The Hill Stations of Kerala When the heat is on the plains, and the time to get away from the crowd, came for a vendezvous with nature. 

Inhale the bracing mountain air, relax in peace, stroll down winding paths, marvel at the beautiful views, enjoy the profusion of flowers in bloom. Kerala's exotic appeal is centered in the highland area of the Western Ghats. Rising to an average height of 1520 m , it houses rich flora and fauna. 

Luxuriant plantations of coffee, tea, cardamom, pepper and rubber, stretch over the hills of Wayanad as far as the eye can see. 

With the fast-flowing rivers - Panamaram, Mananthavady and Kabini - cutting across the undulating panorama and lending a picture-postcard look to the whole region - the north eastern tip of Kerala. 

A quaint little hill station tucked away in the Western Ghats, Ponmudi is at an altitude of 1100 ft. above sea level. Lush green woods, lazily meandering streams and countless varieties of butterflies lend a strange magic to Ponmudi.

A forest range 75 kms. (travel time: 2 ½ hours) from Palghat, the Nelliyampathy hills comprise a chain of ridges cut off from one another by valleys of dense evergreen forests and orange plantations The height of the hills range from 467 metres to the tallest peak Padagiri looming at 1572 metres. 

Accessing Nelliyampathy from Palghat is a sensation on its own, as you negotiate over a dozen hairpin curves on the ghat road passing through the fascinating jungles of the Sahya Ranges. En route, 17 kms. from Palghat, the shimmering Pothundi Reservoir and its manicured surroundings make for an ideal stop over. 

The nature-lover’s paradise. Snuggling in the green and serene Kannan Devan Hills, lies the quite and restful resort of Munnar, at an altitude of 1524 m and 136 km off Cochin.

Panoramic views of low-flying clouds and mist filled valleys make it a pretty little heaven with a cool bracing climate. It was opened up out of virgin forests a century ago by pioneering planters. Within its remote and elderly churches - gracious, stone-structures with ancient chandeliers and rosewood pews. A little beyond lies Anaimudi, South India's highest peak. In the vicinity is the Eravikulam National Park, the home of the endangered Nilgiri Tahr that roams on a stretch of grassland or is seen climbing the pinnacles of the undulating hills.

Here we can have a glimpse of a Gaur, Langur, Lion-tailed macaque, and Elephants roaming in herds. 
The Kundale Tea Plantation - An area surrounding a lovely lake that offers some of the most stunning views of the region. It offers the best opportunity you are ever likely to have to see the tea plantations, to watch tea being picked, to learn how tea is processed, to smell the sweet scent of tea wafting through the air and to buy the tea directly from the gardens.

At an elevation of 1700 m.above sea level, this place is 13 kms. away from Munnar. It is also the seat of the Indo-Swiss Dairy Project where the green meadows, the exotic cattle and the rose garden attracts a lot of tourists.

En route to Munnar, 121 kms. away from Kottayam lies Idukki, a small hill town surrounded by a spread of beautiful, wooden valleys and meandering streams. Famed for its arched dam built across the Periyar river, Idukki literally means a narrow gorge.

Devikulam is a dainty town, sixteen kilometers southwest of Munnar. It consist of irresistibly green slopes touching the sky at a thousand metres and its silent clusters of slender red and blue gum trees. It has a lovely little lake hidden within the rolling hills. 

According to a legend, Sita Devi, the holy consort of Lord Rama, came down to frolic in the lake and the place came to be spoken about as ’Devikulam’(meaning the lake of the goddess), ever since. 

Peermade is a small hill station on the way to Thekkady. It is a fertile land at an altitude of 914 metres. Formerly the summer palaces of Travancore Rajas, this tiny and cool hill station is full of rubber, tea, coffee, pepper and cardamom plantation, interspersed with waterfalls and open grass lands. 

Lakkadi A place of great scenic beauty with picturesque hills, streams and luxuriant vegetation, one of the highest locations in Wayanad, and registers the second highest degree of rainfall in the world. 3 km from here is Pookode Lake,the natural fresh water lake, very wide and deep, one of the rare reservoirs of water in Wayanad. 

Surrounded on all sides by meadows and hills, it has become a favorite picnic spot. 

The Dam is constructed across Cherukunnapuzha, a tributary of Mangalam river. The dam is located in picturesque surroundings. The reservoir fringes on the forest area where there are deer, wild elephants and a variety of birds. There are beautiful parks and lawns adorned with statues. 

Malampuzha Malampuzha a major tourist attraction is in the site of a large irrigation dam built across the Bharathapuzha. The town is set at the base of the hills of the Western Ghats and around the large reservoir are beautiful rose gardens and amusement parks for children as well as facilities for boat cruises in the reservoir. 

The famous work 'Yakshi' done by Kerala's famous sculptor Kanai Kunhiraman is another attraction in this garden. 

Wagamon 64 km. from Kottayam and 34 km. from Pala, situated at an elevation of 1100 metres above sea level is a trekker’s paradise. It is a very ideal tourist spot surrounded by the greenery of tea gardens, beautiful meadows, valleys and dales. Other attractions: Thangal para, lndo-swiss project, Kurisumala Ashram.