Ooty – Connectivity
Ooty is
one of the most scenic popular hill stations in southern India. Nature has
gifted the place with immense beauty. Its colonial charm and innate splendor
attracts tourists from all over the world every year. Ooty has a well linked
network of Air, Rail and Road ways.
Being one
of the frequented hill stations in India it has an easy access from other major
cities in India. With flourishing Ooty tourism, the mighty hill station perched
on the Nilgiri hues is mostly travelled by road. Ooty also encircles some of
India’s tourist destinations and major cities. The distance from Coimbatore to
Ooty is approximately 90 kms where as from Chennai it approximately 550 kms.
One can even reach Ooty by road from Madurai, which is approximately
290 kms away. If you are in Hyderabad, it is going to take you half a day to
reach Ooty. One needs to cover a distance of 850 kms by road from Hyderabad.
The approximate distance from Tirupati to Ooty is 540kms. Ooty encircles vast
foliage dotted with wild lives and thus one can even drive to the Mukurthi
National Park and Lake, Mudumalai National Park and Bandipur National Park. The
distance from Bangalore to Ooty is approximately 270kms whereas from Mysore to
Ooty is only 120kms. If you are planning to drive to Ooty from Cochin, then you
need to cover a distance of 270kms.
One who
is willing to reach Ooty by train has to opt Mettupalayam, which is
47 km away from Ooty whereas Coimbatore and Chennai acts as the busiest railway
stations that connects Ooty via Mettupalayam. Mettupalayam and Conoor are
connected to Ooty with toy trains.
The
Chennai International Airport, Cochin International Airport and the Bangalore
International Airport are the closest airports from Ooty. Whereas international
flights from New York to Bangalore and other international cities connects Ooty
via Bangalore Airport, which is the closest International Airport. Mysore
Airport is the closest domestic airport that connects Ooty by air to
rest of India. There are scheduled flights and flights from
Delhi to Mysore.
Thus how
to reach Ooty is not a matter of fuss and still if you inquire then there
are daily buses plying from Coimbatore, Cochin, Mysore, Bangalore and Chennai.
By Air
The Coimbatore airport
is the closest to the hills at 3-1/2 hours by road. There are flights into Coimbatore from
Singapore, Sharjah, Colombo and most parts of India including Mumbai
(Kingfisher, Indian Airlines, Jet and Go Air), Chennai (Spicejet, Air India,
Indigo and Jet) and Bangalore. The Mysore airport is about 4 hours away
from Ooty by road and is serviced by a daily ATR service by Kingfisher Airlines
and lies to the North of Ooty. The road trip is quite scenic from either
airport.
|
Indian Airlines
|
||||||||||||||
|
Details
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
||||||||||||
|
Delhi – Mumbai - Coimbatore -Kozhikode(Daily)
|
11.05 am
|
11.45 am
|
||||||||||||
|
Kozhikode - Coimbatore - Mumbai - Delhi (Daily)
|
1.30 pm
|
2.10 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Kochi - Coimbatore - Chennai (Wednesday, Friday, Sunday)
|
3.55 am
|
4.35 am
|
||||||||||||
|
Kozhikode - Coimbatore - Mumbai - Delhi (Daily)
|
1.30 pm
|
2.10 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Sharjah – Cochin - Coimbatore - Chennai
|
3.55 am
|
4.35 am
|
||||||||||||
|
Chennai - Coimbatore - Cochin - Sharjah (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday)
|
3.15 pm
|
4.00 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Jet Airways
|
||||||||||||||
|
Details
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
||||||||||||
|
Bangalore - Coimbatore - Bangalore (Daily)
|
12.30 pm
|
1.05 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Mumbai - Coimbatore - Mumbai (Daily)
|
2.20 pm
|
3.00 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Chennai - Coimbatore - Chennai (Daily)
|
8.20 pm
|
8.50 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Kingfisher Airlines
|
||||||||||||||
|
Details
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
||||||||||||
|
Pune - Bangalore - Coimbatore - Ahmadabad - Jammu (Daily)
|
9:10 am
|
10:00 am
|
||||||||||||
|
Jammu - Ahmadabad - Coimbatore - Bangalore - Pune (Daily)
|
8:15 pm
|
8:45 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Paramount Airways
|
||||||||||||||
|
Details
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
||||||||||||
|
Chennai - Coimbatore - Chennai - Hyderabad (Daily)
|
8.20 am
|
8.45 am
|
||||||||||||
|
Hyderabad - Coimbatore – Hyderabad (Daily)
|
1.05 pm
|
1.30 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Chennai - Coimbatore - Chennai (Daily)
|
8.15 pm
|
8.45 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Go Air
|
||||||||||||||
|
Details
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
||||||||||||
|
Coimbatore/Mumbai
|
9.15 pm
|
11.05 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Mumbai/Coimbatore
|
6.50 pm
|
8.40 pm
|
||||||||||||
|
Timings are Subject to Change without Notice.
