Category: Tamil Nadu

Ultimate Travel Guide to Auroville

Auroville always fascinated me as a child when I heard that there is a community that lives in the attempt of reflecting peace, sincerity and truth through united living in harmony. I always had questions like how and why Auroville is different whenever I had any discussion with people on Auroville until the time, I decided to pay a visit and stay as a guest myself. I also realized that Auroville is more than the intriguing golden globe that you see in pictures. My ultimate travel guide to Auroville will help you with everything a beginner wants to understand before visiting/volunteering at Auroville.

History of Auroville Cut Short

The Mother (Mirra Alfassa) who accepted Sri Aurobindo as her Guru, is the catalyst behind the current Auroville community in 1968. Auroville is a creation involving people living in unity from different cultures who aim to live their life in peace, harmony and achieve greater consciousness.

How to reach Auroville from Pondicherry?

Auroville is located in Tamil Nadu and about 10 km from Pondicherry.

Self-drive options to Auroville from Pondicherry

Whenever I had visited Pondicherry I had either rented out a two wheeler for Rs.300/day or I had driven down to Auroville by car.

Auto-rickshaws to Auroville from Pondicherry

You can hire auto rickshaws as well but at an expensive rate of Rs.700-1000 to and from Pondicherry.

Bus to Auroville from Pondicherry

The buses to Auroville are available at fixed times from Pondicherry bus stand. You can board buses to Auroville at 7.30am, 1.30pm and 4.30pm. The same buses return to Pondicherry at 8.15am, 2.15pm and 5.15pm.

Auroville taxis

You can hire Auroville taxis as well from Chennai and Pondicherry to Auroville. You have to fill out some forms in advance to book these taxis.

Commute within Auroville

If you are a guest then you can check with your guest house as they will have contacts who can help you rent a bicycle, scooter/motorcycle at Rs.60 and Rs.200 respectively.

I drove down to Auroville from Bangalore, so I commuted via car.

Best time to visit Auroville

Auroville is extremely hot and humid in summer. It is humid throughout the year as it is close to the sea. The nights are cool because of the dense plantations.

The preferred months to visit should be between Oct – Feb. This is also the time when the community receives a lot of tourists and volunteers.

Read also: Pondicherry – Must Read Travel Guide To The Erstwhile French Colony

Where to stay in Auroville?

Currently there are around 2000+ people living in Auroville but Auroville has the capacity to house 50,000 people.

There are many categories of stays available within Auroville for guests and in some you can book only if you stay for 2+ days. I stayed at Sharnga Guest House as they had a kitchen. Since I was travelling with my 6 months old baby girl having access to a kitchen was one of the deciding factors when choosing accommodation.

Sharnga Guest House

You can check out the registered accommodations within Auroville to shortlist on where to stay.

Note: Please also check the rules because every guest house has some criteria for booking.

Do you need an Aurocard?

Every resident/guest who stays in Auroville, is provided with an Aurocard. You can load money into it and take it around as I was told that there are few places within Auroville who still accept money only via Aurocard. I personally felt it was not helpful as everywhere I was able to use UPI/Google Pay.

Food at Auroville

There are 30 eateries within Auroville serving healthy and pesticide free food to relish. My personal favorities are Solitute Farm Café, Solar Kitchen, Sakura Sushi and La Terrace Café.

Farm to plate

I tried bakes at Auroville Bakery and it was the WORST I’ve ever had. I would not recommend you visit this place. I saw that every table had food that was left wasted and I was wondering why, until I got my share of experiencing the taste/texture of the food served there.

The mode of transfer in these restaurants are Cash, UPI/Google Pay or Aurocard.

Places to visit in Auroville & Things to do at Auroville

Matrimandir

Visting Matrimandir from the visitor’s viewing point is free of cost and doesn’t require any pre-booking. You will have to watch a short screening about Matrimandir and then reach out to the Auroville Visitors Centre for a pass. You will have to take a 10-15 min walk guided by signs before reaching the viewing point of the golden globe. You will view the Matrimandir from the outside and at a distance.

People who face difficulty to walk can board their shuttles to the viewing point and there are also buses that can bring you back to the visitor’s centre.

