Ooty Coonoor Kodaikanal Coimbatore Backpacking Group Trip (6D/5N)

• Start from Bangalore, overnight journey to Kodaikanal.

• Check into the Kodaikanal stay, our Trip Leader will assign rooms.
• Have Breakfast.
• Visit tourist attractions of Kodaikanal hill station like:
• Pine Forest: A perfect photogenic place to capture some reels.
• ​Guna Caves: A mysterious and thrilling set of deep rock formations and surrounded by dark, enchanting pine forests.
• ​Pillar Rocks: Three massive, vertical mountain boulders that stand side-by-side, offering breathtaking views when the mist clears.
• Get back to Kodai town, visit famous Kodaikanal Lake. Interested folks can go for pedal boating on the lake.
• Take an evening stroll around Kodaikanal Lake, do some shopping.
• Head back to the stay, social gathering with hot Dinner.
• Rest for the night on your cozy beds.

• Check out of the Kodaikanal stay after early Breakfast.
• ​Coakers Walk: a scenic pathway offering breathtaking views of the valley and floating clouds right beneath our eyes.
• Bryant Park: a colorful botanical garden perfect for a relaxing stroll amidst lush greenery.
• After this, we will take a 5 hour journey including a Lunch break to Coimbatore. Time management is important today.
• In Coimbatore we will visit most famous Isha Yoga center which is home to the 112-foot-tall statue of Adi Yogi Lord Shiva. It is recognized by the Guinness World Records as the world’s largest of its kind, and is situated against the backdrop of Velliangiri Mountains.
• The evening light show of Adi Yogi – a 14-minute 3D laser light and sound show projected onto the statue every evening at 7:00 PM is icing on the cake.
• Check into the stay in Coimbatore, have Dinner, take good rest.

• Check out of Coimbatore stay after breakfast.
• We will begin scenic journey to Ooty & Coonoor (approx. 2 hours drive). The lush tea gardens and cool weather of Ooty & Coonoor are a perfect start for the trip.
• Visit the most famous tourist attraction of Coonoor – Sim’s park, take loads of pictures at this colorful location.
• Stop by at Dolphin’s Nose, enjoy the thrilling view with huge mountain gorges overlooking Kotagiri valley.
• Lunch at a local restaurant.
• Visit Indian Army’s – The Madras Regiment Museum that displays rich history of the regiment like weapons, armory and other artefacts. Their souvenir shop is a great place to buy miniature models of fighter planes, warships, etc.
• We will also go for a refreshing Tea estate walk.
• Check into the stay by late evening, refresh.
• Social gathering with long conversations, sharing travel stories.
• Finish hot Dinner as per your order.
• Rest in the rooms, tucked up with thick blankets.
• Note: We may switch the itineraries of Day 4 & 5 Ooty/Coonoor tourist attractions. Our Trip Leader along with Driver will take a good decision based on traffic restrictions.

• Freshen up, pack our bags, check out of the stay early.
• Have Breakfast.
• Visit Ooty Tea/Chocolate factory, taste different kinds of chai, shop for your favorite Nilgiris Tea.
• Next in line is the highest mountain in the Nilgiris – Doddabetta, offering stunning panoramic views of Ooty’s rolling hills and misty green valleys from a popular telescope house.
• Have a quick lunch at a local restaurant.
• Head to extremely picturesque Pykara Lake, go on boating if interested. Pykara is a fresh water lake with panoramic view of lush green Nilgiris forest.
• Have pit stops at Wenlock Downs 9th Mile Shooting Point – a photographer’s delight, usually covered with mist or clouds.
• Head back to the town, do some last minute shopping, finish Dinner.
• Start back towards Bengaluru.

• Reach back Bengaluru early in the morning.
• Share your beautiful trip experience of Ooty, Coonoor, Kodaikanal & Coimbatore with friends and family.

