Valparai

About Valparai

Valparai is a tea town at 1,050 m in the Anamalai hills, reached by a ghat road with 40 numbered hairpin bends that climbs straight through the Anamalai Tiger Reserve. Lion-tailed macaques cross the road, Nilgiri tahr graze the slopes, and elephants are a genuine traffic hazard after dusk. It stays quiet because it is a working plantation town rather than a resort one — 56 estates, a handful of stays, and viewpoints like Nallamudi Poonjolai looking out over the Grass Hills. **Getting there.** About 410 km from Bengaluru (8–9 hours) via Salem and Pollachi; barely 100 km from Coimbatore, which is the usual rail-in point. **Where to stay.** Estate bungalows and small hotels in Valparai town; forest-edge stays towards Sholayar.

Things to do

• • The 40-hairpin ghat road climb
• • Nallamudi Poonjolai viewpoint
• • Lion-tailed macaque spotting
• • Monkey Falls and Aliyar dam
• • Sholayar dam and tea estate walk
• • Athirappilly falls on the Kerala side

Best time to visit

September to May. The reserve road closes at night, so plan arrivals before dusk.

How to reach

About 410 km from Bengaluru (8–9 hours) via Salem and Pollachi; barely 100 km from Coimbatore, which is the usual rail-in point.

Where to stay

Estate bungalows and small hotels in Valparai town; forest-edge stays towards Sholayar.

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