Best Places to Visit in Ooty
Everyone must have heard the name – The Nilgiris, the Queen of Hills. Ooty is a lovely and the most popular hill station of the Nilgiris in South India. It is one of the perfect destinations for people who want to take a break from their busy city life.
Ooty attracts tourists with its beautiful landscapes that are covered with pine trees and eucalyptus. The major attraction of Ooty is its waterfalls, dense forests, lakes, and tea gardens.
There are many unique places to visit in Ooty in 2 days with a low budget that will make a memorable trip with family. Ooty has everything from beautiful gardens to the oldest church. Planning to visit Ooty can be a difficult task.
Worry not, listing below are the Best Places to visit in Ooty and make your travel experience memorable. Ooty is officially named Ootacamund and the nickname is Ooty. Bollywood directors are in love with the place for their sightseeing, waterfalls, gardens, and lakes.
What is Best time to visit Ooty?
Ooty is an all-year travel destination. A pleasant place to visit throughout the year but if you wish to plan an ideal trip, you will find the weather chilled and windy all the time. The best time to visit Ooty is between October to March and Peak season is experienced during this time. You can visit the Ooty travel guide to have all the details.
Top Things to do in Ooty
Ooty not only has gardens, mountains, and waterfalls but simultaneously this place is best for people who want to do outdoor activities. Some of the fun and top things to do in Ootyare :
- Toy Train – Enjoy a railway ride in the Nilgiri Mountain
- Admire the delightful beauty of the mountains and the waterfalls at the Dolphin’s Nose.
- Tea Museum – Top place to visit on Ooty is the Tea Museum also known as Tea Factory
- Enjoy outstanding colorful and natural beauty at the Botanical Garden
- Boat Ride at Ooty Lake
- Visit the gorgeous waterfalls at PykaraLake.
- Go trekking to the Doddabetta peak
- One of the Ooty famous things to do is to spend a day at Emerald Lake.
- Spend some time with peace at St. Stephen’s Church.
- Visit the Mudumalai National Park
- Learn Indian personalities at the Wax Museum
Famous places to visit at Ooty
Ooty Lake
If you are going to the Nilgiris, Ooty Lake is a must to visit destination for every visitor. It has many famous Ooty tourism spots. Ooty Lake is located just 2 km from Ooty City. Ooty Lake is a man-made lake spread over 65 acres. The serene lake has boating facilities where the tourists have the facilities to hire paddle boats or even rowing boats.
There are mini-train and amusement parks for kids to enjoy along with a mirror and haunted house. An artificial lake that was built especially for fishing and boating. Visitors can hire from a wide range of boats.
Avalanche Lake
Avalanche is one of the best places to visit in Ooty within 100 km. It is one of the famous tourist spots in Tamil Nadu. Avalanche Lake is considered the one point of attraction that Ooty has. It lies in between the mountains and mesmerizing land spaces. The lake is filled with all types of beautiful flowers, adding to the beauty of the lake is the waterfall from the nearby mountains.
Avalanche was derived from a landslide in 1823, due to which the lake was formed naturally. At Avalanche, visitors can enjoy water rafting, mountain trekking, and trout fishing. The required equipment for trout fishing is available at the Trout Hatchery.
Ooty Botanical Gardens
Ooty Botanical Gardens is listed among the Top Places to visit on Ooty. This is also known as the Silent Valley. A perfect place for a family picnic when you can plan to spend some quality time with your near ones. The Tea plantation adds to the beauty of the lake. One of the best places to visit in Ooty in 1 day with family as you would love to see the sunrise and sunset here.
Doddabetta Peak
Doddabetta means big. This big peak is located about 10 km from Ooty. The height of the Doddabetta peak is 8650 ft. and is considered as the highest peak of the Nilgiris. If you are thinking of what to do in Ooty, then go to Doddabetta for a trekking as the peak offers an astounding view of the dense forests and one can even see Mysore on a clear day. The doddabetta viewpoint can be traveled by foot or even on a vehicle.