|
||||||||||||||
|
Air Travel Enquiry and Flight Reservation
|
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
By Train
The Queen
of Hills is connected to the Chennai City (Capital of Tamilnadu state) by a
train at night hours. The train called as Nilgiris Express or Blue Mountain
Express which leaves from Chennai at night, and reaches Mettupalayam a small
town at the foothills of the Nilgiris early the next morning around 6.30am. The
Nilgiri Mountain Railway (Toy Train) leaves Mettupalayam at 7.10am. The train
is very smaller one and can only accommodate few passengers. 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 hill
station of Ooty has a railway station of its own. It is called the
Udhagamandalam railway station and can be reached by The Nilgiri Mountain
Railway (a.k.a. Toy Train) from Mettupalayam. Though the toy train isn't very
fast but the scenic beauty of this route attracts many tourists. Mettupalayam
is the nearest major railway station to Ooty. One can also hire a private taxi
to reach Ooty here. The distance of Ooty from Mettupalayam is about 52 km.
The
Nilgiri Mountain Railway leaves Mettupalayam at 7.10 pushed by a small steam
powered historic locomotive that is a remnant of Swiss engineered trains
imported in the late 1800s. The train journey will be a very good experience,
but only 30 tickets are issued on the spot. A separate queue for this train is
at Mettupalayam railway station. You have to be in queue atleast by 5 am. A
token will be given from there and you have to take this token to ticket counter
(outside the platform, yellow building), get the tickets and get back to the
same queue. If you are a team, one can represent for taking token and tickets
but all have to be present in queue while embarking the train. Try to get a
seat to farther side of platform as this side offers maximum viewing
experience. The steam train is much smaller, and can only accommodate a portion
of the passengers that disembark at Mettupalayam. You have to book separate
ticket for this journey (tickets can be booked through IRCTC (www.irctc.co.in)
like any other rail ticket booking.), although many prefer the faster route of
taking a cab or a bus from Mettupalayam.
The steam
train takes a very scenic route, and the pace of travel will let you take in
the beautiful scenery at leisure with stops at stations for the engine to take
on water (the journey takes about 5-1/2 hours compared to 2 hours by road). The
train uses a rack and pinion system to haul it up steep
slopes, and also to prevent the train from sliding down when stopping. The
train is pushed from behind. 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 adventurous
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.
If you
don't have a confirmed ticket of that toy train then you would not get the
chance to board in it as railways issue limited say only 30 tickets on the spot
at Mettupalayam starting at 5:00 AM , and at 1:00 PM at Ooty for the full
stretch journey from Mettupalayam to Ooty.
Mountain Railway: (Timings - Subject to change)
Mettupalayam to Ooty
Dep:
07.45 a.m. / Arrival: 12.10 Noon
Ooty to Mettupalayam
Dep:
02.55 p.m. / Arrival: 06.30 p.m.
Train Fare:
First
Class Rs. 70.00. Second Class Rs 9.00.
Timing:
Ooty - Coonoor:
09.30 a.m, 02.55 p.m, 06.00 p.m.
Coonoor -
Ooty: 08.00 a.m, 11.00 a.m, 03.00 p.m.
