Oct 07, 2009 05:11 PM
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We went end September and were there for a week till 1st week October'09. Snapshots of our trip and what we learned, to save you time and effort:
Going there:We flew in to Kochi and hired a car for the entire week we were there. Found this to be the best option since we were 5 people. Unless you are on a shoestring budget and want to go by bus, hiring a cab for the entire journey is best. If you hire a cab one way, they anyway charge you for both ways, plus hiring a cab for the day in Munnar to go sightseeing is expensive. We found the cheapest to be this guy: Anil(+91 9847377479). Gave us an Innova in excellent condition, and the driver Hussain was also excellent!
Staying: Sterling was the worst I have been to. At some point the resort has been made well, with large rooms, and well-manicured lawns. However, not only has it fallen into disrepair, but also the front office staff is obnoxious. My complete review is available on Mouthshut under Sterling Days Inn in city of Idukki. Club Mahindra right next to Sterling was grand. We are members, but there was no availability, so we had to stay at Sterling. Sterling & Club Mahindra are 20 km away from main town, so unless you are organising cabs, don't stay here. Lots of decent looking places in main town area.
Food:This depends on what you are looking for. Sometimes we used to cook in the hotel room itself(something simple, else it will get burned). For simple Kerala meals(if you have the taste for it), the following places were good:Hotel Joseco: *A dhaba right outside Sterling. We used to get Puttu and Appam made on order from here and it was decent. Rest was not that great.Guru Bhavan: Very good meal, if you don't have a problem sitting at a roadside dhaba-like place.Guru Hotel: Not very good. Go to Guru Bhavan instead.Shree Mahavir Annex:* So-so. Better atmosphere than Guru Bhavan and food is ok.
If you are not on a shoe-string budget and don't mind paying a bit:Club Mahindra: *The buffet layout at Club Mahindra was excellent(breakfast+ dinner option for Rs 500), as was the ala carte. Really worth a try. They have live counters, extensive layout etc. The breakfast and dinner buffet at Sterling looking stake and unappetising in comparison, so we didn't try it. Club Mahindra's service was great, and the manager there(Afteb I think his name was) was really good. When he figured it was our parents' anniversary one day, he also gave us a cake for free. Really professional and a nice change compared to Sterling.Sterling Resort:* Ala carte and room service food was so-so. Roti's seemed to be made of maida though they said it was atta. The only thing really worth trying was the Kerala meal at lunch time in their restaurant "Sadhya". Priced at Rs 125+ taxes, it was good.
Sight-seeing:We were not too keen on sightseeing and missed some of the places, since we were mainly there to relax and have a good time. Review of what we saw is as follows:Tea Museum: *Ok. They have a short film, but had stuffed so many people inside the room, that we couldn't see or breathe, so missed that. Rest was ok, but nothing impressive for the price. The tea leaves they are selling in their shop was not to our taste. We bought a large packet, but there was a strange aftertaste so we couldn't really drink it.Matupetty Dam: Nice lake. On the way, we went for an elephant ride at elephant point, which was fun if you have the heart for it. At Matupetty we skipped the boat ride. Nothing much else except good scenery.Spice trail: Good for those interested in these things. They take effort to explain how each spice is grown and show a variety of things.Eraviculum National Park: *We had to wait really long for our turn. They take you by their own vans and pick you up later. Nice to see the goats roaming about, and nice trek and scenery. Not much else.
Shopping: We bought some Kerala banana chips and sharkara upperi(jaggery coated chips) from a shop called Krishna in Munnar junction. They were quite good. Bought some handicrafts also from there. Tried the tea and green tea, but didn't like them much - this area's tea has a typical aftertaste which we didn't enjoy. We didn't find much else to buy.
If anyone has any queries, please post on the comments, and I would be happy to answer.