• Toiletries, moisturizer, light towel, lip balm, wet wipes, toothbrush, toothpaste etc.
• A lightweight large Backpack for the entire trip (50-60 liters). Strictly no trolleys. Remember this is a Backpacking trip.
• A small backpack for basic items (to carry valuables, water bottle, snacks, etc. for outdoor activities).
• Photo identity proof with address (Aadhar/Passport/Voter ID).
• Thermal inners and warm clothes (cold climate).
• A rainproof jacket with a hood (to protect from cold winds, sudden rain).
• Thick socks, track pants, full sleeve t-shirts (to keep your body warm).
• Cap/Hat/Sunglasses (to protect from harmful sun rays).
• Sunscreen (SPF 50 or more).
• Power bank, charger, camera, binoculars (if you wish to).
• Hand sanitizer and liquid hand wash for outdoors.
• Proper water bottle for your trip. You may fill at our stays.
• Disposable garbage covers (to separate used/unused clothes).
• Water-resistant good grip shoes for travel, extra slippers to use at stays.
• Personal medications that you may feel necessary (remember ghat roads, cold climate), basic first aid kit.
• No need to carry snacks/chocolates. You may buy at local shops.

• Organizers will get in touch with you, or vice versa.
• Once minimum number of people book this trip (at least 4 members), Organizing team will give a green signal to book your flights.
• A Whatsapp group will be created for all the registered folks 5 days before the event.

• The itinerary is fixed. No special requests to change itinerary/schedule shall be entertained. Travellers are not allowed to advice/instruct the Organizers (Driver or Trip Leader or Operations Manager) to change the itinerary.
• Cooperate with the Organizers in following the schedule set for the day (especially getting up and getting ready in the morning). This will ensure travellers won’t miss out on the real fun part that is traveling and visiting all places in itinerary.
• Every traveler is responsible for his/her for your own safety. Do not indulge in any illegal or silly activity that causes harm to self or fellow travelers.
• Do not wander into the forest away from the designated trail for treks. There may be snakes, scorpions, and dangerous animals.
• Unexpected situations: In rare scenarios, we might not be able to cover all the places mentioned in the itinerary because of unpredictable reasons like bad weather, landslides, wild animal presence, abrupt blocking of sites by the police/forest/local authorities, delay in travel because of an issue with our group itself, traffic conditions, etc. In most cases, if the time permits, the Organizers will take travelers to an alternative place. But in some cases, we may have to skip places altogether.
• Note: In case of flight delays, cancellations, or reschedules, Muddie Trails will not be responsible for missed connections to the trip starting point. Travelers are requested to make their own arrangements to reach the destination, as per the itinerary. We recommend booking flights with sufficient buffer time to avoid any last-minute issues.
• No alcohol & smoking during travel, treks, and other outdoor activities. There would be a separate window and space (usually at night) to have these at the stays for interested people.
• This is a budget, backpacking group trip. The facilities are shared between all group members. By default, all the stays and vehicles are Non-AC. No special preference shall be given to anyone.
• Travelers are expected to respect each other and help one another. Avoid discussing sensitive matters like sex, politics, and religion/caste/race.
• Using foul or abusive language, eve-teasing, arguing with fellow travelers/Organizers, and/or involving in the physical assault will not be accepted and will stand a chance of being deserted by the group then and there.
• Every traveler is expected to digitally fill & submit a liability/waiver form given by the Organizers before the trip. This liability form will discharge Muddie Trails of any unexpected incident like injury/death/theft etc.

Cancellation by Traveler

• 80% refund if a cancellation request is sent 30 days before the trip start date.
• 50% refund if a cancellation request is sent between 30 to 15 days before the trip start date.
• An email has to be sent to muddietrails@gmail.com to raise a cancellation request.
• No refund within 15 days of the event start time whatever is the reason (Health, COVID, Accident, Family crisis, Office issue, or anything else).
• No refund during/after the event.
• No refund on the partial payment (advance) done to block your seat for the trip.

Cancellation by Muddie Trails

Muddie Trails may decide to cancel the event if there are less than 3 travelers signed up for the trip/trek.

What if we don’t get the minimum number of people for the trip?
We have 2 options in this case:
Option 1: Complete refund.
Option 2: Switch to any other long trip of the same dates or future dates. The difference amount will be collected from you or paid back according to the new trip cost.

Note: We do not recommend to book flight tickets until the trip is confirmed with atleast 3 travelers signed up.

Cancellation due to external factors

Muddie Trails may have to cancel the event in case of external factors that are beyond our control like Natural Disasters, Extreme Weather Conditions, Red Alerts, Political Disturbances, Bandh/Curfews, Local Issues, Road Blocks, Train cancellations, Covid-19 or any other disease outbreaks etc.

In these scenarios:

• No Refund is allowed.
• 100% trip amount can be used for any other new trip of the same weekend or future weekends. The difference amount will be collected from you or paid back according to the new trip cost.
• Once you confirm your participation on the new trip, all the above Cancellation policies will apply for the same.