[rajivr1612]

Hi, I have booked hotel in Ooty from 4th to 6th November. Driving from Chennai with wife and son. I can start from Chennai on 3rd Nov. by 2PM and I plan to halt at Coimbatore for the night. On the morning of 4th I will start the drive to Ooty.
In the previous post I read that if at all a halt is required then Metupalayam is a better option. Are there any decent hotels in Metupalayam?
My first preference though is Coimbatore. What would be a decent hotel in Coimbatore for a one night stay?
Also at this time of the year which route to Ooty is better - Coonoor or Kotagiri? How are the road conditions and traffic? FYI I am driving an Etios Liva diesel.
This is first time to Ooty.
Thanks in advance.

[m8002?]

Originally Posted by rajivr1612

Hi, I have booked hotel in Ooty from 4th to 6th November. Driving from Chennai with wife and son. I can start from Chennai on 3rd Nov. by 2PM and I plan to halt at Coimbatore for the night. On the morning of 4th I will start the drive to Ooty.
In the previous post I read that if at all a halt is required then Metupalayam is a better option. Are there any decent hotels in Metupalayam?
My first preference though is Coimbatore. What would be a decent hotel in Coimbatore for a one night stay?
Also at this time of the year which route to Ooty is better - Coonoor or Kotagiri? How are the road conditions and traffic? FYI I am driving an Etios Liva diesel.
This is first time to Ooty.
Thanks in advance.

Are you planning coimbatore just for the stay? Wouldnt it be too late to reach coimbatore with a 2:00PM start from Chennai?

In your place, i would stay in Erode/Perundurai/Avinashi and take the karumathampatti to mettupalayam road in the morning avoiding Cbe altogether.

[rajivr1612]

Originally Posted by m8002?

Are you planning coimbatore just for the stay? Wouldnt it be too late to reach coimbatore with a 2:00PM start from Chennai?

In your place, i would stay in Erode/Perundurai/Avinashi and take the karumathampatti to mettupalayam road in the morning avoiding Cbe altogether.

Thanks, break at Erode is a good option. Have to look for a decent hotels there. The only reason for break in Coimbatore was to have a late start in the morning to Ooty and reach there in time for check-in at 2pm.
In your reply why do specifically mention to take karumathampatti to mettupalayam road? I checked in maps and it's a deviation from the straight road.
Also which route to Ooty is preferable - mettupalayam or kotagiri?

[m8002?]

Originally Posted by rajivr1612

In your reply why do specifically mention to take karumathampatti to mettupalayam road? I checked in maps and it's a deviation from the straight road.

Deviate at Avinashi or Karumathampatti to Annur-Mettupalayam. This is the shorter route. There is no need to enter Cbe city unless you have some work there. Its a good 2 lane road.

Originally Posted by rajivr1612

Also which route to Ooty is preferable - mettupalayam or kotagiri?

Do you mean Coonoor or Kotagiri route? You need to hit mettupalayam for either of the routes. I have only traveled on the Coonoor route so cannot comment about the other one.

[rajivr1612]

Originally Posted by m8002?

Do you mean Coonoor or Kotagiri route? You need to hit mettupalayam for either of the routes. I have only traveled on the Coonoor route so cannot comment about the other one.

Sorry, I meant between Coonoor and Kotagiri. I read in some of the earlier post that Coonoor route has high traffic during peak season or festivals. Since my travel is during Diwali should I expect heavy traffic?

[deepakchan]

Originally Posted by rajivr1612

Sorry, I meant between Coonoor and Kotagiri. I read in some of the earlier post that Coonoor route has high traffic during peak season or festivals. Since my travel is during Diwali should I expect heavy traffic?

I travel Chennai-Ooty-Chennai at least once every year, in the past 4-5 trips I haven't taken the Coonoor route irrespective of festival or not. It is just so much more peaceful. My suggestion is stick to the Kotagiri route, you will not regret it.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by YaeJay

There are two routes to ooty from mettupalyam. One through coonoor and the other through kotagiri. Now, apart from google warriors, which route do our fellow enthu drivers or riders like to take and why? I ask this question since a few people who have never done the trip give their views.

The route through Kotagiri is in fantastic shape. Just 20 days ago, Tata arranged the Tiago/Tigor JTP drive on this route. We enjoyed the drive mainly because the route was tailor made for testing a hot hatch.