Matrimandir Inner Chamber

If you are interested in experiencing the inner chamber of Matrimandir which is said to connect with self, there is a process to follow. You will have to apply for the slots at least 1 week before at the Auroville Visitors Centre. You can also check out this link as per the instructions given in it.

I wasn’t able to visit the inner chamber of Matrimandir since I travelled with my 6 month old and only kids above 10 are allowed inside.

Svaram Musical Instruments and Research

If you are a music enthusiast then Svaram is going to excite you without a doubt. They experiment with sound, instruments and healing properties of sound. They also educate people about it via their daily tours and scheduled workshops. You can also purchase instruments of your interest.

Some experiments with a 6 month old musician 😀

Auroville Bamboo Centre

You will be surprised to see what are the different items that can be made out of Bamboo at the Auroville Bamboo Centre. They conduct training and workshops as well.

Image courtesy: Google

Solitude Farm and Café Free Tour

Solitude Farm and Café focuses on farm to plate concept of food. Every Saturday at 11.30 am you can get to experience a free short tour of the Solitude farm to understand how they grow the indigenous food varieties. They also conduct scheduled workshops from 9.30am – 12.30pm every Wednesday and they also conduct weekend workshops.

Sadhana Forest Free Tour

Sadhana Forest focuses on sustainable living, reforestation and water conservation. It is a vibrant community of volunteers living a simple, sustainable life, very close to nature. All year-round volunteers visit and reside in Sadhana Forest.

Every Friday at 4.30 pm there is a free organic vegan dinner provided at Sadhana Forest. The bus for that leaves from Auroville’s Solar Kitchen at 4 pm. There are no pre-bookings required for this.

Auroville Beach

The beach is part of Auroville and it is also maintained by them. It is very close to Serenity beach and often crowded by tourists in the early mornings and evenings.

How can I volunteer at Auroville?

There are about 20 farms in Auroville which has varied moto in achieving sustainable and organic food produce which benefits the consumers of the produce overall. There are many farms who conduct regular scheduled workshops as well.

You can visit the individual webpages of the farms in Auroville to contact the people who run the farms. You can also choose to write to farmgroup@auroville.org.in cc-ing study@auroville.org.in. In both the cases you will be expected to give a short introduction about yourself, where you are from, if or what kind of experience you have in farming along with your expected dates and duration of stay in Auroville.

It is also said that Nov-Feb is the peak tourist season considering the tropical climate of India and the volunteer slots get booked pretty quick. You will have to be mindful of this fact if you would like to also book for volunteering during this time of the year.

Earlier there was a dry tropical evergreen forest on the entire eastern coast of Tamil Nadu which now people aren’t aware of. Auroville has revived these lands and has made barren land fertile. It is a gift to humanity. I would want to visit Auroville and volunteer once again when my daughter grows up.

Though I have mixed opinion about the unspoken fact that only wealthy people can afford to live in Auroville. The land in Auroville has to be purchased and your house has to be constructed for your living but you don’t own that house anymore the day you decide to leave Auroville. This doesn’t settle well with me but if this is the concept of Auroville then so it is.

Nevertheless, everything else about it is awe-inspiring to me and for many others who visit Auroville to volunteer from all around the world.

Read also: My other travel posts from Tamil Nadu

January 20, 2025

Pondicherry – Must Read Travel Guide To The Erstwhile French Colony

As I was born and raised in Tamil Nadu, for me when I grew up, Pondicherry was always a synonym to beaches and booze. As the IT industry started picking up in Bangalore and some parts of Chennai, Pondy became one of the affordable go to weekend getaways extremely close to these giant cosmopolitan cities. The town once only known for booze in Tamil Nadu, sprung into a place where folks started splurging money on expensive cafes and stays. The proximity of Pondy to the IT cities, keeps attracting people as a must visit tourist destination, especially for the folks from the other parts of the country.

I have visited Pondy many times since childhood, so I have seen this union territory in many phases of its growth. In this blog I will detail everything about a trip to Pondicherry.

