Ooty, short for Ootacamund (an anglicized name for Udhagamandalam), is a popular hill resort in the state of Tamil Nadu in Southern India.
The name Udhagamandalam is derived from the TODA word "othakal-mund" which means "house in mountains". Ooty stands at 7,347 feet above sea level in the Nilgiri mountain range. It was founded in the 19th century by the British, and served as the summer headquarters of the Madras Presidency (Madras is now Chennai).
[edit] Understand
Located in the mountainous range called the Nilgiris ("Blue Mountains"), it draws swarms of tourists every year. The weather is quite pleasant at a mean of 15-20 C year round, dropping to lows of 0 C during winter. The landscape is marked by rolling hills covered with dense vegetation, smaller hills and plateaus covered with tea gardens, and eaucalyptus trees. Many portions of the hills are preserved as natural reserve forests, and special permits will be needed to camp in noncamp sites. Ooty is not the destination in itself, as much as it is the focal point of attraction. Auto touring the surrounding country side is certainly a must do. Unfortunately, the hill town suffers from overcrowding and erosion of natural resources. Tourism has placed an enormous strain on the natural resources resulting in pollution, water shortage and bad roads.
The hilly region also houses smaller towns like Coonoor and Kotagiri. These smaller towns are a better choice to visit and spend time in, since they are off the beaten path, yet less than 1 hour away from Ooty. They enjoy the same natural climes and prices are a lot cheaper.
[edit] Get in
[edit] By plane
The Coimbatore airport is the closest to the hills at 3-1/2 hours by road. There are flights into Coimbatore from most parts of India including Mumbai (Air Deccan,Indian Airlines,Jet and Go Air),Chennai(Air Deccan, Paramount,Indian Airlines and Jet)and Bangalore. The Mysore airport is about 5 odd hours away from Ooty by road (but Mysore airport is currently closed and only expected to open for light aircraft), and lies to the North of Ooty. The road trip is quite scenic from either airport.
[edit] By train
The hills are connected to Chennai by a nightly train. The Blue Mountain Express leaves from Chennai at night, and reaches Mettupalayam, a small town at the foothills of the Nilgiris early the next morning. The train, a standard diesel powered locomotive continues from Mettupalayam as a small coal powered historic locomotive that is a remnant of Swiss engineered trains imported in the late 1800s. The coal train is much smaller, and can only accommodate a portion of the passengers that disembark at Mettupalayam. A through ticket from Chennai to Ooty will ensure a place in the smaller train, although many prefer the faster route of taking a cab or a bus from Mettupalayam.
The coal train takes a very scenic route, and the pace of travel will let you take in the beautiful scenery at leisure (the journey takes about 5-1/2 hours compared to 2 hours by road). The train uses a rachet and pinion system to haul itself up steep slopes, and also to prevent the train from sliding down when stopping. The train is often pushed from behind as well as pulled from the front by two separate coal engines. There are brakesmen at the rear of every carriage who will apply and release hand powered brakes individually for that carriage. The train often travels only at 5 - 10 Kmph, allowing some adventerous passengers to disembark from the train and walk along the train. This practice is not recommended and can be dangerous, besides there is a good chance that the train will speed up, and you will be unable to get back on board.
Mettupalayam can prove to be a bottle-neck during the peak season of April-June with cabs charging exorbitant rates. The train is often quite regular in this part of the country, and is by far the most comfortable way to get here.
There are other trains from Chennai to Coimbatore. The journey can be continued from Coimbatore by road, a 3-1/2 hour journey.
[edit] By car
The Nilgiris are in Tamil Nadu, but it is quite near the borders of neighboring states Karnataka and Kerala. The hills consequently can be reached from within Tamil Nadu by travelling up a heavily forested winding road, with many sharp hair-pin beds. The road trip from any state is quite scenic, although the Coimbatore-Mettupalayam-Coonoor-Ooty road (i.e. the Tamil Nadu route) is the most travelled and well maintained. All roads to the Nilgiri hills are toll roads, although the tolls are quite nominal.
There are buses and shared taxi vans that can be boarded from most parts of India to Ooty. Ooty is 284 km from Bangalore by road.
[edit] Get around
Test
[edit] See
Ooty Botanical Gardens
Doddabetta peak
[edit] Do
Most travel agents / hotels conduct guided tour packages that will bundle you into a bus, and tick off the most important and hence crowded "tourist" spots in the area.
Enjoy the weather
Go for long walks and hikes
Visit a tea plantation and if possible a tea factory
Travel the country side in a 4x4
Catch a round of golf at the Gymkhana Golf course (membership or introduction required)
Visit the local Army cantonment - the Madras Regimental Center and the DSSC (Defense Services Staff College)
Visit terrace farmed cabbage fields around Ooty
Visit the Mudumalai forest sanctuary (1-2 days minimum)
Sample the local bakeries (Kingstar bakery near Charing Cross in Ooty sells sinfully delicious chocolate and pistachio fudges)
[edit] Eat
There are various restaurants in Ooty, mostly offering South Indian food, but some offer North Indian food.
