[ramanan.skr]

Originally Posted by vivek.ks

Post-Theni the road is a 2 lane but with a good surface. The ghat sections around Munnar are the best.

when I went to Munnar 3 yrs back, the road was under construction(expansion) between Bodimettu and Munnar and was in a very bad condition. Is the expansion work over and good to go?

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by devrawat

I am also planning to travel later this month and was checking on some FB pages.

I read in some forums that Blr-Salem-Dindigul-Theni is best as there is broad highway till Theni. And while google map shows 10hr+, ppl have done this route in 8-9 hours.

Others with recent experiences can update ??

I went last week and returned yesterday. Theni route is in excellent shape. With a relaxed drive, the total drive time was 8hrs while the total journey was of 10 hours, including multiple breaks.

Originally Posted by ramanan.skr

when I went to Munnar 3 yrs back, the road was under construction(expansion) between Bodimettu and Munnar and was in a very bad condition. Is the expansion work over and good to go?

I went via Bodimettu - Poopara - Munnar and returned via Munnar - Chinnakanal - Bodimettu. The roads are very good on either of the routes. Poopara route has wide 3 lane roads but has higher traffic movement and is longer by 10 kms. The Chinnakanal route is narrow but with sparse traffic, very scenic and is my choice between the two (because of the scenary). Note that while moving towards Chinnakanal on this route, the first 2 kms is very steep and needs some careful driving.

Edit: here's a video of a portion of this steep section. The entire stretch has been redone in concrete and the road itself is in perfect shape

https://youtu.be/sivhEfXbtVc

[vivek.ks]

Originally Posted by ramanan.skr

Is the expansion work over and good to go?

Yes, the road is beautiful with a clear marking for most of the way.

[hsroy]

How is the route via Erode and Tirupur ?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by hsroy

How is the route via Erode and Tirupur ?

I would say : Avinashi-Palladam-Udumalpet is a cleaner option.

Originally Posted by hsroy

Friends which route is better for Munnar. Google maps shows two options after Salem. One via Erode and Tirrupur (seems shorter but slower) and another via Dindigul (longer but faster.

If your destination in Chinnakanal are resorts around that area, you should take Dindigul/Theni. Thats because Chinnakanal is 22km beyond Munnar town on the Theni side. This would save 22km of ghat driving.

But if you are staying around Munnar, take the regular Udumalpet route. For this as I mentioned, my suggestion would be Avinashi/Palladam/Udumalpet. Please also note: Udumalpet to Munnar is 90km. Account for 3 hours at least. But it makes for great views along the way. (Similarly on the Theni side: Bodi-Chinnakanal is about 50km)

[hsroy]

Mod note: Please avoid quoting entire large post for short replies and you can use Thanks button instead of thank you note.

Originally Posted by ampere

I would say : Avinashi-Palladam-Udumalpet is a cleaner option.
=====
(Similarly on the Theni side: Bodi-Chinnakanal is about 50km)

Thanks a lot. This helps a lot. I will take the Udulampet route.

[hsroy]

Was watching a video on YouTube of a family who recently traveled to Munnar. Seems the Chinnar check-post to Munnar was practically a crawl....not sure there was some congestion or bad road conditions. Some parts of the road seem to narrow for 2 vehicles to cross each other.

[Throtttle]

I have to drive to a resort in Chithirapuram with kids and senior citizens on coming Saturday. I am inclined for the Dindigul-Batlagundu-Theni-Bodimettu route to Munnar, instead of Avinashi-Palladam-Udumalpet route, as have traveled Dindigul route in 2019 and have traveled Dindigul route till Kodai Ghat turn last month during Kodai trip. Also, lowest time shown by google map from bangalore to munnar is via Dindigul-Theni route only. Though i am open-minded to any other route which may be making better sense which I am not aware of.

Google maps shows route via Theni-Bodimettu-Pooppara-Rajakkad-Chithirapuram. Is anybody aware how is this white road(instead of yellow on google map) through Pooppara-Rajakkad-Chithirapuram ?

