Places to visit near Ooty

TNSTC buses run between Ooty and Coonoor every 10 to 20 minutes, and the toy train covers the same stretch. In Coonoor: Sim's Park, All Saints Church and the Highfield tea factory, about 2 km from upper Coonoor, one of the few that lets walk-in visitors see tea being made. Dolphin's Nose, 10–12 km beyond Coonoor, looks across the gorge to Catherine Falls; Lamb's Rock is on the same road. Mist often closes both views after late morning, so go early. For a walk, the Droog Fort trail starts in the Nonsuch estate about 13 km from Coonoor: an hour each way through tea to the ruins of a fort of Tipu Sultan.

Wenlock Downs, the open grassland at the 9th Mile where many Indian films shot their song sequences, is about 15 km out; the Pine Forest is next to it. Pykara, about 20 km out on the Gudalur road, has a boating lake run by TTDC and the Pykara Falls, two drops of about 55 and 61 metres, fullest from July to October. The river is sacred to the Toda. Together they make a natural half day. More in lakes and waterfalls.

Past Emerald village the tea gives way to reservoirs ringed by shola forest and grassland. Private vehicles stop at the Avalanche forest checkpoint; from there the Tamil Nadu Forest Department runs its own bus and jeep safari of about two hours to Avalanche Lake, roughly 9:00 to 15:00, last entry near 14:00. Carry ID, and expect suspensions in the fire season or heavy rain. See nature trips.

Kotagiri, at about 1,950 m, is a hill town among tea estates and was once a summer resort of the Madras Presidency. Around it: Catherine Falls, a two-step fall of about 76 m in all, seen from a viewpoint above; Kodanad View Point; the John Sullivan Memorial in his restored bungalow 2 km from town, a small museum of Nilgiris history; and Longwood Shola, where a two-hour walk with a Forest Department guide must be booked in advance. Kotagiri hosts the vegetable show in May, in the same weeks as the Ooty flower show.

Down the hills where Tamil Nadu meets Karnataka and Kerala, part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. Only Forest Department vehicles enter the safari zone. The one-hour bus safari from the Theppakadu reception centre is sold at the counter only, first come first served, and leaves when enough seats are filled; foreign nationals pay about ₹2,500. The department advises against March and April. The direct road via Masinagudi climbs 36 hairpin bends and is for cars only.