Thekkady

Thekkady (Idukki district) is the location of the Periyar National Park, which is an important tourist attraction in the Kerala state of India. Situated in Kerala, close to the Kerala - Tamil Nadu border town - Kumily, it is located about 257 km (160 mt) from Trivandrum, 114 km from Madurai City and Madurai International Airport, 185 km from Cochin International Airport and 114 km from Kottayam railway station. The sanctuary is famous for its dense evergreen, semi-evergreen, moist deciduous forests and savanna grass lands. It is home to herds of elephants, sambar, tigers, gaur, lion-tailed Macaques and Nilgiri Langurs.

Tourism:

• Periyar National Park, The Periyar National Park is spread over an area of about 777 km² and comprises a thick evergreen forest with exotic wild life. The sanctuary was declared a tiger reserve sometime in 1978. It has an artificial lake formed by the Mullaperiyar Dam, built in 1895 across the Periyar river.
• Murikkady, This place consists of spice and coffee plantations. It is about 5 km from Thekkady.
• Chellar Kovil, This is located about 15 km from Kumily and leads to the Theni district of Tamil Nadu. This place has a lot of waterfalls and cascades. It is very beautiful and extremely serene.
• Anakkara, Located at about 13 km from Kumily on the Kumily-Munnar road, Anakkara is an upcoming spice tourism destination in the state. There is also a new airport proposed at Anakkara and is under review by the Airports Authority of India.
• Mangala Devi Temple, It is situated about 15 km from Thekkady and sits at an altitude of 1337 m above sea level. It is surrounded by lush greenery and is closed throughout the year except during the Chitra Pournami festival. At other times tourists can still view it by getting a special letter from the forest ranger. The view from the temple premises is spectacular and one can see part of eastern ghats and some villages from adjacent state of Tamil Nadu.