Trains at Coimbatore
Junction
|
Train No
|
At Coimbatore Junction Express Trains
|
Departure
|
Arrival
|
|
2674 / 2673
|
Coimbatore - Chennai Cheran Super fast Exp (Daily)
|
22.15
|
06.10
|
|
2676 / 2675
|
Coimbatore -Chennai Kovai Super fast Exp (Daily)
|
13.40
|
13.55
|
|
2680 / 2679
|
Coimbatore - Chennai Inter City Exp ( Daily)
|
06.30
|
22.15
|
|
2678 / 2677
|
Coimbatore - Bangalore Inter City Exp (Daily)
|
14.25
|
13.10
|
|
2647 / 2648
|
Coimbatore - Nizamudin Kongu Exp (Dep Sun) (Arr - Fri)
|
15.15
|
10.30
|
|
6614 / 6613
|
Coimbatore - Rajkot Exp (Dep Thu ) (Arr - Tue)
|
23.30
|
03.00
|
|
6608 / 6607
|
Coimbatore - Chennai Egmore Exp
|
17.15
|
10.15
|
|
1014 / 1013
|
Coimbatore - Lokmanyya Tilak Kurla Exp (Daily)
|
08.00
|
06.30
|
|
2084 / 2083
|
Coimbatore - Kumbakonam Janshatabdi Exp (Except Tue)
|
07.00
|
21.00
|
|
2969
|
Coimbatore - Jaipur (Friday)
|
09.15
|
-
|
|
2970
|
Jaipur - Coimbatore (Thursday)
|
-
|
19.15
|
Trains Passing through
Coimbatore Junction
|
Train No
|
Express Trains Passing Through
Coimbatore Junction
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
|
2671
|
Chennai
- Mettupalayam Nilgiri Super fast Exp (Daily)
|
05.00
|
05.15
|
|
2672
|
Mettupalayam
- Chennai Nilgiri Super fast Exp (Daily)
|
20.30
|
20.55
|
|
6865
|
Thiruchirappalli
- Ernakulum Exp. (Daily)
|
00.50
|
00.55
|
|
6866
|
Ernakulum
- Thiruchirappalli Exp. (Daily)
|
02.35
|
02.40
|
|
1081
|
Mumbai
CSTM - Kanyakumari Exp (Daily)
|
00.05
|
00.10
|
|
1082
|
Kanyakumari
-Mumbai CSTM Exp (Daily)
|
17.25
|
17.30
|
|
3351
|
Dhanbad
- Allepey Tata Exp (Daily)
|
12.35
|
12.40
|
|
3352
|
Allepey
- Dhanbad Tata Exp (Daily)
|
11.50
|
11.55
|
|
6525
|
Kanyakumari
- Bangalore Exp (Daily)
|
22.40
|
22.45
|
|
6526
|
Bangalore
- Kanyakumari Exp (Daily)
|
05.15
|
05.20
|
|
7229
|
Kochuvelli
- Hyderabad Sabari Exp
|
16.25
|
16.30
|
|
7230
|
Hyderabad
- Kochuvelli Sabari Exp
|
08.35
|
08.40
|
|
6867
|
Thiruchirappalli
- Mangalore Exp (Daily)
|
11.50
|
11.55
|
|
6868
|
Mangalore-
Thiruchirappalli Exp (Daily)
|
15.45
|
15.50
|
|
2625
|
Trivandrum
- New Delhi Kerala Exp (Daily)
|
20.05
|
20.10
|
|
2626
|
New
Delhi - Trivandrum Kerala Exp (Daily)
|
05.30
|
05.35
|
|
6627
|
Chennai
CNTL Mangalore West Coast Exp (Daily)
|
19.40
|
19.45
|
|
6628
|
Mangalore
- Chennai CNTL Mangalore West Coast Exp (Daily)
|
06.35
|
06.40
|
|
6359
|
Ernakulum
- Rajinder Nagar Exp (Sun)
|
03.00
|
03.05
|
|
6360
|
Rajinder
Nagar - Ernakulum Malabar Exp (Thu)
|
23.15
|
23.20
|
|
6317
|
Kanyakumari
- Jammu Tawi Him Sagar Exp (Sat)
|
00.55
|
01.00
|
|
6318
|
Jammu Tawi
- Kanyakumari Him Sagar Exp (Thu)
|
12.10
|
12.15
|
|
6325
|
Indore
- Trivandrum Ahilyanagari Exp (Wed)
|
09.25
|
09.30
|
|
6326
|
Trivandrum
- Indore Ahilyanagari Exp (Sat)
|
14.40
|
14.45
|
|
2512
|
Trivandrum
- Gorakhpur Raptisagar Exp (Tue, Wed, Sun)
|
14.35
|
14.40
|
|
2511
|
Gorakhpur
- Trivandrum Raptisagar Exp (Tue, Sat, Sun)
|
08.05
|
08.10
|
|
6357
|
Nagercoil
Howrah Exp (Mon)
|
00.55
|
01.00
|
|
6358
|
Howrah
- Nagercoil Exp (Fri)
|
12.10
|
12.15
