Ooty trip from Chennai at a glance
- Duration: 3 to 8 days; most travellers take 3.
- Price: from ₹8,900 per person, stays, local travel and the sightseeing listed on each trip page.
- Places: the Nilgiri toy train from Mettupalayam or Coonoor, the botanical and rose gardens, Ooty lake, Doddabetta peak and the tea estates at Coonoor.
- Travel: Chennai to Ooty is about 550 km, 10 hours by road. The Nilgiri Express to Mettupalayam and the morning toy train up to Ooty is the classic way; a flight to Coimbatore and a three-hour drive is the fastest.
- Stay: a colonial-style hotel in Ooty town or a tea-estate stay above Coonoor, quieter and greener.
- Best time: October to June is the season.
- Weather: Ooty stands at 2,240 m: 5 to 20°C in December and January with frost some mornings, 15 to 25°C from March to June when the plains escape the heat, and heavy rain in July and August..
- Trip type: private trips planned around your dates and your group.
Ooty packages for 3, 4, 5 and 6+ days
Two nights covers Ooty town, the lake, the gardens, Doddabetta and the toy train leg to Coonoor. Three nights adds Coonoor's viewpoints and tea estates, or Mysuru on the drive.
3 days / 2 nights from Chennai, from ₹8,900 per person: 3 Days Ooty Coonoor Bliss from Bangalore (3D/2N, from ₹8,900); 3 Days Ooty Coonoor Bliss from Coimbatore (3D/2N, from ₹8,900); 3 Days Ooty Isha Yatra from Coimbatore (3D/2N, from ₹8,999).
4 days / 3 nights from Chennai, from ₹11,500 per person: 4 Days Ooty with Isha Adiyogi Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,500); 4 Days Ooty Mysore Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,500); 4 Days Ooty Isha Yatra from Coimbatore (4D/3N, from ₹11,999).
5 days / 4 nights from Chennai, from ₹13,999 per person: 5 Days Wayanad Ooty Hills Escape (5D/4N, from ₹13,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Isha Bliss (5D/4N, from ₹14,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Twin Hills Escape (5D/4N, from ₹14,999).
Six days and longer, from ₹16,499: 6 Days Mysore Wayanad Ooty Bliss (6D/5N, from ₹16,499); 6 Days Mysore Coorg Ooty Grand Bliss (6D/5N, from ₹17,000); 6 Days Mysore Coorg Ooty Grand Honeymoon (6D/5N, from ₹19,000).
Ooty packages for 3 days from Chennai
3 days / 2 nights from ₹8,900 per person. arrive, the botanical garden and the rose garden, Ooty lake in the afternoon and the market in the evening. Then Doddabetta at dawn, the toy train down to Coonoor, Sim's Park, Dolphin's Nose and Lamb's Rock, a tea factory on the way back. Then Pykara lake and falls, the tea museum, and the drive down the ghat after lunch.
4 plans: 3 Days Ooty Coonoor Bliss from Bangalore (3D/2N, from ₹8,900); 3 Days Ooty Coonoor Bliss from Coimbatore (3D/2N, from ₹8,900); 3 Days Ooty Isha Yatra from Coimbatore (3D/2N, from ₹8,999); 3 Days Ooty with Isha Adiyogi from Bangalore (3D/2N, from ₹9,400).
Ooty packages for 4 days from Chennai
4 days / 3 nights from ₹11,500 per person. Two nights covers Ooty town, the lake, the gardens, Doddabetta and the toy train leg to Coonoor. Three nights adds Coonoor's viewpoints and tea estates, or Mysuru on the drive.
5 plans: 4 Days Ooty with Isha Adiyogi Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,500); 4 Days Ooty Mysore Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,500); 4 Days Ooty Isha Yatra from Coimbatore (4D/3N, from ₹11,999); 4 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Twin Hills Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,999).
