Munnar

A tea-plantation town at 1,600 m in the Western Ghats, with rolling tea hills and seas of cloud, and Nilgiri tahr to spot in Eravikulam National Park.

Munnar sits in Idukki district of Kerala in southern India, at about 1,600 m in the Western Ghats. Its name comes from the confluence of three rivers. The British opened tea estates here in the late 19th century, and it is now South India's largest tea-growing region, with neatly trimmed rows of tea bushes stretching across the slopes. The climate is cool: September–March is clear and the best time to visit, with mornings and evenings close to 10°C in December–February. June–August brings heavy southwest monsoon rain and occasional landslides on mountain roads, but the tea hills are at their greenest and the waterfalls at their most spectacular. Eravikulam National Park closes in February–March for the calving season of the Nilgiri tahr. Sightseeing falls into four routes: north of town, Eravikulam National Park and the Tata Tea Museum; east of town, the Mattupetty Dam–Echo Point–Kundala Lake–Top Station viewpoint route, which can be extended to the terraced village of Vattavada; southeast of town, the Lockhart Tea Factory, the Chokramudi trek, Anayirangal Dam, and a pre-dawn jeep ride up to Kolukkumalai for sunrise; and farther north (about 40–60 km), the Marayur sandalwood forest, the orchard village of Kanthalloor and Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary. Getting there: the nearest airport is Cochin International Airport (about 110 km); a private car along NH85 takes about 3.5–4 hours, passing Cheeyappara and Valara waterfalls on the way. There is no railway. Sights in town are spread out, so most people hire an auto-rickshaw or jeep for the day, at around ₹2,000–3,500. We suggest staying 2–3 days; resorts set in the tea estates outside town are quieter. Notes: the winding mountain roads can cause motion sickness; the national park has long queues in peak season, so arrive early or book online; tea estates are private property, so do not enter the picking areas without permission; wild elephants often appear on the roads, so do not get out of your vehicle to approach them.

Top sights

• Munnar Tea Gardens – A British-founded tea hill station at 1,600 meters in the Western Ghats, with rolling tea gardens, the Tata Tea Museum, and Nilgiri tahr in…
• Eravikulam National Park – Munnar's top attraction, where you can see endangered Nilgiri tahr up close on alpine meadows, with views of Anamudi, South India's highest…
• Top Station – The highest road-accessible viewpoint in Munnar, standing on the border of Kerala and Tamil Nadu to look down over clouds and plains.
• KDHP Tea Museum (Tata Tea Museum) – Learn about Munnar's century-old tea history, visit a working demonstration factory and taste freshly made black tea.
• Mattupetty Dam – A high-altitude reservoir surrounded by tea gardens. You can take a speedboat or pedal boat out on the lake, and wild elephants sometimes c…
• Echo Point – A natural echo valley by the lake. Shout toward the hillside and you will hear a clear echo. It is a popular stop on the Top Station route.
• Kundala Lake – A high-altitude lake enclosed by a small arch dam, where you can row a Kashmiri-style shikara. Tea gardens and eucalyptus forests surround…
• Attukad Waterfalls – A multi-tiered waterfall between tea hills and forest. Water is fullest after the rains, and it is an easy hike to the south of town.
• Anamudi – At 2,695 m, it is the highest peak in India south of the Himalayas. Its name means 'elephant's forehead.'
• Kolukkumalai Tea Estate – Said to be one of the highest tea estates in the world. Ride a jeep up before dawn to see the sunrise and cloud sea over the Western Ghats.
• Lakkom Falls – A forest waterfall beside the road from Munnar to Marayoor. The trail is short, and you can paddle in the pool below.
• Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary – A dry forest reserve in the rain shadow of the Western Ghats. Here you can see grizzled giant squirrels, Indian bison and a cactus-dotted w…
• Marayoor Sandalwood Forest & Dolmens – Kerala's only natural sandalwood forest, with prehistoric dolmen tombs and hand-made jaggery workshops scattered nearby.
• Pothamedu Viewpoint – A viewpoint on a hillside about 6 km south of town, overlooking tea gardens, coffee and cardamom plantations, and Attukad Falls.
• Cheeyappara Waterfalls – A seven-tiered waterfall right beside the national highway from Kochi to Munnar. It is the first stop on the way into the hills and needs n…
• Valara Waterfalls – A high-drop waterfall in a forest gorge, viewed from a lookout beside the national highway. It is next to Cheeyappara Falls.
• Munnar Botanical Garden – A garden built by Kerala's tourism department on the edge of town, with roses, orchids and alpine plants in terraced flower beds.
• Mount Carmel Church, Munnar – Munnar's first Catholic church, founded in 1898. Its grey-white stone walls stand on a hill in the town center.
• CSI Christ Church, Munnar – An English-style stone Anglican church completed in 1910. The cemetery holds the early tea planters of Munnar.
• Meesapulimala – At 2,640 m, the second-highest peak in the Western Ghats. Visitors sign up for an official trek and stay in tents on the summit to watch th…
• Anayirangal Dam – A blue-green reservoir surrounded by tea gardens. Its name means 'where elephants come down,' and wild elephants are often seen on the lake…
• Kanthalloor – An orchard village at 1,500 m that grows apples, oranges and strawberries and is known as 'the Kashmir of Kerala.'
• Vattavada – The easternmost terraced farming village in Munnar, home to Tamil people and known as 'Munnar's vegetable basket.'
• Chokramudi Peak – A hiking peak on the road to Devikulam, southeast of Munnar. The summit takes about 2 hours to reach and offers views over tea hills and va…
• Lockhart Tea Factory – An old tea estate factory founded in 1879. Visitors can tour the tea-making process and taste tea, and there is a viewpoint at nearby Lockh…

Where to eat

• Saravana Bhavan – A long-running South Indian vegetarian eatery in Munnar Market, open since 1997, where the banana-leaf thali and ghee r…
• Rapsy Restaurant – One of the oldest eateries on Munnar's Main Bazaar, serving affordable Kerala parotta with beef and biryani
• Gurubhavan Restaurant – A popular budget restaurant in the town center, known for its unlimited-refill Kerala meals, fried fish and roast beef
• Purohit Restaurant – A pure vegetarian restaurant in Munnar run by a Rajasthani family, specializing in Gujarati and Rajasthani thali meals
• Taste the Brews – A small tea house beside the long-distance bus station, serving a range of Munnar teas with inexpensive egg breakfasts…

Itineraries

• Classic Kerala – Fly into Kochi and out of Trivandrum, taking in tea plantations, a tiger reserve, backwater houseboats, and red cliff b…
• South India Coast-to-Coast: Chennai to Kochi – From the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea, traverse temple plains, Chettinad, tea hills, and backwaters.
• Madurai to Twin Hill Stations (Munnar) – Ascend from the ancient temple city to two hill stations, crossing the Western Ghats into the tea hills of Kerala.