[srvm]

Did Bangalore-Ooty-Chennai-Bangalore last week.
I took the Ooty-Kotagiri-Mettupalayam route while going to Chennai.
Roads are in fantastic shape. An absolute delight to drive/ride. Views are also awesome.
Added bonus - I spotted Tata Harrier test mule on these roads

[sparky@home]

Originally Posted by deepakchan

I travel Chennai-Ooty-Chennai at least once every year, in the past 4-5 trips I haven't taken the Coonoor route irrespective of festival or not. It is just so much more peaceful. My suggestion is stick to the Kotagiri route, you will not regret it.

I second this .I have travelled to Ooty quite a few times in the past, and always took the Kotagiri route. Its a very peaceful drive, with light traffic. I have not driven the Coonoor route even once. Its always possible to have thick fog during November, so one needs to be extra careful going up or down. Cheers, have a nice trip.

[jasonbourne]

Hello,

Since the last post on this thread was on November 2018 wanted to do a status check on the route. I am planning to take my family for vacation to ooty on 28th from Chennai. The route that I am planning to take is

Chennai - Ulundurpettai - Attur - Salem - Bhavani - Avinashi - Mettupalayam - Connoor - Ooty

We are planning to stay overnight in salem and continue our journey to ooty from salem on Monday morning. Is there any route better than this?

Originally Posted by Samurai

The route through Kotagiri is in fantastic shape. Just 20 days ago, Tata arranged the Tiago/Tigor JTP drive on this route. We enjoyed the drive mainly because the route was tailor made for testing a hot hatch.

I did see the comments on the kotagiri route so also wanted to know if the roads are still good after the recent rains. Has anyone gone to ooty recently from Chennai? If so can you please throw some light on the current status of the roads / route?

[batman]

Originally Posted by jasonbourne

I am planning to take my family for vacation to ooty on 28th from Chennai. The route that I am planning to take is

Chennai - Ulundurpettai - Attur - Salem - Bhavani - Avinashi - Mettupalayam - Connoor - Ooty

Is there any route better than this?

Last week I drove to Coimbatore and back to Chennai via Ulundurpet and Salem and the roads were good. One of the reasons why I took this route was I feared there could be higher than normal traffic due to the Athi varadar temple festival at Kanchipuram. In the stretch between Ulundurpet & Salem, be watchful for 2 laned roads for a short distance wherever there are overbridges. Otherwise this stretch was less stressful to drive than others. If you have Fastag you can use little more time.

Sorry that I am not able to give any info about roads beyond Bhavani towards Ooty.

[jasonbourne]

Originally Posted by batman

Last week I drove to Coimbatore and back to Chennai via Ulundurpet and Salem and the roads were good. One of the reasons why I took this route was I feared there could be higher than normal traffic due to the Athi varadar temple festival at Kanchipuram. In the stretch between Ulundurpet & Salem, be watchful for 2 laned roads for a short distance wherever there are overbridges. Otherwise this stretch was less stressful to drive than others. If you have Fastag you can use little more time.

Sorry that I am not able to give any info about roads beyond Bhavani towards Ooty.

Thank you for the response Batman. I often drive to my Native near trichy and also till Salem. The roads are awesome (except for the bullock carts and the blind lorry drivers ). In particular wanted to know which route to take from Mettupalayam Coonoor or Kotagiri to react Ooty

[SCORPION]

Originally Posted by jasonbourne

I did see the comments on the kotagiri route so also wanted to know if the roads are still good after the recent rains. Has anyone gone to ooty recently from Chennai? If so can you please throw some light on the current status of the roads / route?

I suggest you take the Kotagiri route from Mettupalayam. It has far less traffic. The road is beautifully laid and a hoot to drive on unlike the Coonoor route where you could be stuck for several minutes behind a line of cars following a slow moving truck or bus. No rain damage on the Kotagiri route.

[jasonbourne]

Originally Posted by SCORPION

I suggest you take the Kotagiri route from Mettupalayam. It has far less traffic. The road is beautifully laid and a hoot to drive on unlike the Coonoor route where you could be stuck for several minutes behind a line of cars following a slow moving truck or bus. No rain damage on the Kotagiri route.

Exactly what I was looking for. I have also heard that the route via Kotagiri to Ooty is less driven by lot of drivers going to ooty from chennai. This will be my first time in that route as well. Probably will take the coonoor route on my way back from Ooty just to enjoy the view from that side of the hill as well.

[srvm]

Originally Posted by jasonbourne

Exactly what I was looking for. I have also heard that the route via Kotagiri to Ooty is less driven by lot of drivers going to ooty from chennai. This will be my first time in that route as well. Probably will take the coonoor route on my way back from Ooty just to enjoy the view from that side of the hill as well.

Trust me on this. If you go via Kotagiri route in the onward journey, you'll regret taking the Coonoor route on the return journey. The former has MUCH better roads and fantastic views than the latter.