Ooty or Kodaikanal

Hi,

This is Sangitha from Hyderabad.
Could anyone suggest which is the best hill station to visit.
I want to go to two places : Ooty or Kodaikanal.
I need more mist,snow & total adventurous trekking place & a calm place.
Where should i go Ooty or Kodaikanal.
Please reply immediately.

Sangitha

The countryside around Ooty is amazingly beautiful - the Western Ghats meet the Eastern Ghats at Doddabetta - a few miles out of the town centre - and this is the highest point in the Ghats.

If you want snow, you'll have to go to North India!

John Thanks for your reply.Is kodai hills not beautiful.
I did not meant snow..what i meant is mist & white clouds.
is ooty better than kodai..plz. suggest

Kodai is nice, but my personal preference is Ooty.

The weather varies, depending on when you go, but the climate is cool and refreshing!

john,
thanks for your preference
plz. suggest one thing...ooty or kodai.

sangitha

Agrees with john.....prefer ooty to kodai.....

Not been to Kodai but would love to go back to Ooty for the the little narrow gaige steam trains. That Blue Mountain Railway is awesome. Whatever you do you must take that train ride up from Mettupalayam. Amazing.

umm, u don't get snow in south india....

i have recently been to both places and have posted the links.

am posting em again for u...u can decide for urself

http://community.webshots.com/user/almoraboy3

have got 2 albums on ooty and one on kodai.
there is one place a bit far from ooty where r lots of beautiful meadows. u get good hill fruits like plums, apricots, strawberries, etc :-)))
also, in kodai, there r some beautiful treks a little away from the town, cycling around the lake is good fun and good momos (in the tibetan shops)

thanks almora boy...but where to go & enjoy.
Ooty better than Kodai or vice versa.
plz. suggest & advice immediately/.

both places r good. i guess ooty district would have slightly more places to check out than kodai.
also, ooty would be closer for u if u r coming from hyderabad.

u can check these places....

1) botanical gardens (my fave) ... some amazing trees
2) the mkts and the home made chocolates
3) dodabetta peak
4) go to welling side and there r some treks around dolphin's nose, duke's hump, etc, etc.
5) madumalai sanctuary
6) boating in pykara lake and falls
7) the meadow i told u about. it is a very very very beautiful place, with views for miles n miles around and a constant breeze blowing :-)))

I realize that this comment is somewhat off-topic, but I'd like to put this in: Neither Ooty or Kodai are particularly special places. I've been to both, and found them wanting. Sure, they have their good points, including some decent walks and viewpoints, "home made" chocolates (in both places, fwiw) and cool breezes, but mostly the hills in south India have been deforested (especially around Ooty), so the over all aesthetic looks to *me* like an areas that's been clear-cut (logged). Yes, Ooty has the botanical gardens, which are pretty nice, but the lake and air are shockingly polluted.

On the other hand, the Himalayas are the real deal. The mountains are HIGH, the valleys are DEEP, there's snow and there are semi-decent forests (festooned with a wide array of orchids--bonus!!!!). Again, I know you wanted to know which was best, Ooty or Kodai, so I apologize if my post isn't helpful.

hey,
how much time r u thinking of spending there?
if u have 4 days or more, then i might suggest munnar and kodai. actually, munnar and kodai are on 2 corners of the same value. so munnar + kodai are very much possible in a 3 day or more trip. i think the distance between the cities is 90 kms. and the top station of munnar is almost 60 kms from kodai.
so:
1) (munnar + kodai) > ooty
2) kodai < ooty

take ur pic

I have spent 4 months in Ooty this year, and I simply don't recognise your description of the place!

Maybe you are talking about a different Ooty?

The Ooty I know and love is not shockingly polluted - In the town centre you will have some exhaust fumes from vehicles, but that is the same the world over. Within a couple of minutes you are in beautiful countryside. There are tea gardens, mountains, jungles and wildlife sanctuaries within a few miles and the countryside is not at all polluted.

The Ooty Lake is undergoing a facelift - it is in the nature of man made lakes that they silt up and from time to time they need to be dredged. The Pykara Lake is absolutely unspoilt and clean and surrounded by thick jungle - no deforestation here!

The downs were deforested more than a century ago, but now they are a beautiful area rolling hills, occupied by sheep.

If the Nilgiris are not your cup of tea, then that is up to you, but your description is not a true reflection of Ooty in 2005.

Thanks for your comments & advice - John & Almora Boy.
I dont prefer going to Munnar but only to either Kodaikanal or OOty (since my trip is only for 3 days ).Some guys told bus from Pazhani to Kodaikanal is a wonderful experience with hell lot of falls, valleys etc & white misty clouds passing by from down pazhani to kodaikanal bus stand top. Is it so ??? Also some guys told Ooty is more polluted than Kodaikanal.Plz. tell me which is in the top from sea level Ooty (or) Kodaikanal.I suppose Kodaikanal.Correct me if i'm wrong. Kodai has lot of falls, dense valleys, dense forests, mist moving with the cloud etc..Is it so ??? I should not feel depressed after the trip that the other hill station is better than the first or the vice versa. So let us not fight between Nilgiris & Kodai & suggest me for the best place among the two at my interest, if possible.
Plz. revert ( John & Almore Boy )

Thanks,
Sangitha

Sangitha,
I can understand your predicament. Now think it this way. It is very difficult to clinically analyze & summarise the merits & demerits of two places, practically impossible I would say. Compared to many of us you live in the south so your getting a chance to go on another holiday to one of the 2 places is quite bright. So dont think on those lines that you will come back thinking you should have gone to the other place. Both the places are beautiful. Think of transportation & other logistics which might influence your decision.
I have no intention of "fighting" if you ask what my choice would be I would say Kodai. The rambling along the lake...............