[balenoed_]

Originally Posted by PontiacBandit

Thanks a lot for your reply. I was also wondering if you could give me an estimate for what is an ideal time to leave if I want to reach by 1:00-2:00pm? With this time estimate, could you recommend good places to stop for breakfast and lunch?

07:00 - Start (Depending on which part of Bangalore to make it to A2B at 8:30am)
08:30 - 09:30 - Breakfast (A2B, Before Bidadi)
01:30 - Virajpet

For lunch you could up end up at Virajpet only. I don't have any recommendations as such. No good restaurants after Hunsur until Virajpet. Some small ones are there at Gonikoppal.

If your plan is to hang around in Virajpet, then there is a restaurant called "Coorg Gate", near perumbadi check post, which is about 6 kms further from Virajpet on the route towards Kerala border. It is a good one, just in case if that helps.

[ant_vas]

Thanks a lot for your reply. I was also wondering if you could give me an estimate for what is an ideal time to leave if I want to reach by 1:00-2:00pm? With this time estimate, could you recommend good places to stop for breakfast and lunch?

last month we left mysore around 11:30 AM after zoo visit and were in Virajpet by 2. So you can easily start by 8 and reach virajpet by 1 i guess.

For lunch depending on your preference there is Badriya restaurant or Grand Udupi near Bus stop for veg.

[sameerg]

Originally Posted by procrj

Route is good, do post a detailed review of Ayatana, has been on my to list for sometime now. Your other option for breakfast is Kalyana Bhavan, Somwarpete - https://goo.gl/maps/voth6LEwrH2wKz536. I have heard good reviews from a couple of friends but never had a chance to stop here for food.

Sorry for the late reply.

Here are both the reviews

1) Kalyan Bhavan: Loved the place. It is a small cozy place. We just had idli-vada. Both tasted great. The coffee was nice too. What impressed me most was the warmth, service, and hygiene. Overall would definitely stopover again. One downside is that they don't have washrooms.

2) Ayatana: For me, was not so great. Sort of 3/5. I would not go again.

+ves

1. They seemed to be serious about the sanitization bit. Cutlery in the restaurant came wrapped in paper; their staff served the buffet to ensure guests don't touch the same serving spoons.
2. In general staff was pleasant and cordial.

-ves

1. Congested/crowded layout: Cottages were too close to each other. So close that you could hear the people talking in the next cottage if the balcony door was open. Another silly thing was that the restaurant and bar overlook the swimming pool. People having meals get disturbed by the noise from the pool; people in the pool have a bunch of people overlooking them.
   
2. Interior layout: Awful layout again. It's not that the cottages were small; it's just that the layout was terrible. Washrooms were too big, bedrooms too small. On top of it, the bed was sort of mini-queen size. Too small even for two adults and 1 toddler. Not just me, but all my friends felt the same. All of us had to pay for extra bedding.
3. Lack of room service options: Toddlers don't always eat during standard meal hours, and hence we always end up relying on room service for their food. The only options for room service seemed to be frozen stuff (fries, burgers). Even small requests other than that were not entertained. The lack of flexibility was really shocking. Once I requested them for pancake 30 mins after breakfast was over, only because pancake was available in the breakfast buffet. I had assumed that there would be some raw material leftover, and it should not be a problem. But they just refused to say that it is part of breakfast and not room service. I even made it clear that I am not looking for it as part of breakfast but as paid room service. For standard items like milk/omelet also you would need to push.
   

[sameerg]

A friend is traveling from sarjapur road to coorg wilderness resort madikeri. What would be the ideal route? Via Mysore or via Channarayapattna.

I had traveled via Channarayapattna route to ayatana last month and had no issues, but thought of checking with team here since this route is about 30km longer than the Mysore route. He will be traveling in sedan with 2 kids so better/conformable road surface is preferred.

[paragsachania]

Travellers (Holidayers) take note:

[nma83]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

Travellers (Holidayers) take note:
...