Ooty packages for 5 days from Chennai
5 days / 4 nights from ₹13,999 per person. Two nights covers Ooty town, the lake, the gardens, Doddabetta and the toy train leg to Coonoor. Three nights adds Coonoor's viewpoints and tea estates, or Mysuru on the drive.
6 plans: 5 Days Wayanad Ooty Hills Escape (5D/4N, from ₹13,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Isha Bliss (5D/4N, from ₹14,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Twin Hills Escape (5D/4N, from ₹14,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Escape from Coimbatore (5D/4N, from ₹14,999).
Places to visit in Ooty
Every trip on this page covers the places below; a private trip can drop one and add another.
- The Nilgiri Mountain Railway: The UNESCO-listed toy train; the Mettupalayam to Ooty run takes five hours, and the Ooty to Coonoor leg is the easy hour-long version.
- Government Botanical Garden: 55 acres laid out in 1848, with the fossil tree and the May flower show.
- Ooty Lake and the boathouse: Pedal and row boats on the 1824 lake, busiest in the afternoon.
- Doddabetta Peak: The highest point in the Nilgiris at 2,637 m, with a telescope house; go early before the mist.
- Rose Garden: Over 20,000 varieties on a terraced slope above the town, at their best from May to July.
- Coonoor: Sim's Park, Dolphin's Nose and Lamb's Rock: The quieter hill town 20 km down, with the tea estates and the valley viewpoints.
- A tea factory and tea museum: The processing floor and a tasting; most are on the Coonoor road.
- Pykara falls and lake: 19 km out, a boat ride and two falls in a shola forest, on the way to Mudumalai.
A 3 day Ooty trip, day by day
A private trip runs the same plan at your own pace; a group departure follows it to the minute.
- Day 1: arrive, the botanical garden and the rose garden, Ooty lake in the afternoon and the market in the evening.
- Day 2: Doddabetta at dawn, the toy train down to Coonoor, Sim's Park, Dolphin's Nose and Lamb's Rock, a tea factory on the way back.
- Day 3: Pykara lake and falls, the tea museum, and the drive down the ghat after lunch.
Ooty trip cost from Chennai
Ooty packages from Chennai start at ₹8,900 per person: ₹8,900 for 3 days, ₹11,500 for 4 days and ₹13,999 for 5 days. That covers the stays, the local travel, the sightseeing and activities each trip page lists; the journey from your city is quoted with the trip so you can pick the train, bus or flight.
What moves the price is the room category, the season and the group size. Weekends, long weekends and the December fortnight cost more than a mid-week date, and a group of four to six brings the per-person price down because the car and the rooms are shared. Entry tickets and anything not named on the trip page stay out of the fare, so the number you see is the number you pay.
Ooty and Coonoor packages from Chennai
Coonoor is 20 km down the hill and the better base for tea: Sim's Park, Dolphin's Nose, Lamb's Rock and the estate factories, all quieter than Ooty town.
2 trips on this page, from ₹8,900 per person: 3 Days Ooty Coonoor Bliss from Bangalore (3D/2N, from ₹8,900); 3 Days Ooty Coonoor Bliss from Coimbatore (3D/2N, from ₹8,900).
Ooty and Kodaikanal packages from Chennai
Kodaikanal is the other Tamil Nadu hill station, six hours south, and the two together make the classic five to six day Nilgiri circuit.
5 trips on this page, from ₹11,999 per person: 4 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Twin Hills Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,999); 4 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Bliss from Coimbatore (4D/3N, from ₹11,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Isha Bliss (5D/4N, from ₹14,999); 5 Days Ooty Kodaikanal Twin Hills Escape (5D/4N, from ₹14,999).
Ooty with Mysore packages from Chennai
Mysuru and the Bandipur forest road sit between Bengaluru and Ooty, so the palace and a safari fit the journey rather than costing a day.
5 trips on this page, from ₹11,500 per person: 4 Days Ooty Mysore Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,500); 6 Days Mysore Wayanad Ooty Bliss (6D/5N, from ₹16,499); 6 Days Mysore Coorg Ooty Grand Bliss (6D/5N, from ₹17,000); 6 Days Mysore Coorg Ooty Grand Honeymoon (6D/5N, from ₹19,000).