This must read travel guide to Pondicherry will be about 2 days in the erstwhile French colony which was a small fishing village that turned into a major port city by the 18^th century.

Pondicherry and French East India Company – A Short History

The French East India Company set up a trading centre at Pondicherry (Puducherry / Pondy) in 1674, which soon became the foremost French settlement in India. The other French settlements in India were in Yanam (Andhra Pradesh), Mahe (Kerala) and Karaikal (Tamilnadu). French ruled Pondicherry for around 250 years until it was integrated with India in 1954 as a Union Territory. Before the French, Pondicherry was under the kingdoms of Pallavas, Cholas, Pandyas and the Vijayanagara Empire till 1638. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the Danes and the English have also been here. Since Pondicherry is surrounded by Tamil Nadu, the erstwhile French colony shares the language and culture with it.

How to reach Pondicherry?

Major Southern Cities	By Road	By Train
Chennai – Pondicherry	151 km – 3.5 hours (avg.)	197 km – 4 to 4.5 hours (avg.)
Bangalore – Pondicherry	320 km – 7 to 8 hours (avg.)	439 km – 9.5 to 10.5 hours (avg.)

Chennai to Pondicherry

There are multiple ways to reach Pondicherry from Chennai since it is the closest metropolitan city from the Union Territory. Most of the buses ply on the scenic East Coast Road (ECR).

Koyambedu bus stand always has buses to Pondicherry and it’s the best option. You can get onto a metro train from the airport to Koyambedu bus station at Rs.50-70.
Note: Chennai Metro Train service is available from 6 am – 10 pm.
TNSTC‘S (Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation) SETC (State Express Transport Corporation) and PRTC (Puducherry Road Transport Corporation) AC and Non-AC buses from Koyambedu are available between 6 am – 6 pm and the tickets cost around Rs.100 – Rs.280.
You can get PRTC buses to Pondicherry from Thiruvanmiyur bus station in OMR.
You can get onto a local train at Rs.5 from Tirusulam local train station (10 mins walk from Chennai airport) or a metro train from the airport to Guindy, from where you can get TNSTC or PRTC buses via ECR Route from Chennai to Pondicherry.
The non-ECR buses from Koyambedu will pass through Perungulathur. You can get onto a local train from Tirisulam local train station by taking a subway from Chennai airport and reach Perungulathur train station (25 mins) at Rs.10, from where you can get SETC buses or PRTC buses.
Note: The buses are not frequent at Perungulathur station as much as Koyambedu.
Only, if you are with a group of travelers, you can get a taxi from the Chennai airport to Pondicherry at Rs.2500 – Rs.3000.
Note: You will find loads of taxi scammers at the airport and please beware of them.

Bangalore to Pondicherry

If you choose to go by bus from Bangalore to Pondicherry then I would suggest only KSRTC (Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation) because their buses are well maintained and the tickets are priced reasonably. They have 3 services namely, AC sleepers at Rs.950, Airavat club class at Rs.900 and non-AC sleepers at Rs.800.

Where to Stay at Pondicherry?

If this is your first visit to Pondy and you would like to party, then staying at White Town should be your obvious choice. You can choose to stay near the bus stand for slightly cheaper accommodation options.

HeritageHouse — One of the Heritage Houses that I stayed in the White Town

HeritageHouseRoom — One of the Heritage Houses that I stayed in the White Town

You can find many hostels, rooms and homestays in Pondicherry. If you make last minute plans to visit Pondicherry, then the only problem would be in being able to reserve a good stay if it is also a budget trip.

I have stayed near the bus stand, in the White Town and also in Auroville in my past trips to Pondicherry.

How to commute in Pondicherry?

The best and cheapest way to commute for 2 days in the erstwhile French colony would be through a rented 2-wheeler. Our hotel/homestay recommended a dealer from whom we got a Suzuki Access for Rs.250/day for which we also had to pay a refundable security deposit of Rs.500
There are many share autos on fixed routes within the city by which you can commute
There are normal autos too but you might have to bargain a bit
Taxis are very expensive in Pondicherry

What to eat in Pondicherry?

