THE DUNNOTTAR BUNGALOW
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
The Dunnottar Bungalow is a private five-bedroom estate on Kodaikanal Lake, in the Puliyadi family since 1947, carefully restored. Five bedrooms, all ensuite. Home-cooked meals. If your question isn't answered below, message us on WhatsApp.
The Bungalow
What is The Dunnottar Bungalow?
The Dunnottar Bungalow is a 19th-century Scottish heritage bungalow on Kodaikanal Lake, Tamil Nadu — a private five-bedroom estate on one acre of eucalyptus, pine, lawns, and garden paths, on Lake Road near Bryant Park. It has been in the Puliyadi family since 1947 and was carefully restored by Shalini Biswajit. It has been featured in Condé Nast Traveller India, Architectural Digest India, and Vogue India.
Is The Dunnottar more like a hotel or a private villa?
The Dunnottar is a private family bungalow opened to guests. It gives you the privacy and space of a private house, with many of the comforts guests expect from a good hotel: breakfast included, daily housekeeping, laundry service, room service, concierge service, house staff on site, luggage help, and help from the Bungalow Manager and team.
How private is it if we book North or South?
North and South are private self-contained bungalows, each with its own bedrooms, living and dining spaces, and separate entrance. If the other bungalow is also occupied, the one-acre outdoor grounds may be shared, but only with that other bungalow group. There are no shared hotel corridors, lobbies, or restaurant spaces.
Is the bungalow exclusively ours?
It depends on how you book. The Whole Bungalow is yours alone: the house and the one-acre grounds, with no other guests on the estate. If you book the North or South Bungalow, its entrance, bedrooms, living and dining rooms are entirely yours. The lawns, garden and outdoor spaces are shared with the group in the other wing if it is also booked.
How many guests can stay?
The Whole Bungalow sleeps up to 15 guests across five bedrooms. The North Bungalow sleeps up to 7 guests across two bedrooms. The South Bungalow sleeps up to 8 guests across three bedrooms. All bedrooms have ensuite bathrooms.
Can we book just part of the bungalow?
Yes. The Dunnottar can be booked three ways:
The Whole Bungalow: all five bedrooms.
The North Bungalow: The Dunnottar Suite and the Master Bedroom, with the Sun Room and its own pantry.
The South Bungalow: The Rose Library, The Boiler Room and The Old Study, with its own pantry and the garden terrace.
Each wing has its own entrance, living and dining rooms, and works as a complete home. We let the house by wing, not by individual room.
What is the history of the property?
The Dunnottar is a carefully restored 19th-century Scottish heritage bungalow on Kodaikanal Lake. In 1947, at Indian independence, it was purchased by Puliyadi Kuppuswami Iyer from Lord Chamberlain, a Scotsman who left for the United Kingdom with two suitcases. Much of what he left behind remains in the house today. The bungalow has been in the Puliyadi family since then — four generations.
Is the bungalow heated? Is there hot water?
Yes. Every bedroom at The Dunnottar has a room heater, and there is hot water throughout the house. Kodaikanal evenings are cold in every season. The fireplaces are lit with the caretaker's help.
Is the house all on one level?
Yes. The whole house is on one level, with no stairs between rooms, and every bedroom is ensuite. It works well for grandparents and older relatives. If anyone in your group uses a wheelchair, message us before booking so we can talk you through the doorways and bathrooms.
Can we see more of the house before we book?
Yes. A Walk Through The Dunnottar takes you room by room, the way our audio tour does for guests. The Floor Plan shows where everyone will sleep, and the Gallery has photographs of every room.
(Link the three: /letters-from-the-bungalow/a-walk-through-the-dunnottar-bungalow · /floor-plan · /gallery)
Gatherings, Occasions & Retreats
Is The Dunnottar good for a family reunion?
Yes. Booked as the Whole Bungalow, the house and the one-acre garden belong to one group, so three generations can stay under one roof. The house is on one level, every bedroom is ensuite, and the bungalow kitchen cooks for everyone. Most families take Full Board so nobody has to plan meals.
Can a large group of 10 to 15 stay together?
Yes. Booked as the Whole Bungalow, The Dunnottar sleeps up to 15 across five ensuite bedrooms in two wings — a group of ten to fifteen can stay together, everyone under one roof, on Lake Road directly on Kodaikanal Lake near Bryant Park.