Dolphin’s Nose
The Dolphin’s nose is located 12 km away from the Coonoor. The name Dolphin’s Nose as the tip of the peak resembles a dolphin’s nose and is a famous tourist spot in Tamil Nadu. The road leading to the peak has several tea plantations. Dolphin’s Nose is near to the Tiger Hills and you can also view the CoonoorRiver.
You can add adventure by boating and horse riding. Get picturesque with the background of the Nilgiri hills. Enjoy the actual taste of tea with the Coonoor tea.
Ooty 9th Mile
Wondering where is Ooty 9th Mile? You must have seen many Bollywood movies like Raja Hindustani, Deewana, and many others. The locals call this place Shooting Medu. In ancient times, this place was used for hunting by the British. One can adore the astonishing 360-degree view from the top. If you wish to list down the best Places to visit in Ooty in 3 days you can plan these spots like hiking to the viewpoint, or horse riding.
Emerald Lake
Located around 20 km from Ooty, Emerald Lake lies in a place known as Silent Valley. It is far away from the crowd and a clean place to enjoy nature. It is not yet much explored by the tourists. Emerald Lake is known as a paradise for photography lovers. The lake is surrounded by tea gardens. Emerald Lake is the 2nd best lake in Ooty.
One cannot miss the sunrise and sunset at Emerald Lake. The view from Emerald Lake is mesmerizing. The Avalanche Lake and the upper Bhavani dams are near the Emerald Lake. So if you are in Ooty 4 days Itinerary, do visit this place.
Pykara Lake
A popular lake in Ooty where tourists come to relax and admire the beauty of the greenery and waterfall. Near to the waterfall, there is a boat house and also a restaurant. PykaraLake is in Pykara village and has a dam because of which the backwaters have formed the lake known as Pykara Lake which is a famous tourist attraction the village also has a power plant.
PykaraLake is the largest river in the district. The lake is surrounded by shola forests. Many Tamil films are shooted here. The TTDC runs a boathouse, restaurant in this area.
St. Stephen’s Church
If you love architecture and want to see architectural beauty in Ooty, visit the St. Stephen Church as the Church has amazing interiors. The glass windows that are painted of Last Supper are captivating. The timber used to make the church is from Srinangapatna and the palace of Tipu Sultan.
Built by the British government in the 19th century, there are many attractions inside the church especially the glass windows that feature different scenes like Mother Mary holding Jesus Christ in her arms, wooden architecture, and painting of The Last Supper. St. Stephen Church is one of the prime attractions of Ooty. If you are planning to visit the Queen of Hill Stations – Ooty, you must visit this wonderful place of worship.
Thread Garden
The Thread Garden lies exactly opposite Ooty Lake. It is a famous tourist spot that has a collection of artificial plants and flowers made by skillful artists using thread. This beautiful hand-made masterpiece was designed by Mr. Antony Joseph who was a professor with the help of other skilled workers discovered Four Dimensional Hand Wound Embroidery.
The entire Thread Garden is crafted using colorful thread, wire, and canvas. The garden is completely man-made with hands without the help of any machinery. The Thread Garden was completed after 12 years. The art is designed in a way that it will look real. You can even carry these beautiful art pieces at home.
Final Thoughts
Ooty is the Queen of Hill station to visit in Tamil Nadu where you can find beautiful gardens, gushing waterfalls, mountains, and picturesque scenarios. You can even do trekking, hiking, mountain climbing, and many other adventurous sports.
Other than this one can find many shopping places like the Lower& Upper bazaar road, Commercial Road, Ooty Municipal Market, Charring Cross, Ooty Lake Market, Tibetan Market & Main bazaar. If in Ooty, one should take experience to ride through the Nilgiri Mountain Railway.
Check out our other travel guides to explore best places to visit in India.