You get every kind of food that you would want to eat in Pondicherry. Starting from idli, dosa, puri, chapati, you will get every continental, American and middle east dishes in Pondicherry.

Any visit to Pondicherry doesn’t end without visiting few of Pondy’s fancy French style cafes. Though Pondy was known for cheap booze, booze is not cheap in any of these cafes at present. In fact, booze is extremely expensive and so is the food in Pondicherry, when you choose to experience the French styled cafes.

I was suggested Zuka pastries few years back and I felt it was overrated.

Also read: Mind-Blowing Kodaikanal Travel Guide and Things To Do

Places to Visit in Pondicherry

The White Town or the French Quarter

We started from our hotel at 9.30 am, parked our scooter near Rock Beach and decided to explore White Town on foot. We also had an early lunch at the French Quarters. White Town is so colorful that you can’t resist yourself from clicking pictures.

White Town is filled with churches. We visited the colorful Dumas Church which was constructed in 1855 and supposed to resemble the Notre Dame in Paris. This is the only church in India which is said to conduct Sunday masses in Tamil, French and English.

Visit to Auroville

There are so many things to do at Auroville but I am going tell you what exactly I did in the few hours of time that I had to explore. Around 12.30 pm we started to Auroville which was about 13 km from White Town and we had our lunch on the way. The first thing we did on reaching there was going to the Visitor Centre which showcases the intent with which Auroville was established and the activities one can enjoy there, along with a special mention of the Matri Mandir. They also gave us numerous brochures on Auroville’s educational courses. There were also many yummy multicuisine restaurants for visitors.

The Matrimandir viewing point inside Auroville is open from 9 am – 12 pm and 2 – 4.30 pm. It has become renowned for its architecture and its usage of energy saving construction materials.

We didn’t have enough time to book appointments for meditating at Matri Mandir which had to be done a day in prior. Something to be noted here is what Auroville has to offer. It is definitely much more than what meets the eye at first glance. Auroville aims to be a universal town where people all over the world will be able to live in peace and harmony. It is all about a diverse way of living and how we perceive and accept the world.

Serenity Beach

On our way back to the hotel we came across the Serenity Beach. One visit and you will know why it is named so. I sat on the shore for hours without uttering a word, letting my thoughts soak in the sea.

Surfing at Serenity Beach

In the recent times many surf schools have come up in the Serenity Beach which can be something unique to try when in Pondi.

Rock beach, Promenade, Pondicherry beach and Goubert Ave mean the same in the French Colony of Pondicherry. It is the Rock beach that the White Town faces. We went there at around 7 pm to enjoy the evening breeze. It was extremely crowded, but the mood was lit with people selling chat items, sundal and other snacks. There were Tamil plays happening near the Gandhi statue which was fun to watch.

Sunrise at Rock Beach

There is nothing more satisfying than watching the sunrise in the Bay of Bengal. Sun decides to come up around 6 am in Pondicherry. You will see fitness enthusiasts out for a morning jog at the Promenade. We decided to soak in some Vitamin D ourselves.

Soon after watching the sunrise we went back to our hotel to freshen up and get ready for exploring the remaining places in French Colony of Pondicherry for the day which included Manakula Vinayagar Temple, Sri Aurobindo Ashram and Paradise Beach.

Paradise Beach

It is a clean island beach with an astounding view. There are loads of fun activities at the sea along with a changing room as well. In Google you might want to search for Chunnambar Boat House to reach the ticket counter point. The beach is open from 9 am – 5 pm. There were ferries to transport us from near the ticket counter point to the beach in 25 – 30 mins. It might be crowded during weekdays, but the experience is something which is not to be missed.
Ferry cost for a person: Rs.300

The best season to visit Pondicherry would be Oct – Feb and being a coastal area, it can get extremely hot and humid during the rest of the year.

Responsible Tourism

I have seen the beautiful beaches of Pondicherry getting ruined with garbage in between the rocks of the once-upon-a-time-beautiful-rock beach. I have visited the town pre and post Covid and I see how overtourism and irresponsible travel is starting to kill the natural beauty of this coastal town. Let us take an oath to be mindful of our travel as responsible humans protecting Mother Earth.