Is The Dunnottar a good base for a golf trip?
Yes. Kodaikanal Golf Club, established in 1895, is 6 km from the house by Upper Shola Road and Golf Links Road. Once your tee time is confirmed, we arrange the taxi; the green fee is paid to the club.
Can we celebrate a birthday or anniversary at The Dunnottar?
Yes. Many groups book the bungalow for a birthday, anniversary or milestone. We set the long table outside, arrange a cake, and the evening can be a wood-fired pizza dinner or a bonfire and barbecue on the lawn. Food, cake and décor are charged. It is a private celebration in a family home on a residential road, so we don't allow sound systems or loud music. Friends who aren't staying are welcome with notice until 10 pm.
Can our family stay at The Dunnottar during a Kodaikanal wedding?
Yes. Many groups book the whole bungalow as the private base for the family during a Kodaikanal wedding — the couple's parents, grandparents and closest friends staying together in one house on the lake, minutes from the celebrations, with meals cooked through the stay. We host the stay and the quiet moments around the wedding — the welcome dinner, slow breakfasts, getting ready — not the ceremony itself, which we leave to the venue.
Can we use The Dunnottar for a corporate offsite or team retreat?
Yes. The Whole Bungalow makes a private base for a small team: five ensuite bedrooms, studies and living rooms to work in, Wi-Fi throughout, and a cook and caretaker on site. Full Board covers lunch, afternoon tiffin and dinner, so the day isn't broken up by meals. It works best midweek and off-season, when the house and Kodaikanal are quietest. GST invoices can be made out to your company.
Is The Dunnottar suitable for a creative retreat — music, writing, art or food?
Yes. The Dunnottar suits creative retreats of many kinds. The rooms include The Old Study, with its writing desk, and The Rose Library, the bungalow's old library. There are three living rooms, a one-acre garden and the quiet of the lake, with photography by Harsha Biswajit throughout. We have hosted a chef-led food retreat, and the house works the same way for a group making music, writing or art together.
Booking, Payment & Cancellation
How does booking work?
Choose your dates at thedunnottarkodai.in/book, or message us on WhatsApp on +91 98400 99398. We confirm availability and send a quote, usually within a day. Nothing is charged until we confirm. A quote holds both the price and the dates for 48 hours.
How do we pay?
Booking more than 30 days before arrival: a 50% advance by bank transfer secures the dates. We hold them for 7 days after you accept the quote. The balance is due 30 days before check-in, and we send a reminder a week before.
Booking 8 to 30 days before arrival: 50% when you book, and the balance within 7 days.
Booking 7 days or less before arrival: the full stay when you book.
Meals and any extras are settled at check-out.
Is GST included?
Room rates include GST. Meals are priced plus 18% GST. Every quote shows the stay and the meals on separate lines, so you can see exactly what each costs. GST invoices can be made out to a company.
Is there a security deposit?
Yes. A refundable deposit of 10% of the stay's room total is paid by bank transfer, GPay or cash at or before check-in. It is returned at check-out, less the cost of any damage; if there is none, it is returned in full. It is kept separate from your food bill.
What is the cancellation policy?
If you cancel 30 days or more before check-in, everything you have paid is refunded in full, within 15 working days, with nothing deducted.
If you cancel less than 30 days before check-in, what you have paid isn't refunded. Instead it is held in full as credit for a stay within 12 months of your original check-in date, on any dates outside our Peak & Holiday dates.
No-shows and same-day cancellations are not refunded and don't receive credit.
Can we change our dates?
Yes. Changing dates is free if you ask 30 days or more before check-in, subject to availability. Inside 30 days, a change is treated as a cancellation to credit (see above).
Is there a minimum stay?
2 nights for any stay that includes a Friday or Saturday night on our Peak & Holiday dates.
3 nights for any stay that includes a night between 24 December and 1 January.
1 night at all other times.
Do you offer a discount for longer stays?
Yes. Stays of four nights or more get 10% off the stay, on any dates.
Is it cheaper to book directly?
Booking directly with us is always our lowest price for the same dates, and you deal with the family and the house team the whole way through.
What are the check-in and check-out times?
