PrepMaticTamil Nadu GK · Geography & nature
Hill stations of Tamil Nadu: range, district and key facts
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Tamil Nadu's best-known hill stations are Ooty (Udhagamandalam) and Coonoor in the Nilgiris, Kodaikanal in the Palani hills, and Yercaud in the Shevaroy hills. Ooty is called the Queen of Hill Stations and Kodaikanal the Princess of Hill Stations. The state's hills fall into two groups: the Western Ghats on the border with Kerala, and the Eastern Ghats that run in broken ranges through the interior.
Hill stations at a glance
| Hill station | Hill range | District | Known for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Udhagamandalam (Ooty) | Nilgiris | Nilgiris | Queen of Hill Stations; botanical garden; Doddabetta; Nilgiri Mountain Railway |
| Coonoor | Nilgiris | Nilgiris | Tea estates; Sim's Park; Dolphin's Nose |
| Kotagiri | Nilgiris | Nilgiris | Tea; Kodanad viewpoint; Catherine Falls nearby |
| Kodaikanal | Palani hills | Dindigul | Princess of Hill Stations; star-shaped lake; Kurinji |
| Yercaud | Shevaroy hills (Eastern Ghats) | Salem | Lake; coffee; "poor man's Ooty" |
| Kolli Hills | Kolli (Kollimalai) hills | Namakkal | 70 hairpin bends; herbal plants; Agaya Gangai Falls |
| Valparai | Anamalai hills | Coimbatore | Tea and coffee estates; hairpin bends; Lion-tailed macaque habitat |
| Yelagiri | Yelagiri hills (Eastern Ghats) | Tirupathur | Small hill resort with orchards and a lake |
| Megamalai | High Wavy Mountains (Western Ghats) | Theni | Tea estates; Megamalai Wildlife Sanctuary |
| Kutralam (Courtallam) | Pothigai (Agasthyamalai) | Tenkasi | Spa of the South; waterfalls |
| Manjolai | Pothigai (Agasthyamalai) | Tirunelveli | Tea estate hill village in Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve |
| Sirumalai | Sirumalai hills | Dindigul | Hill banana and coffee; quiet hill stay |
| Javadhu Hills | Eastern Ghats | Tiruvannamalai | Tribal hills; forest cover |
| Pachamalai | Eastern Ghats | Tiruchirappalli, Perambalur | Forested hill range |
Ooty and the Nilgiris
Ooty lies at about 2,240 m above sea level. It was developed from 1819 onwards after John Sullivan, the Collector of Coimbatore, built a house there; the town became the summer capital of the Madras Presidency. The Nilgiri Mountain Railway, which links Mettupalayam with Udhagamandalam by cog-wheel (rack-and-pinion) track on the steepest section, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2005 as part of the Mountain Railways of India. Doddabetta, the highest peak in the Nilgiris, is on the Ooty-Kotagiri road. The Nilgiris are also a UNESCO biosphere reserve, covered in the national parks of Tamil Nadu page.
Kodaikanal and the Palani hills
Kodaikanal sits at about 2,100 m and was founded by American missionaries in 1845. The star-shaped Kodai Lake was created in 1863 by Sir Vere Henry Levinge, the Collector of Madurai. The Kurinji (Strobilanthes kunthiana) flower blooms across the Palani hills once every twelve years, and the Kurinji Andavar temple at Kodaikanal is dedicated to Murugan. The Kodaikanal Solar Observatory, established in 1899 and now run by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, studies the Sun.
Eastern Ghats hill stations
Yercaud in the Shevaroy range of Salem district is at about 1,500 m, and is known for coffee and an annual summer festival. The Kolli Hills of Namakkal district are reached by a road with 70 hairpin bends. Yelagiri, in the Eastern Ghats of Tirupathur district, is an easy weekend escape from Chennai and Bengaluru. Pachamalai and Kalrayan are quieter ranges with tribal communities and thick forest.
Short notes on most-asked items
- Queen and Princess. Ooty is the Queen of Hill Stations and Kodaikanal the Princess of Hill Stations.
- Lake. Kodai Lake is man-made. Ooty Lake, also man-made, was created by John Sullivan in the 1820s.
- Poor man's Ooty. Yercaud.
- Hairpin bends. Kolli Hills has 70, Valparai 40.
- Highest peak. Doddabetta, in the Nilgiris, at 2,637 m. See mountain peaks of Tamil Nadu.
- UNESCO. The Nilgiri Mountain Railway (2005) and the Western Ghats (2012) are both World Heritage listings that include parts of Tamil Nadu.
Elevations in this table are rounded; official and tourism sources differ by tens of metres.
How to revise
Group hill stations by range: Nilgiris (Ooty, Coonoor, Kotagiri), Palani (Kodaikanal), Anamalai (Valparai), High Wavy Mountains (Megamalai), and Eastern Ghats (Yercaud, Kolli, Yelagiri, Javadhu, Pachamalai). Match each range with its nearby sanctuary and waterfall, as the waterfalls of Tamil Nadu page does. For the physical geography that explains why these hills exist, read the TNPSC geography guide.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the most famous hill station in Tamil Nadu?
Ooty (Udhagamandalam) in the Nilgiris district is the best known and is called the Queen of Hill Stations.
Which hill station is called the Princess of Hill Stations?
Kodaikanal in Dindigul district, in the Palani hills.
Which hill station is called the poor man's Ooty?
Yercaud in Salem district, in the Shevaroy hills of the Eastern Ghats.
How many hairpin bends are there on the way to Kolli Hills?
The ghat road to Kolli Hills has 70 hairpin bends, which is why the hills are a common exam fact.
Official sources
Check the sources above for the latest tourism and protected-area information.
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