[Rachet]

Hello BHPians,

When I planned to visit Munnar again, I really wanted to book a stay which is isolated from the busy Munnar town. I spent a good amount of time on the internet searching for such a stay and at the end narrowed down to one - The Arivikad East division Bungalow

Before I get in to the details , starting off with sharing couple of pics taken of the 630d on our way.




The Arivikad East division Bungalow - close to 100 years old and located in the middle of the never ending tea estate owned by Kannan Devan Hills Plantation company Ltd ,it is totally isolated from any habitation and is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful stay I have been to.

A distant view of the Bungalow and the nearby water body.



Let me start with the route and road conditions till we reach the property. This is really important to keep in mind and something I did not get to know from anywhere.

From Munnar we need to drive for another 17 kms on the Top Station road towards Echo point. And from there we need to take the right turn to the Arivikad Estate and travel another 7 kms .This final 7 kms is the most challenging part. You are advised to travel in an SUV as the roads are bad or you can say no road at all in most of the places. At one point in time after going halfway I was even skeptical about whether I should proceed further or go back. The roads were not just bad but very narrow as well.








Fortunately we met the workers of the plantation who said the bungalow does exist and we just have to drive some more.
There are hardly one or two direction boards to the bungalow in the whole 7km stretch, so there is no surprise if one doubts the existence of the bungalow.



It is a private property hence there was no vehicle coming in the opposite direction.The only possible vehicle that you might encounter is the compact tractor-trailer , which runs to gather the harvested tea leaves.



After reaching there we came to know that , for those cars which cannot make it, there is an option to park the car in their factory and from there they will make arrangements for you to reach the bungalow. Which according to me is the best option available. Unfortunately I came to know about it only after reaching there which is fine.

After going through all those hardships of driving through the extremely bad roads, the mere sight of the bungalow from a distance is enough for you to forget the bad road experience.The location of the Bungalow is undoubtedly one of the best. Trust me these pictures are not doing justice to the actual beauty of the place.



Walking through the tea plantation is so refreshing listening to the sound of water from the nearby waterfall.It's a nice place and quiet for a family to spend a couple of days.Even though mobile networks are not that great , I would not say that you will be completely disconnected from the rest of the world because there is broadband connectivity in the bungalow.If you are lucky you might even spot animals, mostly elephants and bison from what the caretaker said.
On request , the caretakers will arrange a vehicle to check out some of the places nearby. But we were really happy spending time in the Bungalow.









It is a two bedroom bungalow . There is lots of space there. There is a hall , Dining area, two big bedrooms and bathrooms. Towels will be provided and hot water is also available.*There is a family who are the caretakers of the bungalow. They cook very delicious homely food. Coming back to the town for any meals is such a waste of time and effort as it's not easy to drive up and down again on such bad road conditions. Hence it's better to either buy the food and go there or if you let the caretakers know what you need they will arrange the food at a cost.
After we reached there, it rained heavily and then in no time the whole place was filled with mist.



Even though the roads were bad, it was another great experience taking the 6GT there and the car did handle the roads pretty well. Did not even scratch the underbelly even once with 4 adults and a boot full of luggage.







For those who love to watch videos.

https://youtu.be/4FgmlHLEThE

The property is available for booking online in most of the travel and hotel reservation sites.You can go to Kannan Devan's own website https://kdhptea.com/ to make the reservation.The price would be approximately 4k-5k per night for a room.
If you have plans to visit Munnar, do try out this stay. I highly recommend this place.

Thank you for taking time and reading through.
Drive safe and have fun.

[kung_foo_fanta]

Just in time, Ratchet!
We were planning a getaway to Munnar during the next week and were on the lookout for something similar.
Bellisimo!

[Rachet]

Originally Posted by kung_foo_fanta

Just in time, Ratchet!
We were planning a getaway to Munnar during the next week and were on the lookout for something similar.
Bellisimo!

Nice. Wishing you a fun filled and memorable trip. Do consider booking stays well ahead otherwise it is going to be difficult to get something good for a nominal price due to holiday season.