Check-in is from 2 pm and check-out is by 10 am. Earlier arrival or later departure is free between 8 am and 5 pm when the house allows, so just ask. You can always drop your bags early. Checking in before 8 am or out after 5 pm is charged as a half day: 50% of that night's rate.
Food & Dining
Is breakfast included?
Yes. Breakfast is included for every guest, every day, served 9–11 am. It is cooked in the bungalow kitchen:
bread with local condiments
seasonal fruit
eggs to order
tea and filter coffee
one South Indian dish that changes daily
It can be served in the garden.
What dining plans do you offer?
Breakfast is always included. For the rest of the day there are three ways to eat:
Full Board: a South Indian thali lunch, afternoon tiffin with tea or filter coffee, and dinner each evening. Most groups choose it, because nobody has to plan meals.
Half Board: dinner each evening, for groups out exploring during the day. Afternoon tiffin can be added.
À la carte: order from the menu as you go.
Children under 5 eat from the family dishes at no charge. The whole group takes the same plan for the stay, and you can always order extra dishes from the menu on top.
What are the dinner choices?
On Full Board or Half Board, your group chooses each evening's dinner, all at the same price:
A Set Dinner, served family-style indoors: The Dunnottar Dinner, The Roast Dinner or The Indo-Chinese Table.
The Wood-Fired Pizza Evening in the garden at the stone oven on the South terrace. Make your own pizzas, or leave it to the kitchen.
The Bonfire & Barbecue Evening, cooked over the fire on the lawn, with hot drinks through the evening.
A three- or four-night stay often takes one of each.
Do the pizza and barbecue evenings cost extra?
Not on a plan. On Full Board or Half Board they are dinner choices at no extra charge, and the fire is part of the barbecue evening.
Without a plan, the prices are charges as per our menu.
Can meals be served to our room or outside?
Yes. Meals from the bungalow kitchen can be served indoors, outside in the garden, or to your room, depending on the meal and the day’s arrangements.
Can you cater for vegetarians, allergies or other diets?
Yes. Vegetarian meals, no onion or garlic, and allergies are all looked after within the meals at no extra charge. Let us know when you confirm your menus.
Is room service available?
Yes. Room service is available for meals and tea or coffee, subject to the day’s arrangements. The Dunnottar is a private bungalow rather than a hotel, so the Bungalow Manager and team will coordinate this with you during the stay.
Is tea and coffee available through the day?
Yes. Tea, coffee, and pantry access are available through the day. The pantry has a Nespresso machine, French press, coffee filter, tea bags, kettle, microwave, refrigerator, crockery, cutlery, and basic serving items.
What time is the kitchen open?
Breakfast: 9–11 am
Lunch: 1–2 pm
Afternoon tiffin: 4–5 pm
Dinner: from 7:30 pm
Can guests cook?
Guest cooking inside the bungalow is not permitted unless agreed in advance. The bungalow has a full kitchen staff to cook for you. Professional cooks brought by guests are not permitted unless approved in writing before arrival.
Do you provide food and accommodation for drivers and staff?
Yes. Home-cooked meals are served for drivers and accompanying staff from the bungalow's main kitchen, and there is a separate staff room with dormitory-style beds for them to stay in.
Service, Housekeeping And Staff
Is daily housekeeping included?
Yes. Rooms are serviced every day between 10:30 am and 12:30 pm by the house team. Bed linen is changed every five days and towels every three, or sooner if you ask.
Is laundry available?
Yes. Laundry service is available on request and charged separately. Dry cleaning can also be arranged on request and is outsourced.
Is there staff on site during the stay?
Yes. The Bungalow Manager and house team are on site to help with meals, housekeeping, laundry, luggage, taxis, transfers, bonfires, the pizza oven, local arrangements, and practical questions.
Do you provide concierge help?
Yes. The Bungalow Manager and team can help with local arrangements, taxis, transfers, bonfire setup, pizza oven setup, forest walks, hiking, and practical questions. The service is personal and house-based, rather than a hotel front desk.
Do you help with luggage?
Yes. The team can help with luggage on arrival and departure.
Is there an arrival walkthrough?
Yes. On arrival, the Bungalow Manager or team will walk you through the bungalow, rooms, dining arrangements, pantry, outdoor spaces, and anything else you need to settle in.
The Grounds
Is the lake accessible from the property?