Will appreciate any inputs, suggestions or recommendations regarding :
(1) Route for Chithirapuram destination which makes sense currently, Avinashi-Palladam-Udumalpet route or Dindigul-Batlagundu-Theni route?
(2) Route from Bodimettu to Chithirapuram, through Pooppara-Rajakkad-Chithirapuram or any other like via Chinnakanal or via Bison Valley?
(3) Is anyone aware of how is the road/route through Pooppara-Rajakkad-Chithirapuram?

Thanks.

[hsroy]

Originally Posted by Throtttle

I....

Google maps shows route via Theni-Bodimettu-Pooppara-Rajakkad-Chithirapuram. Is anybody aware how is this white road(instead of yellow on google map) through Pooppara-Rajakkad-Chithirapuram ?
....

Thanks.

You can refer to post #1307 above by ashish89 on the Poopara route.

But since you mentioned kids and senior citizens in your group, please consider that this route is via ghats with lots of hairpin bends during the last 2-3 hours.
But on the other hand, considering its a long weekend, via Udumalpet might be congested.

I am travelling with a kid on coming Thursday. Plan to go via Udumalpet because of this and also to cover Chinnar wildlife sanctuary on the way. But I might take the Theni route on the way back.

[hsroy]

Friends, can anyone help with below queries based on recent travels to Munnar:

1) How is the road from Munnar to Top station ? It turns white from yellow on Gmaps a little before Kundala dam. Is it drivable on a hatchback ?

2) How is the white road if I take a diversion from Marayoor to Annakottapara on Udamalpet- Munnar route ?

3) The online booking page for Eravikulam National Park mentions requirement for RT-PCR report for non-vaccinated (kids in our case). Is that current requirement or old notice ?

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by hsroy

Friends, can anyone help with below queries based on recent travels to Munnar:

1) How is the road from Munnar to Top station ? It turns white from yellow on Gmaps a little before Kundala dam. Is it drivable on a hatchback ?

Overall, the road is in good shape. There are couple of sections which are broken. But they won't pose a challenge to any low slung sedan/hatchback if driven slowly.

Here are a couple videos that I took from my dashcam.

https://youtu.be/c9hk3qCkpFU

https://youtu.be/_fJ0hv_7mb8

3) The online booking page for Eravikulam National Park mentions requirement for RT-PCR report for non-vaccinated (kids in our case). Is that current requirement or old notice ?

They are not checking for RT-PCR report or vaccination certificate now. You can read more about my experience of Eravikulam in the following post (the next post on the below thread is about Top Station).

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...ml#post5296196 (Munnar and Meghamalai diaries)

[Throtttle]

As of latest, is there any covid protocol in place to enter Kerela border, RTPCR or e-pass ?

[SVMBLR]

Travel is therapy!
For a long time, I deserved this therapy, therefore I planned a trip overnight. We had our luggage packed in record time and were ready to take off in our shark.
Naturally, Team BHP's important suggestions regarding the routes and other details were incorporated into the travel preparation.

The destination was Munnar, a hill station, we got up at 4:30 a.m. to start off as we had to beat the traffic to get out of the city. Excited as we were, to escape the heat and looking forward to step into cool climate of Munnar.

My passengers (wife and two children) slept until I stopped for breakfast A2B at Salem - Omalur bypass due to the early start. I stopped here on the advice of a Team BHP member, and I was not disappointed. We had a typical Tamil Nadu breakfast.

We were stopped by Forest Dept official of TN at first check post and also remaining KL Check-post. We had to answer below questions, posting as a good to know information.

Question 1: You are coming from ?
Question 2: Travelling to which location ?
Question 3: Number of people travelling
Question 4: Vehicle Number & Driver Name
Question 5: CAR Make & Model
and Last Question and but not least Alcohol

ROUTE: BANGALORE>KRISHNAGIRI>SALEM>AVINASHI>PALLADAM>UDUM ALPET>MUNNAR

We arrived in Munnar around by 2:00 p.m., but finding a nice lunch spot proved difficult. We had no choice but to dine somewhere strange or eat Maggi (seems like Maggi is a staple there as every tea shop had only Maggi on its menu)
Aside from the meal, we were greeted by a downpour, which marked the start of a lovely two-day stay in this enchanting hill station.

