KodaiKanal is a hill station located in Dindigul district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, India. The word KodaiKanal has many meanings depending upon the pronunciation of vowels. The word ‘Kodaikanal’ is a mixture of two words: kodai and kanal. By pronouncing Kodai with the short Tamil ‘o’, it means “creepers” or vines and that mean “forest of creepers” or the “forest of vines”. OR by pronouncing Kodai with a short Tamil ‘o’, and a long ‘e’, it means “gift”, providing “Kodaikanal” as “gift of the forest”. The city is also referred as “Princess of Hill Stations” because of its geographical location. KodaiKanal is also known for a large variety of flora that included gigantic Eucalypts, Shola, Cypress and Acacia. High quality and quantity of Pear fruit is also seen here but much of the local economy is based on the hospitality industry serving tourism.
When to visit?
KodaiKanal has monsoon influenced subtropical highland climate, and is cold all throughout the year due to its location. The word Kodaikanal is a mixture of two words: kodai and kanal, in Tamil it means the “place to see in summer”. Hence, popular time to explore this small hill station of the state is in between months of April-June and another time period is in winters i.e. Octobers-January.
Tourist Attractions:
- Silver Cascade Falls
- KodaiKanal Falls
- Bryant Park
- Bear Shola Falls
- Pillar Rocks
- Coaker’s Walk
- Moir Point
- Devil’s Kitchen/ Guna Cave
- Dolphin’s Nose
- KodaiKanal Solar Observatory
- Kurinji Andavar Temple
- Thalaiyar Falls
How to reach?
By Road:
KodaiKanal is linked by road with several cities for example Madurai, Bangalore, Trichy, Chennai, Ooty, Coimbatore and Kumili by state buses.
By Railways:
The ‘Kodai road’ railway station is the nearest station located at the distance of 92kms approx. The station serves as a medium to KodaiKanal Madurai and Trichy. For the other parts of Tamil Nadu, there are weekly 2 trains that serve Bangalore, Coimbatore, Tuticorin, Hosur, Salem and Bangalore – KodaiKanal is probably the most convenient and comfortable route for daily passengers. The average train ticket price is Rs. 165 per head.
By Airways:
One of the convenient ways to reach KodaiKanal is by air. Madurai International Airport is the nearest to KodaiKanal, Tamil Nadu located approximately 120 km away. Regular flights from Chennai, Mumbai, Coimbatore and Bangalore are available to the town. The mean flight charge is Rs 3456 per person.