Ooty with the Isha Yoga Centre packages from Chennai
The Isha Yoga Centre and the 112-foot Adiyogi sit 30 km west of Coimbatore, at the foot of the ghat road up to Ooty, so half a day there costs nothing in travel time. The Dhyanalinga is open to everyone and free.
5 trips on this page, from ₹8,999 per person: 3 Days Ooty Isha Yatra from Coimbatore (3D/2N, from ₹8,999); 3 Days Ooty with Isha Adiyogi from Bangalore (3D/2N, from ₹9,400); 4 Days Ooty with Isha Adiyogi Bliss (4D/3N, from ₹11,500); 4 Days Ooty Isha Yatra from Coimbatore (4D/3N, from ₹11,999).
Ooty for friends, couples and families from Chennai
Couples: 2 plans with the quieter stays and private transfers, from ₹17,500: 5 Days Ooty Coorg Honeymoon (5D/4N, from ₹17,500); 6 Days Mysore Coorg Ooty Grand Honeymoon (6D/5N, from ₹19,000).
Families and couples take the private trips: the same places at your own pace, with the room category and the car chosen for your group.
Ooty from Chennai: how to reach and the best time
Best time
October to June is the season. October to February is cold and clear (5 to 20°C at night in December and January), March to June is the summer season when the rest of the south escapes the heat, and the flower show fills May. July to September brings heavy rain and the fewest crowds.
- October to February, 5 to 20°C: Cold and clear, frost on some December mornings; the best light for the viewpoints and the toy train.
- March to June, 15 to 25°C: The summer season when the plains escape the heat; the flower show fills May and rates peak.
- July to September, 12 to 20°C: Heavy rain, mist on Doddabetta, the fewest crowds and the lowest prices.
What to pack
Woollens from December to February, when nights hit 5°C and frost is possible, and a light jacket the rest of the year. Comfortable shoes for the gardens and Doddabetta, a rain jacket in July and August, and sunscreen, because the sun at 2,240 m burns even when the air is cold.
Getting there
Chennai to Ooty is about 550 km, 10 hours by road. The Nilgiri Express to Mettupalayam and the morning toy train up to Ooty is the classic way; a flight to Coimbatore and a three-hour drive is the fastest.
Ooty compared with Coorg, Kodaikanal, Munnar and Coonoor
Ooty or Coorg?
Ooty is the colder, more built-up hill station: gardens, the toy train, Doddabetta and Coonoor, easy for families and for people who do not want to walk far. Coorg is a coffee-estate weekend with waterfalls and homestays, closer to Bengaluru. Ooty costs a little more for the same nights, and the toy train is the thing you cannot do anywhere else.
Ooty or Kodaikanal?
Ooty is the busier and colder of the two, with the toy train, Doddabetta, the gardens and Coonoor's tea estates; Kodaikanal is quieter, built around one lake, and easier to do slowly on foot. Ooty is the better first trip because there is something planned every day; Kodaikanal is the better second one. They are about 240 km apart, five to six hours, so a four or five day trip does both.
Ooty or Munnar?
Munnar is warmer — 15 to 25°C against Ooty's 5 to 20°C in winter — and greener, with tea estates running to the horizon and almost no town. Ooty is colder, has the toy train, the gardens and the boating lake, and is the easier trip from Bengaluru or Hyderabad. Munnar is the one to pick for the tea slopes and the quiet; Ooty for a family that wants sights close together.
Ooty or Coonoor?
They are 20 km apart on the same hill, so the real question is where to sleep. Ooty town has the lake, the gardens, the restaurants and the crowds; Coonoor, 400 m lower, has the tea estates, Sim's Park and the valley viewpoints, and is quieter and warmer at night. Most trips stay in Ooty and go down to Coonoor for a day — the toy train between them takes an hour and is worth doing in that direction.