We stayed at "The Queen" and checked in quickly. After checking in and much needed nap, we went for a wonderful evening stroll around the resort before going on the dinner quest. Food is an issue because we have to go to Munnar's main center each time, which is a difficult chore.

The next morning, we were all awake and ready to experience Munnar's natural splendor. The resort's management has recommended that we take a jeep ride to see a few attractions. This was an off-road safari in Thar, and we were overjoyed! Private vehicles are not permitted in a few spots, according to the Jeep driver. He had a list of potential destinations, and we were just in his hands, no regrets!

We visited the Spice Garden, Hanging Bridge, Ripple Falls, and Chocolate Factory, but we were unable to visit the Sunset View Point owing to the sudden downpour.

Even though we didn't speak the language, the driver made us feel at ease and was rather entertaining. He made it a point to tour us around the coco plantation, right down to the smallest elements like a pepper plant.

We had so much Maggi for lunch that we vowed not to eat Maggi for another six months at home.

Enroute to Bangalore , we happened to visit Isha Foundation (Sri Sadguru) - Coimbatore which was long pending. We decided to stay back in Coimbatore to explore the food joints. Geeta Mess and local food joints for sumptuous non-veg food.

The city had its charm and we also visited local temple and it was quite a spiritual experience.

Getting back to Bangalore was quite taxing. we left Coimbatore at 3:00 pm and one leg break at Hotel Sri Venkateshwara VEG and entered in RACE following trucks, BUSES.. Ahh there is no LANE discipline.

Finally We reached home by 10 pm

[hsroy]

We got back from Munnar on Sunday after 3 nights. Wanted to post a few important pointers:

1) The mobile signal is non-existent in many places. Please download and save Gmaps for offline navigation.

2) The adoption of digital payments is very low. Only some big establishments accept card or Gpay/Paytm/UPI (very few accept both). But small shops and vendors will accept only cash.

3) Food is a challenge while travelling. The town itself has very few decent restaurants. Out sightseeing, its mostly maggi, carrots and corn. So pack food if you have kids.

4) Choose your hotel/resort judiciously. Going from one side to other through ghat roads will add to you travel time.

5) Can expect some crowd, but tourists are mostly from other parts of Kerala. So the two routes from Bangalore won't have any congestion.

Will share our detailed experiences with pictures in a later post.

[revvytorques]

Did Bangalore to Munnar via Salem-Dindigul-Theni-Bodimettu. Great roads throughout especially the the ghat section from Theni to Bodi.


Route - Bangalore-Salem-Namakkal-Dindigul-Theni-Bodi
Travel Time - 10 hours
Source - 7.17 AM, Whitefield
Destination - 5.17 PM, Shola Crown Resort Munnar
Pitstops - A2B Namakkal at Athanur (good food, ample parking), Dindigul Thalappakatti at Batlagundu (food was good, wasn't happy with hygiene & cleanliness)


Chose Shola Crown for 1night as it was the first decent one while entering Munnar from the Bodi side. The resort is good, nice rooms & good view. Route to Munnar town via Poopara & Chinnakanal is beautiful winding roads via tea estates.

Return Trip
Route - Munnar-Marayoor-Udamalpet-Palladam-Avinashi-Salem-Bangalore
Travel Time - 11 hour, 55 mins
Source - 8.11 AM Pallivasal
Destination - 8.06 PM Whitefield
Pitstops - Ripple Tea Chai Break on Munnar-Udamalpet road, KDFC coffee jallipatti (great coffee & vadais), Sri Saravana Aasai Dosai Salem (slight detour from NH)

The Car - Ford Freestyle (1.2 Petrol), performed brilliantly on the ghats. Wish it had a 6th gear for expressway cruising. 120 kmph is at a busy 3500 rpm :(

Fuel Efficiency - 15.33 kmpl with fuel tank method.