|
|
6321
|
Bangalore
- Trivandrum Exp (Fri)
|
02.05
|
02.10
|
|
6322
|
Trivandrum
- Bangalore Exp (Thu)
|
00.55
|
01.00
|
|
6687
|
Mangalore
- Jammu Tawi Navyug Exp (Tue)
|
00.55
|
01.00
|
|
6688
|
Jammu
Tawi - Mangalore Navyug Exp (Sun)
|
12.10
|
12.15
|
|
2522
|
Ernakulum
- Barauni Raptisagar Exp (Fri)
|
14.35
|
14.40
|
|
2521
|
Barauni
- Ernakulum Raptisagar Exp (Thu)
|
08.05
|
08.10
|
|
2507
|
Ernakulum
- Guwahati Exp (Wed)
|
00.55
|
01.00
|
|
2508
|
Guwahati
- Ernakulum Exp (Sun)
|
14.05
|
14.10
|
|
5627
|
Trivandrum
- Guwahati Exp (Sun)
|
21.30
|
21.35
|
|
5628
|
Guwahati
- Trivandrum Exp (Fri)
|
14.05
|
14.10
|
|
6323
|
Trivandrum
- Howrah Exp (Fri, Sun)
|
00.55
|
01.00
|
|
6324
|
Howrah
- Trivandrum Exp (Tue, Thu)
|
13.05
|
13.10
|
|
6309
|
Ernakulum
- Patna Exp (Mon)
|
21.30
|
21.35
|
|
6310
|
Patna -
Ernakulum Exp (Sat)
|
13.05
|
13.10
|
|
2643
|
Trivandrum
- Nizamudin Super fast Exp (Tue)
|
23.20
|
23.30
|
|
2644
|
Nizamudin
- Trivandrum Super fast Exp (Sun)
|
02.05
|
02.10
|
|
2645
|
Ernakulum
- Nizamudin Super fast Exp (Sat)
|
23.20
|
23.30
|
|
2646
|
Nizamudin
- Ernakulum Super fast Exp (Thu)
|
02.05
|
02.10
|
|
6327
|
Korba -
Trivandrum Exp (Mon,Fri)
|
08.05
|
08.10
|
|
6328
|
Trivandrum
- Korba Exp (Mon,Thu)
|
14.40
|
14.45
|
|
Train No
|
Passenger Trains passing Through
Coimbatore Junction
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
|
384 / 383
|
Coimbatore - Nagercoil (Daily)
|
07.10
|
20.45
|
|
387 / 388
|
Coimbatore - Mangalore (Daily)
|
07.35
|
19.35
|
|
611 / 610
|
Coimbatore - Cannanore (Daily)
|
14.00
|
13.15
|
|
633 / 634
|
Coimbatore - Trichur (Daily)
|
16.35
|
10.45
|
|
608 / 607
|
Coimbatore - Erode (Daily)
|
17.45
|
09.15
|
|
655 / 656
|
Coimbatore -Mettupalayam (Expect Sun)
|
17.55
|
09.10
|
|
631 / 632
|
Coimbatore -Palaghat (Expect Sun)
|
18.00
|
08.55
|
|
Train No
|
Express Trains Passing at Podanur
Junction
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
|
2601
|
Chennai - Mangalore Mail (Daily)
|
03.24
|
03.25
|
|
2602
|
Mangalore - Chennai Mail (Daily)
|
21.34
|
21.35
|
|
6041
|
Chennai - Allepey Exp (Daily)
|
04.15
|
04.17
|
|
6042
|
Allepey - Chennai Exp (Daily)
|
21.15
|
21.17
|
|
6331
|
Mumbai CSTM - Trivandrum Exp (Tue)
|
19.09
|
19.10
|
|
6332
|
Trivandrum - Mumbai CSTM Exp (Sat)
|
13.09
|
13.10
|
|
2683
|
Ernakulum - Bangalore Exp (Sun, Wed)
|
21.13
|
21.15
|
|
2684
|
Bangalore - Ernakulum Exp (Mon, Thu)
|
00.10
|
00.12
|
|
2685
|
Chennai - Mangalore Exp (Mon, Wed, Fri)
|
23.08
|
23.09
|
|
2686
|
Mangalore - Chennai Exp (Mon, Tue, Thu)
|
00.17
|
00.19
|
|
Train No
|
Passenger Trains Passing Through
Coimbatore Junction
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
|
771/772
|
Podanur
- Dindigul (Daily)
|
09.00
|
19.00
|
|
777/778
|
Podanur
- Madurai (Daily)
|
20.15
|
07.50
|
|
773/774
|
Podanur
- Pollachi (Daily)
|
15.00
|
13.40
|
|
Train No
|
Passenger Trains Passing Through
Coimbatore Junction
|
Arrival
|
Departure
|
|
887
|
Trichy - Palaghat (Daily)
|
18.40
|
18.45
|
|
888
|
Palaghat - Trichy (Daily)