Also read: Travel Guides to Tamil Nadu

September 13, 2023

Kookal – Trekking and Things to do
Kookal is a quaint little village located in the Palani Hills of Tamil Nadu in India. This village is 35 km from the much commercialized yet beautiful Kodaikanal. Kookal is mainly known for its charming lake, breath-taking water fall and psychedelic mushrooms but there are still many other yet to be explored places that will specially interest adventure lovers like me. “Kookal – A Day in The Palani Hills” post is going to be only about my experience on the journey, trek, stay, food, people, forests, and the umpteen number of waterfalls that I enjoyed thoroughly?

Poombarai

Drive to Kookal

My husband and I had started early on a Saturday morning, drove down to Kodaikanal which was 190 km from my hometown. The drive in the Ghat section on well laid roads of Tamil Nadu was fun and the view outside the window was amazingly beautiful. The drive to Kookal via Poombarai from Kodaikanal took us almost 1.5 hours though the distance was only around 35 km. I have the habit of downloading offline maps to the places I travel which really helped in this case because there wasn’t any cellular network after crossing Kodaikanal.

Kodai roads

Drive to Kookal

Reaching Kookal

We had come to a crossroad junction where we had to go straight if we had to reach Mannavannur or take right to reach Kookal. The last 8 km stretch to reach the village after taking the right turn had narrow roads. Having mountain on one side and deep pine tree gorges on the other side, it gets challenging when 2 vehicles in opposite directions must ply the same road simultaneously. It was only our car on what looked like a nicely laid no man’s road while commuting. After getting to the Kookal lake we let a sigh of relief.

Kookal Lake

Kookal at First Sight

My trip was sudden, and I didn’t have anything planned in Kookal so I was ready to welcome anything that was coming my way. As soon as I reached the lake, I felt something mystical about the place and little did I know that I was going to uncover things that will blow my mind away. On the way to the village crossing the lake, there were many people asking us if we wanted to go to the waterfall. At first, I was wondering why somebody would ask if we wanted to go to a waterfall? I got my answers and soon you will, as you scroll through this post till the end.

Trek down the mountains

Kookal Trek to the Stay

As soon as we reached the village where the roads ended, we parked our car. I stayed at a friend’s homestay called “A Nomad’s Abode” and he was waiting for us in the village to accompany us on the trek down to his house. While trekking down I noticed that there was a road construction work going on which was an initiative by the estate’s owner/s in that area for his/their own use. This news had hit me hard because good roads in such delicate areas will bring more and more irresponsible travellers and thus more garbage and plastic waste to soil and the beautiful forests.

Trek down the mountains

The trek down was steep and took us an hour to reach our friend’s place which was amidst nature and only that. I was able to hear a stream flowing nearby, birds, animals and we even got to see freshly shed snake’s skin.

Read also: Mind-blowing Kodaikanal Travel Guide and Things to do

Exploring places around the stay in Kookal

The wind in Kookal did carry its mystery all the way down to the home. I felt something mystical about the place when I reached, and I was excited to uncover what more was waiting for me. The wooden logs that became the pillars of the house holding it steady along with stones that gave the house an elegantly rustic appearance, did cast its charm on me.

Glimpse of the stay

The house was in an estate which had numerous waterfalls with water puddles that are perfect for a relaxing dip. You should beware of the snakes though because I saw them in one of the waterfalls where I had just played few minutes before the snake decided to pay visit. I heard from our friend who hosted us that snakes are a common sight in Kookal.

Shallow waters

Numerous water puddles

As the sun had set, we decided to bade bye to the small waterfalls where we spent a lot of time playing and head back to the homestay. After a simple yet tasty dinner with engrossing conversations floating around, we decided to hit the hay around 9 pm. I remember that I was able to hear every small sound around the house as there was absolute silence and not a pinch of light.

As the sun sets

Sunrise at Kookal

We had woken up appreciating how amazing the previous day was and we were eager to see what was remaining for us to experience in Kookal before we left to Kodaikanal. Our friend cum host guided us to Thuthoor falls which was at a close proximity from the stay. We had to trek uphill for some time before we came to the junction to take a left and enter the dense jungle kind of an area. At the junction I felt my heart broken seeing so much plastic thrown by irresponsible travellers carrying polythene bags and water cans. I really wished there were strong rules to not allow such people into the area where they can get close to nature.