And there goes a holiday that was planned for next week .
Is it only for tourist places like Thalacauvery etc or is the district border closed?

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by nma83

And there goes a holiday that was planned for next week .
Is it only for tourist places like Thalacauvery etc or is the district border closed?

I don't if they can close interdistrict borders. By having homestays closed they are invariably controlling the tourists visiting Coorg/Kodagu.

However, I am not sure about places like Talacauvery or others. They should be open but they may witness closure too. If so, you will get to learn about it from the newspapers.

[nma83]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

I don't if they can close interdistrict borders. By having homestays closed they are invariably controlling the tourists visiting Coorg/Kodagu.

However, I am not sure about places like Talacauvery or others. They should be open but they may witness closure too. If so, you will get to learn about it from the newspapers.

We called up the resort and they said the opposite. Tourist spots are closed but resorts will remain open.
Still would result in less tourist activity of course. Let's see how it unfolds over next week.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by nma83

We called up the resort and they said the opposite. Tourist spots are closed but resorts will remain open.
Still would result in less tourist activity of course. Let's see how it unfolds over next week.

Nobody would want to lose business. That is the universal truth.

However, we have seen instances where tourists were blocked and asked to return back when the caseload was high. Courtesy: Local organizations and local crowds.

[anandhsub]

Got back from Coorg today post the Good Friday vacation. When we were checking out we saw boards being put up stating gym and swimming pool will be closed. However the resort itself is still open.

[cool_dube]

Here is a relevant article from THE HINDU:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...le34232330.ece

While it clearly talks about all tourist spots being closed, there is also a mention of entry of tourists into Kodagu district being banned - per the last line of the article:

With this, Kodagu has become the first district in the current COVID-19 wave to ban the entry of tourists.

Does anyone have the latest on this front?

[cool_dube]

Originally Posted by cool_dube

While it clearly talks about all tourist spots being closed, there is also a mention of entry of tourists into Kodagu district being banned

Quoting myself (to clear the air on this front) - there is a follow-up article in THE HINDU today (here) that clearly calls out that this is NOT a blanket ban on tourism in the state.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by cool_dube

Quoting myself (to clear the air on this front) - there is a follow-up article in THE HINDU today (here) that clearly calls out that this is NOT a blanket ban on tourism in the state.

Yes but what you need to be aware of in such cases if the fact that you will need to stay put in the location that you have chosen to stay and that's it!

It is a well known fact that despite of whatever guidance from the authorities, many POIs were out of bounds for tourists with locals guarding that place. This was evident during the first outbreak last year too - Waterfalls, Temples etc.

The only places that you can expect to remain open are those managed by the Govt of Karnataka, directly or indirectly.

I would not take what the news articles quote seriously and would go with what locals from around here have to say.

The fact is that Kodagu district has been witnessing a spike in daily cases and like the way every state blames the migrants, it is the right of every district to blame the tourists and perhaps every village to blame it on dwellers from nearby towns

And mind you, once Coorg puts restrictions, Chikmagalur and Hassan(Sakleshpur) taluks will follow too. This has always been the case in this region.

[cool_dube]

Latest update - absolutely no issues while entering Kodagu district. Resorts are open and thronging with tourists, given kids' summer vacations and upcoming Ugadi long weekend. Of course, swimming pools and gyms are closed. No issues with driving around as well. However, all tourist spots remain closed.

[nma83]

We went through with the trip to Virajpet over last 3 days, with the risk of the virus heavy in our minds . Thankfully the resort was sparsely occupied, because weekdays.
Heard that all tourist spots are open now except those within Madikeri town. Did not dare to visit the usual ones though, and restricted ourselves to a trek at Kabbe hills which was completely devoid of other human beings! Those few hours on the hilltop felt like the perfect antidote to these depressing times.
Took packed food with us both ways and avoided stopping at any hotels on the way.