|
08.10
|
08.15
|
·
Telephone Numbers : General Enquiries - Coimbatore Junction 131,
· Reservation Enquiries - Coimbatore Junction 132, 1361, 1362, 1363,
Podanur: + 91 - 422 - 2410784
|
Express Trains Passing Through Mettupalayam
Junction
|
||||
|
Train No
|
Train Name
|
Train Category
|
Mettupalayam
|
|
|
Arr. Time
|
Dep. Time
|
|||
|
2672
|
Mettupalayam
Chennai Central Nilgiri Express
|
Mail / Express
|
---
|
19.45
|
|
26721
|
Chennai
Central Mettupalayam Nilgiri Express
|
Mail / Express
|
06.00
|
---
|
|
Passenger Trains Passing Through Mettupalayam
Junction
|
||||
|
662
|
Mettupalayam
Udagamandalam Passenger
|
Passenger
|
---
|
07.10
|
|
656
|
Mettupalayam
Coimbatore Passenger
|
Passenger
|
---
|
08:15
|
|
661
|
Udagamandalam
Mettupalayam Passenger
|
Passenger
|
18:35
|
---
|
|
665
|
Coimbatore
Mettupalayam Passenger
|
Passenger
|
18:45
|
---
|
By Road
Ooty is
19 Kms from Coonoor, 52 Kms from Mettupalayam, 84 Kms from Coimbatore, 104 Kms
from Tiruppur, 127 Kms from Pollachi, 136 Kms from Palakkad, 154 Kms from
Dharapuram, 159 Kms from Udumalaipettai, 535 km from Chennai (via Salem), 89 km
from Coimbatore, 18 km
from Coonoor (via Gudalur), 155 km from Mysore, 187 km from Calicut, 290 km
from Bangalore, 281 km from Kochi (via Coimbatore and Palakkad), 236 km from
Kodaikanal (via Coimbatore and Palani) and is linked through
Tamil Nadu State Road Transport Corporation (TNSRTC) and some private
travel services.
There is
a regular bus service from Bangalore, Mysore, Coimbatore, Calicut, Kanyakumari,
Thanjavur, Tirupati and Cochin. Buses ply regularly to Mudumalai Wildlife
Sanctuary, Kotagiri, Coonoor and Doddabetta.
There are
buses and shared taxi vans that can be boarded from most parts of India to
Ooty. If you don't want wake up early to take the train from Coimbatore, plenty
of buses are also going to Ooty. The Coimbatore "new bus station" has
frequent bus service to Ooty via Mettupalayam, and it takes around 3-1/2 hours
to get there. On the way back in morning, some busses make a 10-15 minute stop
over at Mettupalayam for breakfast. From the "new bus station" it
takes about 25minutes by (another) bus to reach the Coimbatore railway station.
From Kozhikode (Calicut) there are two government buses daily, leaving 05.00
and 07.00, travel time is about 6 hours. Mysore is served few times a day, too.
From Kannur there is a KSRTC Bus starting at 7.30 am everyday and a Tamil Nadu
Bus at 10PM everyday reaching Ooty at 4PM and 7am next day respectively.
Local Transport - By Bus
Bus Timings From Ooty: (Subject to change)
Ø Bangalore
- AM: 6.30, 9.30, 10.30. - PM: 12.30, 2.00, 8.00, 9.30, 10.30
Ø Calicut -
AM: 6.30, 7.45. - PM: 1.45, 3.15 (Kerala State)
Ø Coimbatore
- Every 20 Minutes from 5.30 A.M. to 8.00 P.M.
Ø Erode -
AM: 7.15, 8.45, 9.00, 10.40, & 11.30. - PM: 12.50, 2.50, 4.30
Ø Dindigul
- 4.20 PM
Ø Karur -
AM: 8.20. - PM: 1.20, 5.20
Ø Kanyakumari
- 5.45 PM
Ø Kodaikanal
- 6.30 AM
Ø Chennai -
PM: 4.30, 5.00, 6.30
Ø Mettupalayam
- Every 20 minutes from 5.30 A.M. to 9.00 P.M.