Sunrise

Kookal Fall (Thuthoor Fall)

After a small trek of 20-30 mins into that dense jungle we got to see a waterfall that we wouldn’t even have been able to dream of. It was mind-blowingly amazingly majestic and I fell in love with the waterfall so deeply. There was absolutely no one except me, my husband, and our friend. The joy I felt seeing that waterfall is something I can’t put in words. I heard that people climb onto the rocky edges of the fall, but it is very dangerous. Nature can treat you good or bad, depending on how you behave with her.

Trek to the fall

The majestic waterfall

Amazed by its size and beauty

On Sunday afternoon we trekked up the hill to reach the village which took us 1.5 – 2 hours having conversations with locals who cheered up us as we trekked uphill. My trip to Kookal had no itinerary and my plan was to stay in a place close to nature which I felt was accomplished at the end 🙂

Trek uphill

Places to Visit near Kookal
1. Kodaikanal
2. Mannavannur
3. Poombarai
4. Munnar
Pine forests of Kodaikanal

Read also: My other travel blog posts from Tamil Nadu
August 21, 2022

Mind-blowing Kodaikanal Travel Guide and Things to do

Kodaikanal is one beautiful hill station tucked into Tamil Nadu which is the southernmost state of India. I have visited Kodai multiple times considering its proximity to my hometown. Kodai reminds me of misty mountains, delicious homemade chocolates, fresh vegetables and lovely people. This travel guide to Kodaikanal will give you an idea of the things to do.

How to reach Kodaikanal?

Major Southern Cities	By Road	By Train	By Flight
Chennai – Kodaikanal	513 kms – 11 hours	420 kms – 8.30 hours	462 kms to Madurai + 116 kms drive – 5 hours
Bangalore – Kodaikanal	462 kms – 10 hours	421 kms – 8.40 hours	430 kms to Madurai + 116 kms drive – 4.50 hours

If one cannot find a direct bus to Kodaikanal, you can go to Madurai from where you will find plenty of buses to visit the beauty.

Where to stay?

Umpteen number of hotels, hostels and guesthouses are available in Kodaikanal but the challenge lies in finding one which is good, not just in the pictures. We stayed at Park Royale which is approximately 2.5 kms from the bus stand and next to Chettiar park.

Note: I have cheap hotels in areas which are nowhere close to the places of interest only to realize and cancel the booking. So, I would recommend a stay near the lake, bus stand or Chettiar park.

What kind of food we get?

Since it is a tourist place you will variety of cuisines. If you want to try the regional food, you can go Tamil with idli and dosa?

How to commute within the town?

You can either drive or rent taxis to tour within Kodaikanal. The taxi rent starts from Rs.1200/day, depending on the number of places you want to tour. Recently in few places they have started renting 2 wheelers in Kodai for which you can approach your hotel reception. There are local city tour buses that take a group of tourists to a set of places. The cost for group city tours start from Rs.300 for a day.
Note: There are no auto-rickshaws since it is not suitable for the hilly terrains.

When to visit Kodaikanal?

I would say it is good to visit all year round leaving the monsoon months of July-Sept. The temperature hovers between 8 – 17°C most of the times.

My itinerary goes as follows:

Silver Cascade Falls

You will be welcomed to Kodaikanal by the 180 feet high Silver Cascade as you drive on your way to the main town. If you are looking for the best scenic spot to take a picture, then look no further. You can also find hot and yummy snacks here to gorge on which will also satisfy your tum.

Note: I first visited Silver Cascade falls even before checking into my hotel because it was on the way to Kodaikanal town. You can either visit this first or save it for the last but do visit.

Timing: 9.30am – 3pm
Entry ticket: Nil

Chettiar Park

This park is maintained by the State Government and is on the way to Kurinji Andavar Temple. One must see the beautifully manicured plants, shrubs and a huge variety of flowers. This park is ideal for photoshoots.

