Best time to visit Ooty and how to reach
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
Ooty is about 900 km from Hyderabad and has no airport or railway station of its own, so every route goes through Coimbatore or Mettupalayam. By train, overnight services leave Kacheguda or Secunderabad for Coimbatore (about 15 hours) and Ooty is 85 km further, roughly three hours up the Nilgiri ghat; the classic finish is the morning Nilgiri Mountain Railway from Mettupalayam, four and a half hours through Coonoor. Flying to Coimbatore takes about an hour and a half, with the same three-hour drive up. By road it is 15 to 16 hours. Our fixed-date departures from Hyderabad travel overnight and cover the whole journey, so nothing has to be booked separately.
Coimbatore is the gateway to Ooty: 85 km and about three hours up the Nilgiri ghat by road, or the morning Nilgiri Mountain Railway from Mettupalayam, 35 km from the city, which climbs through Coonoor to Ooty in four and a half hours. The Isha Yoga Centre is 30 km west of the city, on the way for anyone adding it.
Ooty is about 270 km from Bangalore, six to seven hours by road through Mysuru and Bandipur, which is why the fixed-date group trips leave on Friday night and reach Ooty for breakfast. Self-drive is straightforward; the last stretch is 36 hairpin bends.
