THINGS TO DO IN KODAIKANAL
DAYS AT THE DUNNOTTAR
We have been coming here every summer since 1947. Some of our fondest evenings here have required no journey at all: pizzas beside the garden oven, supper around a bonfire and birthdays gathered around the long table. When you want to go farther, a horse can be brought through the gate, our mapped walks begin at the house and a guide can take you into the hills.
What follows is what we can arrange at the bungalow, from the front gate and beyond the lake.
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At the Bungalow
Pizza from the Garden Oven — Wood-fired pizzas made and served on the garden terrace.
Bonfire & Barbecue — Fireside dinners arranged in the grounds on cold evenings.
Celebrations — Birthdays, anniversaries and reunions gathered around the house, garden and long table.
Arranged in advance and charged separately. Subject to weather where relevant.
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From the Front Gate
Horse Riding — A horse brought to the bungalow for a ride beginning inside the grounds.
Dunnottar Walks — Our mapped, self-guided routes around the lake and through the older parts of Kodaikanal.
Cycling — Bicycles available for the approximately five-kilometre lake circuit.
Horse riding requires advance notice. Bicycles are subject to availability.
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Beyond the Lake
Guided Treks — Routes through the forests, waterfalls, viewpoints and villages around Kodaikanal, chosen around your group.
Golf — Visitor play at Kodaikanal Golf Club, with transport arranged on request.
Add to the Day — Taxis to the trailhead, collection afterwards, sandwiches, fruit and trail food.
PIZZA, BONFIRES
& CELEBRATIONS
At the Bungalow
Some of the evenings guests remember most happen without leaving the grounds. The stone oven is lit on the garden terrace, a bonfire is set on the lawn or the long table is laid outside for a birthday, anniversary or reunion.
Pizza from the
Garden Oven
WOOD-FIRED SUPPERS ON THE TERRACE
The stone pizza oven stands on the garden terrace. An evening beside it has become one of the arrangements guests ask for most.
The kitchen lights the wood fire and the pizzas are made and served outside, close to the oven. Children watch from the terrace; dinner arrives a few pizzas at a time. What begins as a meal usually becomes the evening itself.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
ARRANGED BY THE BUNGALOW
CHARGED SEPARATELY
ONE DAY’S NOTICE
SUBJECT TO DRY WEATHER
Bonfire &
Barbecue
EVENINGS AROUND THE FIRE
On cold evenings, we can set a bonfire in the grounds and prepare a barbecue dinner beside it.
People come and go from the fire. Children remain outside longer than expected. Dinner stretches into the evening.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
ARRANGED BY THE BUNGALOW
CHARGED SEPARATELY
FOOD CHARGED ACCORDING TO THE CURRENT MENU
ADVANCE NOTICE REQUIRED
SUBJECT TO WEATHER
Celebrations
GATHERINGS AT THE BUNGALOW
The house works naturally for occasions that bring people back to one table: birthdays, anniversaries, reunions and other family milestones.
We can help arrange a cake, lay the long table outside and plan the food around the group. The day might begin with breakfast in the garden and end beside the pizza oven or bonfire.
Tell us what you are gathering for when you book, and we will help shape the day without turning the house into an event venue.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
ARRANGED IN ADVANCE
FOOD, CAKE AND ADDITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS CHARGED SEPARATELY
DAY VISITORS BY PRIOR NOTICE
NO LOUD MUSIC OR SOUND SYSTEMS
DAY VISITORS MAY REMAIN UNTIL 10:00 PM
HORSE RIDING,
WALKS & CYCLING
FROM THE FRONT GATE
The lake is at the door. The horse can be brought through the gate; our walks and bicycles leave from the house.
Between them, the lawns, patios and garden paths remain available throughout the day and need no arrangement.
Horse Riding
A HORSE BROUGHT TO THE BUNGALOW
Elsewhere in Kodaikanal, horse riding begins beside the lake. At The Dunnottar, the horse is brought through the gate and into the grounds.
The ride begins at the house before continuing around Kodaikanal Lake. The road itself is public, but the departure has the feeling of a private outing—particularly for a child, a birthday morning or a first time in the saddle.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
RATE: ₹2,000
DURATION: 30 MINUTES
ADVANCE NOTICE REQUIRED
SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY, WEATHER AND LOCAL CONDITIONS
Dunnottar Walks
OUR ROUTES FROM THE FRONT GATE
Over the years, we have mapped our own routes from the bungalow: around Kodaikanal Lake and through the older roads, churches, shola forest and houses above it.
