'S ROCK: This rock is perched on a high precipice, about 6 Km away from Coonoor town. From here you can get a bird's-eye of the tea and coffee estates all around, as well as the plains of Coimbatore far below.

KOTAGIRI

STD Code 04266

Kotagiri is just 16 km away from Ooty. This little town experiences a pleasant, comfortable and saliburious weather all through the year. So your trip to Kotagiri could be planned at any time of the year.

This kaleidoscopic hill resort of Kotagiri is ideally situated at an altitude of 1950 m.(above mean sea level). Kotagiri literally means 'as belonging to the the "house of the Kotas" '. Kotagiri is quietly tucked away in the Nilgiris, and, like it's sister resorts of Coonoor and Ooty, was used as the summer resort of the British, when they were here.Till today the serene beauty of Kotagiri attracts tourists from far and wide, as it has done for decades.

The hill resort of the Nilgiris has several exceedingly beautiful tourist attractions.

In Kotagiri there are the landmark Catherine Falls. The double cascade waterfalls are a major tourist attraction in Kotagiri owing to the beauty of it's natural environs. Then there are the Elk falls that offer a fantastic panoramic view of the spectacular surroundings of the Echoing Valley of Kookal.

You may visit the golf course, where the gorgeous greens spread right across to present an breathtaking view. The tea plantations and the tea estates are the other places worth visiting in Kotagiri.

At a distance of 16 km from Kotagiri is the sacred Rangaswamy Pillar. The excursion to the eastern slopes of the Nilgiris is popular with the tourists to Kotagiri. The Rangaswamy Peak is another vantage point to check out the wondrous vistas of the Nilgiris. The Kodanad View Point offers a 180 degree view of the plains below, as well as a panoramic vista of the eastern slopes of these ancient hills.

You may check out the local handicrafts at the Woman's Cooperative of Kotagiri near Ramachand Square for gift items and souvenirs from Kotagiri.

BY AIR - The airport at Coimbatore is the nearest at a distance of just under a 100 km.

BY ROAD - Kotagiri is well linked with the other important places in Tamil Nadu through road transport. There are regular buses to Ooty, Mettupalayam and Coonoor

WHERE TO STAY

Accommodation is easily available in Kotagiri, but falls mainly into the budget category. High paying tourists would rather prefer to stay in any of the star hotels at either Coonoor or Ooty. For those who hava a liking for it, there are many old style colonial bungalows which come under the Home stay category.

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