Ø Mysore -
AM: 8.00, 9.00, 11.30. - PM: 3.30, 1.30, 5.30
Ø Salem -
1.30 PM
Ø Tanjore -
8.00 AM & 6.15 PM
Ø Tirupati
- 5.30 PM
|
Road Distance from Ooty
|
|||
|
Coonoor
- 018kms
|
Mudumalai
- 57 kms
|
Coimbatore
- 98 kms
|
Mysore
- 155 kms
|
|
Salem -
205 kms
|
Palani
- 206 kms
|
Guruvayur
- 227 kms
|
Kodaikanal
- 236 kms
|
|
Yercaud
- 237 kms
|
Cochin
- 281 kms
|
Bangalore
- 290 kms
|
Trichy
- 302 kms
|
|
Madurai
- 325 kms
|
Hogenakal
- 328 kms
|
Sittannavasal
- 339 kms
|
Thiruvannamalai
-354 kms
|
|
Tirupathy
- 362 kms
|
Tanjore
- 383 kms
|
Chidambaram
- 401 kms
|
Pondicherry
- 412 kms
|
|
Pichavaram
- 421 kms
|
Vedanthangal
- 446 kms
|
Thekkady
- 455 kms
|
Vellore
- 461 kms
|
|
Nagore-
470 kms
|
Velankanni
- 472 kms
|
Poompuhar
- 473 kms
|
Thirunelveli
- 476 kms
|
|
Courtallam
- 489 kms
|
Point
Calimere - 491 kms
|
Rameswaram
- 496 kms
|
Tiruvandrum
- 498 kms
|
|
Mamallapuram
- 505 kms
|
Kancheepuram
- 508 kms
|
Tuticorin
- 536 kms
|
Chennai
- 539 kms
|
|
Tiruchandur
- 539 kms
|
Kanyakumari
- 587 kms
|
Hyderabad - 853 kms
|
Mettupalayam – 52 Kms
|
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.
Ooty is
284 km from Bangalore by road. The journey takes about 8 hours, depending on
the condition of the road. One can take a shorter route for which a diversion
has to be taken at Mudumalai wildlife sanctuary. This route will take you past
the small towns of Masinagudi and Kalhatti. This route will curtail the
distance to Ooty by about 50 km. Keep in mind that this road is closed at night
as it passes through the jungle, so you may actually have to spend a few hours
at the check post which is closed invariably at night.
Only good drivers should
take on this road as it is very narrow and steep. You’ll find some eateries and
a fuel station in the town of Masinagudi. There are some wonderful
resorts around Masinagudi town where one can rent a cottage. These places are a
good weekend getaway for rest and relaxation. There are eating places between
Bangalore and Mysore, and within Mysore, but from Mysore to Ooty one should
carry some food, as there are very few restaurants. Start early if you can so
that the drive through Bandipur and Mudumalai forest can be done leisurely taking in the occasional animal sightings.
§ Velavan Tours (Coimbatore to Ooty Cab), (velavantravels@ymail.com). Inquiry: 24/7 Booking. (Note: Book a taxi from
Coimbatore to Ooty, Kodaikanal, Munnar, Bangalore, Coonoor and other tourist
places.) at affordable Fares.
§ taxiguide.in (Bangalore to Ooty), ☎ +91
888 023 4455 (support@taxiguide.in), Inquiry: 7am to 11pm. (Note: You can also book a
cab to Ooty from Mysore, Coorg & Coimbatore) Fares starting Rs.6000
for a 3 day trip from Bangalore.
Get around
Taxis, tourist cabs, auto rickshaws are available
in plenty. There are no standard rates except tourist cabs. Rickshaws charge a
minimum of Rs 30. Town buses are also available to all important places.
Conducted sightseeing tours are arranged by the private operators and the
Tamilnadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC). There are around 3-4
different day trip routes/packages available. Bus day-trip cost around Rs
125-150 and taxi day-trip cost around Rs 900-1100.
Even if you arranged the
taxi through the hotel (even TTDC), please verify with the hotel and operator
before the trip that there are no hidden costs. Because the taxi drivers demand
high parking fees extra and lunch, which is already paid for. The bus/taxi drivers get commission from
remote restaurants and shops and they are overpriced, try avoiding such
restaurants. Both bus and taxi will take tourists to some remote high-priced
restaurant for lunch, try not to eat in such places because the food is cold,
overpriced and place is not clean beyond the facade, and you will end up paying
for taxi drivers lunch too.
Also avoid auto driver’s recommendation they will take you to the hotels
for accommodation where they get 20% commission which will be compensated at
your cost.