Some take an hour. The Dunnottar Walk takes most of a morning. Each begins and ends at the house.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
SELF-GUIDED
START AND FINISH AT THE DUNNOTTAR
COMPLETE ROUTES AND MAPS IN OUR JOURNAL
Cycling
THE FIVE-KILOMETRE LAKE CIRCUIT
Bicycles are available at the bungalow for the approximately five-kilometre circuit around Kodaikanal Lake.
Go early, before the road becomes busy, or towards evening when the light begins to fall across the water. There is no particular destination. The ride ends where it began: back at the house.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
BICYCLES AVAILABLE AT THE DUNNOTTAR
LAKE CIRCUIT: APPROXIMATELY 5 KM
BEST IN THE EARLY MORNING OR TOWARDS EVENING
BICYCLE HIRE CHARGED SEPARATELY
SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY
GUIDED TREKS,
VILLAGES & GOLF
BEYOND THE LAKE
To go farther, we work with a guide who knows the shola forests, old paths, waterfalls and villages around Kodaikanal.
We can also help arrange a morning at Kodaikanal Golf Club, transport to the course or trailhead and food to take with you.
Guided Treks
ROUTES CHOSEN AROUND YOUR GROUP
The walk is chosen around the people taking it. It can be an easy morning outdoors, a longer route through the forest or a full day descending towards the villages and farms below town.
Tell us the ages of any children, how active you would like to be and how much of the day you want to spend walking. The guide will recommend the most suitable route.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
ARRANGED WITH A LOCAL GUIDE
ROUTE CHOSEN AROUND THE GROUP
DIFFICULTY AND CHILD SUITABILITY CONFIRMED BEFORE BOOKING
ALL TREKS SUBJECT TO WEATHER AND LOCAL CONDITIONS
Reservoir Trek
The early one. Leave at seven, while the town is still quiet, and return to the bungalow for breakfast.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
7:00 AM START
ALLOW 2–3 HOURS
MAXIMUM 6 GUESTS
₹500 PER GUEST
MINIMUM CHARGE ₹2,000 FOR TWO GUESTS
Vattakanal Falls Trek
A walk towards Vattakanal Falls, arranged around the pace and preferred timing of the group.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
TIMING ARRANGED WITH GUESTS
₹300 PER GUEST
DIFFICULTY AND CHILD SUITABILITY CONFIRMED BEFORE BOOKING
A guided route towards one of Kodaikanal’s best-known rocky viewpoints.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
TIMING ARRANGED WITH GUESTS
₹400 PER GUEST
DIFFICULTY AND CHILD SUITABILITY CONFIRMED BEFORE BOOKING
Poombarai Village & Farms
A full day below Kodaikanal, combining the walk with a visit to Poombarai and its surrounding agricultural landscape.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
8:30 AM START
FULL DAY
₹700 PER GUEST
Golf
A ROUND IN THE HILLS
Kodaikanal Golf Club was founded in 1895. Its 18-hole, par-71 course crosses high ground, old fairways and wooded slopes, with mist and weather often moving through the round.
A morning at the course fits naturally into a day at The Dunnottar. Leave after coffee, play while the air is still cool, then return to the bungalow for breakfast or lunch in the garden.
Visitors can play by paying the current green fee directly to the club. Once the tee time is confirmed, we can arrange a taxi to take you to the course and bring you back.
For mixed groups, the day does not have to move together. Some can play while others remain by the lake, walk into town or spend the morning at the house. Everyone meets again afterwards.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
VISITORS CAN PLAY
18 HOLES · PAR 71
GREEN FEE PAYABLE DIRECTLY TO KODAIKANAL GOLF CLUB
TEE TIME SHOULD BE CONFIRMED IN ADVANCE
TAXIS TO AND FROM THE COURSE CAN BE ARRANGED
TRANSPORT CHARGED SEPARATELY
GOLF FEES AND EQUIPMENT NOT INCLUDED
SUPPORTING
ARRANGEMENTS
ADD TO THE DAY
Taxi to the Trail or Golf Club
Transport to the trailhead or Kodaikanal Golf Club, with collection afterwards.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
PRICE DEPENDS ON ROUTE
ADVANCE NOTICE REQUIRED
PLANNING YOUR STAY
PLAN YOUR DAYS WITH US
Tell us who is coming, the ages of any children, how active you would like to be and whether you are celebrating something during the stay.
We can arrange the horse, guide, taxis, food for the trail, bonfire, barbecue or pizza oven—and leave enough of the day completely unplanned.
The Dunnottar is a carefully restored 19th-century Scottish bungalow on Kodaikanal Lake, in the Puliyadi family since 1947. These arrangements are available to guests staying at the bungalow.