Munnar Tea Plantation & Lakshmi Hills Hiking Tour Experience

5.00

(6 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I still remember the way the morning air smelled—sort of earthy, mixed with that faint sweetness from the tea leaves. We kicked off our hike right at the edge of a tea plantation, boots crunching over the red-brown path. Our guide, Suresh, started telling us about Kannan and Devan—two locals who first showed British planters around Parvathimala (now Seventhmala estate). You could almost picture them moving through these same rows, long before any of us were here.

The trail opened up into rolling grasslands after about an hour. The wind picked up a bit here—felt good on my face after the climb. Suresh pointed out some flowering plants I’d never seen before (he said they only bloom for a few weeks each year). He also mentioned that bison sometimes wander through this area. Didn’t see any myself, but we did spot some hoof prints near a muddy patch.

Next came the shola forest—dense and cool, with sunlight barely making it through. It was quiet except for birds flitting overhead. I caught sight of two flycatchers: one orange, one black. Suresh knew all their names; he’s been guiding here for years and seems to know every call by heart.

We finally reached near the top of Lakshmi hills. That view—Munnar spread out below like a green patchwork quilt—kind of made me forget how tired my legs were. We sat down for a bit, just taking it all in while sipping on some chai from our flasks. After a while, we started heading back down, chatting about what we’d seen and heard along the way.