Yes. The Dunnottar is on Lake Road, and the lake path starts just outside the gate. The full lake circuit is about 5 km; we have four bicycles for it. Boating is from the Boat House, 1.6 km along the lake.
Are the one-acre grounds private?
If you book the Whole Bungalow, the full house and grounds are private to your group, with no other guests on the property. If North and South are booked separately, the outdoor grounds may be shared, but only between the two bungalow groups.
Do we need to go out every day, or is there enough to do at the property?
Many guests spend much of their time at the property itself. The one-acre grounds include lawns, garden paths, patios, hammocks, bonfire spaces, quiet corners, bicycles, and the wood-fired pizza oven. The house has living rooms, dining spaces, books, board games, and places to sit indoors and outside.
Who sets up the bonfire and pizza oven?
The house team sets up bonfires and the wood-fired pizza oven on request. If both North and South are occupied, timing is coordinated between the two bungalow groups.
Can we use the wood-fired pizza oven?
Yes. The oven is on the South Garden Terrace, and the Wood-Fired Pizza Evening is one of the dinner choices on Full Board and Half Board. Make your own pizzas with the kitchen's help, or leave it to them. If North and South are booked by separate groups, the evenings are coordinated between them.
Can we have a bonfire?
Yes. The caretaker sets up a bonfire on the lawn with a little notice, weather permitting. A bonfire on its own is ₹1,500 plus GST for the evening. The fire also comes with the Bonfire & Barbecue Evening, which is a dinner choice on Full Board and Half Board.
Is there parking?
Yes. The Dunnottar has open-air parking for up to five cars when the Whole Bungalow is booked. Parking may be shared when North and South are booked separately.
Practical
Is Wi-Fi available throughout the house?
Yes. Complimentary Wi-Fi is available throughout the bungalow.
Are fresh towels and linen provided?
Yes. Towels and linen are provided. Towels and linen are changed according to the house’s environmental policy, and fresh towels or linen can be arranged sooner on request.
Are children welcome?
Yes. The Dunnottar suits families. We have two cribs for children aged 3 and under and a high chair on request, and under-fives eat from the family dishes at no charge. The lawns are large and good for children, with adult supervision. A horse can be brought through the gate for a thirty-minute ride around the lake, with notice and weather permitting; it's a good first ride for a child.
Can friends who aren't staying visit us?
Yes. Day visitors are welcome with notice until 10 pm. If they join a meal, it is charged per person. Only registered guests stay overnight.
Is smoking allowed?
Only in the garden. Please don't smoke inside the house or on the verandahs.
Are pets allowed?
Pets are not allowed.
How do we get to The Dunnottar?
The Dunnottar is on Lake Road, near Bryant Park, Kodaikanal 624101, Tamil Nadu.
Madurai Airport: about 115 km, 3 to 3.5 hours by road. It is the nearest.
Coimbatore Airport: about 170 km, 4.5 to 5 hours.
Kodaikanal Road railway station: about 80 km, around 1.5 hours.
We can arrange a taxi from any of them with 48 hours' notice, charged separately. See How to Get Here for directions and walking distances.
When is the best time to visit Kodaikanal?
Kodaikanal holds up in every season. April to June is the classic summer season, and the busiest. December and January are cold and clear, and the evenings are for the fire. In the wet months the rain usually comes in the afternoon, and the house is at its quietest. Bring warm layers whenever you come.
How should we pack?
Keep a light jacket handy through the day and warm clothes for the evenings — Kodaikanal turns cold when the sun drops, whatever the month. Walking shoes for the forest and the lake path.
What can we do in Kodaikanal?
The lake path starts at the gate: walking, cycling, and boating from the Boat House. On foot:
Bryant Park: about 15 minutes (1 km).
Coaker's Walk: about 20 minutes.
Pillar Rocks, the pine forest and the viewpoints are a short drive. The house arranges horse rides from the gate, guided treks and golf. See Things to Do.
Are the rooms warm enough in winter or monsoon weather?
Yes. Bedrooms have electric room heaters, electric blankets, and hot water bottles on request. Kodaikanal evenings can be cold in every season, so guests should still carry warm clothing.
Are taxis and transfers available?
Yes. The Bungalow Manager and team arrange taxis, local transport, and airport or railway station transfers. Station and airport pick-ups need 48 hours' notice. Transfers and taxis are charged separately.