[Kkumar]

Vow fantastic property. Great article and photos. The youtube video was also enticing. Thank you for bringing out such a beautiful hidden gem. All the best and keep on munching miles.

[Cresterk]

The 6 series GT seems to be surprisingly capable on poor roads for a luxury car. I remember another thread where another BHPian also ended up travelling over some very poor roads to reach a hillstation without any issues. Looks like the Bavarians do have a few tricks up their sleeve.

[Rachet]

Originally Posted by Kkumar

Vow fantastic property. Great article and photos. The Youtube video was also enticing. Thank you for bringing out such a beautiful hidden gem. All the best and keep on munching miles.

The pictures are not doing justice to the place. Reaching and spending time there is something that need to be experienced .

Originally Posted by Cresterk

The 6 series GT seems to be surprisingly capable on poor roads for a luxury car. I remember another thread where another BHPian also ended up travelling over some very poor roads to reach a hillstation without any issues. Looks like the Bavarians do have a few tricks up their sleeve.

Very true, there is always more than what meets the eye. I myself have driven the car in very bad roads and it has never ceased to surprise me. The additional GC do help a lot.

[cooldip]

Thank you for posting Ratchet.

It's just the kind of place we love to visit as a family. And lovely pics of the 630d amidst the tea estate.

Do you happen to know if they are pet-friendly?

[Rachet]

Originally Posted by cooldip

Thank you for posting Ratchet.

It's just the kind of place we love to visit as a family. And lovely pics of the 630d amidst the tea estate.

Do you happen to know if they are pet-friendly?

Thanks. I am sure you would love the place. And there should not be an issue taking the pets if you are booking both the rooms so that you get the whole bungalow for you. So pets should not be a problem. They will also enjoy the place a lot . The caretakers are very nice and I am sure they wont say a thing and also help you out with anything you need.

[ABHI_1512]

Many thanks for the wonderful share. I have been to Munnar but these bungalows have a charm of their own. I only knew of the Tata Bungalows amidst the tea and coffee plantations. Never knew that KDTP also runs these sort of accommodations. I now know what to look out for during my next visit to this lovely place. Your GT looks majestic amidst the greens and the blues. I can only imagine the fun you had through the winding roads of Munnar. Keep tripping,

Regards
ABHI.

[Turbosailor]

Rachet as you said, its truly wonderful place to be. Looks like a place from fairy tale movie. I was looking for a place like this in Munnar after our memorable stay in waterfall estate at Valparai. Thanks for bringing it out to us, It will be in limelight for fellow BHPian visiting Munnar. And what a ride you have and commendable guts to take this beautiful beast uphill.

[Rachet]

Originally Posted by ABHI_1512

..Your GT looks majestic amidst the greens and the blues. I can only imagine the fun you had through the winding roads of Munnar. Keep tripping,

Regards
ABHI.

Thanks, yeah it was fun always driving the 630d. Luckily most of the main roads in Munnar are good without spoiling the drive.

Originally Posted by Turbosailor

Rachet as you said, its truly wonderful place to be. Looks like a place from fairy tale movie. I was looking for a place like this in Munnar after our memorable stay in waterfall estate at Valparai. Thanks for bringing it out to us, It will be in limelight for fellow BHPian visiting Munnar. And what a ride you have and commendable guts to take this beautiful beast uphill.

Thanks. May I ask you which property did you visit in Waterfall estate? And how are the estate roads to reach the property?

[vredesbyrd]

Seems like the GT is truly a GT in that sense (especially love the fact that BMW did not skimp on the surround view camera setup).
Nice thread! I have been eyeing some old 320D GTs just for giggles. Let's see if something ever happens

[amitnair]

Thats a lovely bungalow. I think few movies have been shot at this place.

[Turbosailor]

Originally Posted by Rachet

Thanks. May I ask you which property did you visit in Waterfall estate? And how are the estate roads to reach the property?

Rachet, We stayed in Valley View Bungalow and roads leading to estate are good paved path. And main roads are excellent will offer enjoyable

Main road and views while on transit to estate.






View from property


Roads inside estate, you can see valley view Bungalow right ahead from here.