Timing: 9am – 5pm
Entry ticket: Rs.10 (kids), Rs.15 (adults)

Kodaikanal Lake

This is the most sort after tourist place in the main town which offers not just boating in the lake but also cycling and horse riding around the lake. The path around the lake has good roads and pavement for walking. You can also find numerous shops on the periphery of the lake to buy snacks, chocolates, sweaters and accessories.

Timing: 8.30am – 6pm
Entry ticket: Nil
Boating cost: Varies with respect to the type of boat you prefer. Boating for 30mins in a 6-seater row boat costed us Rs.360/-

Kodai cycling — Cycling with my sisters around the lake

lake view — Cycling with my sisters around the lake

Cycling around the Kodaikanal lake for 5kms in the evening is a bliss with hot snacks to munch around the lake.
Bicycle: Rs.50 (an hour)
Double Bicycle: Rs.100 (an hour)

Read also: Guide to Kookal – Trekking and Things to do

Coakers walk

This place gives a panoramic view of the Kodaikanal town and is more crowded during sunset. It is a 10-minute walk from the lake. You can feel the clouds while you are taking a pleasant walk and the amazing view from here will leave you spell bound.

Timing: 7am – 7pm
Entry ticket: Rs.10
Rs.20 (telescope house)
Rs.30 (with camera)

Green Valley View

This place was formerly known as suicide point. It is fenced because many people have sadly jumped from here and ended their lives in the past. When it is not foggy, the amazing view of the valley from a height of 1500 metres can be seen. It is fully commercialized. One must be very careful if carrying food in their hands because of the monkeys here.

Timing: 7am – 6pm
Entry ticket: Nil

Pillar Rocks

Sighting these rocks is mostly a hit or miss. The mist decides whether you are lucky enough that day to get the view or not. A small stream runs from the view point. These rocks are majestic. The veiled beauty is one of the most famous attractions in Kodaikanal which is not to be missed.

Timing: 9am – 4pm
Entry ticket: Rs.5

Guna Caves

Formerly known as Devil’s kitchen, this cave got its new name after filming of Kamal Hassan’s Tamil movie titled ‘Guna’ in this very cave. Exploring the cave involves some walking and climbing which might not be suitable for the elderly. The giant roots of the trees are twined together which gives it a spooky look. Entry into the cave is disallowed due to the risk involved but there is a view point which gives you a glimpse of the cave and the depth of the valley below.

The hit movie Manjummel Boys is based on the incident that happened in Guna Caves.

Timing: 9am – 4.30pm
Entry Ticket: Rs.5

Pine Forest

A trip to Kodaikanal is not complete without visiting the famous Pine Forest. This place has always served as a good (film) shooting spot. You can go for horse rides amidst the pine trees which are available at a cost of Rs.100.

Timing: 10am – 6pm
Entry ticket: Nil

Kodaikanal offers far more than just romantic escapes; it is a premier family-friendly destination in Tamil Nadu. This 2-day travel guide to the “Princess of Hill Stations” is just the start of what this region offers. For those seeking offbeat nature, remember to coordinate with the forest department in advance for entry to Berijam Lake. Whether with friends or family, Kodaikanal’s charm is universal.

Note: Visiting hours to tourist spots in Kodaikanal might vary on public holidays:)

Read also: My other travel blog posts from Tamil Nadu

June 1, 2020

Category: Tamil Nadu

Ultimate Travel Guide to Auroville

History of Auroville Cut Short

How to reach Auroville from Pondicherry?

Self-drive options to Auroville from Pondicherry

Auto-rickshaws to Auroville from Pondicherry

Bus to Auroville from Pondicherry

Auroville taxis

Commute within Auroville

Best time to visit Auroville

Where to stay in Auroville?

Do you need an Aurocard?

Food at Auroville

Places to visit in Auroville & Things to do at Auroville

Matrimandir

Matrimandir Inner Chamber

Svaram Musical Instruments and Research

Auroville Bamboo Centre

Solitude Farm and Café Free Tour

Sadhana Forest Free Tour

Auroville Beach

How can I volunteer at Auroville?