Traveling to Kodaikanal
It was school vacations again and this year we decided to head off to explore parts of southern India to which we were relatively new and this time it was destination Kodaikanal. It is one of the well known holiday spots in south India and this is my experience on our visit there.
Kodai (short for Kodaikanal) is about 500 kms south of Bangalore and I was informed that the highway connecting Bangalore and Kodai is extremely well maintained and one can cruise easily at about 120 kmph. For me it was a long journey on road specially with 2 children on board and as with our trip to Kerala we decided to take the train. We booked ourselves on the Tuticorin express and after an overnight journey we reached Kodaikanal Road Station at about 0700 hrs. Kodai is a hill station and is located about 120 kms away from the railway station which by taxi cost us Rs 800 and an additional 3 hours to reach of our destination.
We had booked ourselves at the Kodai Golf Course as they have affiliation with KGA and it could not have been located in a better place……I mean what could be better than staying in the midst of a lush green golf course…….its about 7 kms away from the city and nestled in a serene and calm area away from the traffic and bustling tourist crowds. The course has 10 rooms and with a nominal tariff of Rs 2000 per night it is advisable to book the rooms well in advance…..check them out at http://www.kodaigolf.com/home.htm.
We took long walks in and around the course and the inhaled the fresh air into our lungs….what a difference in air quality a compared to what we have in the cities. The place is ideal for long walks and enjoying nature in its element. There is wildlife in the jungles and huge muscular bison’s can be spotted at times…..and it’s advisable to keep a safe distance from them. My son and I had our golf kits in place and nothing could stop us from stepping on to the course….not even the bison’s 🙂…..playing at the Kodai golf course shall come up as a separate experience.
Since we had traveled by train we were dependent on the local taxi service for commuting to the town and this was a bit of a let down as their service is not worth the money they charge.
One of the days we took a full day cab and visited the town…the Kodai Lake is a famous spot for tourists and we went for boating which the kids really enjoyed. One of the other enjoyable activities was to rent bicycles (on hourly basis) and do a complete circuit of the lake (almost 4 kms) and that was fun…..we all freaked out i.e. my kids and I while my wife was shopping, as usual.
The place is well worth its reputation and definitely worth a visit….if you’re looking nice place to relax for 2-3 days it shall not disappoint you.