One can also obtain some Chinese/Indo-Chinese food from restaurants such as Wang's kitchen and Western food such as pizza and sandwiches from chains like Hot Breads. Do not miss trying Ooty's famous buns, varkis, cakes, and other baked goods, as well as their fruit and nut chocolates.
[edit] Drink
[edit] Sleep
There is no dearth of accommodations, with many hotels and inns that cater to every budget. Accommodations are no more expensive than most cities in India, and the popular Indian hotel chains have a presence here.
Hotel Savoy from the Taj Group is one good option
Another excellent choice is the newly constructed Sherlock Hotel. It is a typical homestay with only about 10 rooms, but the location is magnificent - overlooking the entire valley, and the quality is high (including the food).
Ooty (TamilNadu)
Hotels & Resorts in Ooty
Hotel Grade Rate per couple Plan
Hotel Sinclairs *** Tariff Room, Bed Tea & Breakfast
Hotel Darshan ** Tariff Room only
Hotel Lakeview ** Tariff Room only
The Monarch *** Tariff Room, Bed Tea & Breakfast.
The Sagar Holiday Resort *** Tariff Room only
Holiday Inn * * * Tariff Room only
Package Tours to Bangalore Mysore Ooty
Package Tours to Bangalore, Mysore, Ooty, & Kodaikanal
Ootacamund or Ooty is situated in Nilgiri Mountains near Tri Junction of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. Ooty is the only hill station in India which attracts visitors during all seasons. It has built up a fame as the `all-seasons -hill resort' and the `queen of hill stations'. It is one of the most popular hill resorts in southern India at an elevation of 7216 ft. above sea-level, her moods change with every season, but each of her moods is hospitable to the visitor. Nestling among the hills at a point where the Eastern Ghats meets the Western Ghats, the district headquarter town of Udhagamandalam sprawls along a beautiful plateau. The Eastern Ghats are mighty and attractive while the Western ghats have wooded loveliness. Nature unfolds itself in and around Ooty in a myriad of profiles, each one with a distinctive grandeur and individuality.
This natural charm, several attractions compel the tourist to stay on for extended periods with comfort. The first British came to Ooty in 1812. He was followed by a few hundred European missionaries, educationist and civil servants. Finally, the hill stations attracted many Europeans so much so that it became the summer capital of the then vast Madras presidency, or the present Tamil nadu State, which consisted of 75% of what we call South India today. Soon, Indian princes or Maharajas (who were the ruler of various areas and territories throughout India and industrialists built their palaces and mansions.
The first inhabitants of this land were a tribe called Todas who had been living here long before the British came in the early nineteenth century. But the credit for modernising Udhagamandalam and making it accessible goes to the British who constructed the first railway line in the area and made it the summer capital of the Madras Presidency. Todas antedated all explorers to the Nilgiris by a great margin of time. Mr. John Sullivan discovered Ooty in 1820. He built a permanent house at Nilgiri Hill and this was the beginning. Soon several other British officers built their summer houses. Horses, pony bullock cart and tonga were transportation modes at that time.
Ooty's main industry is oil extraction particularly from the eucalyptus trees introduced during the 19th century, and also from lemon grass, geranium, clove and camphor.
Even today the atmosphere of the Raj lingers in places like the Club where snooker was invented by a subaltern named Neville Chamberlain. The Nilgiri Library with its rare and valuable collection of books on Udhagamandalam and St. Stephen's Church which was Udhagamandalam's first church are reminiscent of the Raj. The cemetery near the church has the oldest British tombstones and includes graves of John Sullivan's wife and daughter, among other prominent personalities.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Altitude: 2240 metres
Temperature (°C): Summer: Max 25, Min 10 Winter: Max 21, Min 0
Best Season: April to June and September to October
STD Code: 0423
PLACES OF INTEREST
Botanical Gardens (2 kms)
Tiger Hill (16 kms)
Dodabetta Peak (10 kms)
Valley View Lake (1 km)
Wilson Fish Farm, St. Stephen Church, Marlimund Lake (5 kms)
Wenlock Downs (2 kms)
Avalanche (15 kms)
Elk Hill, Kalhatti Falls (14 kms)
Snowdon, Glen Morgen (25 kms)
EXCURSIONS
Wellingtion (16 kms)
Kotagiri (29 kms)
Madumalai Wildlife Sanctuary (64 kms)
Coonoor (19 kms)
Bandipur Wildlife Sanctuary (78 kms)
HOW TO GET THERE?
Air: The nearest airport Coimbatore (89 kms) is connected by Indian Airlines' flights with Bombay, Calicut, Chennai and Madurai.
Rail: Ooty is connected by narrow guage train services with Mettupalayam which in turn connected through Chennai & Coimbatore to major cities in India.
Road: Good motorable roads connect Ooty to Bombay- 1320 kms, Bangalore- 290 kms, Calicut- 178 kms, Coimbatore- 89 kms, Coonoor- 19 kms, Kotagiri- 29 kms, Madumalai- 64 kms, Chennai- 535 kms, Mysore- 160 kms, Trivandrum- 498 kms, Tiruchirapally- 302 kms.