Yercaud - the poorman's Ooty
Why people call Yercaud as poor man's Ooty? May be, it is because it's less expensive hill station. For me, it makes more sense to call it as smart man's Ooty, as Yercaud is much calm, serene, less crowded and rich in natural beauties.
Yercaud, which can be reached after passing through around 20 hairpen bends at about one hour drive from Salem city in South India, is definitely one of the cheapest hill station destinations in India. It is located at Shevaroy hills in Eastern Ghats mountain range. There are not many places to roam around in Yercaud. If you just want to stay calm, enjoy the nature, and do not want to roam around much, Yercaud is definitely the best choice for you.
What to see in Yercaud?
Rose Garden:
If you visit Yercaud during the season, you will find enormous amount of roses in various colors in Rose Garden. Even though Rose Garden in Yercaud is not as big and attractive as Ooty Rose Garden, it has its own charm. You can find well maintained nursery and garden, different kinds of plants and trees and ornamental plants as well. If you keep walking towards the end of Rose Garden, you will reach Children's Seat. Children's Seat is a small view point from where you can watch the beauty of Yercaud.
View Points:
Similar to any other hill station in India, Yercaud also has a lot of view points from where you can view the beauty of hill station and surroundings. Lady's Seat view point is the most popular view point in Yercaud. There is a telescope to view the distant mountain ranges. However, the telescope is not so good - not maintained properly.
Gent's Seat view point and Children Seat view point are located very near to Lady's Seat view point. Obviously, you will not get different views from these two view points.
Annamalaiyar Temple will give you a better view from a higher altitude. This view point is located near the small beautiful temple of Annamalai (Shiva). The temple is generally closed. You can go to this place only if you want to get a better view of Shevaroy hills.
There is another view point in a small village named Mancha Kuttai, which is not often visited by tourists. To get a view of Shevaroy hills from a different angle, you can go to this place.
The best view point is Pakoda Point, where the arrangements are better. Also, the place itself is a scenery. A small beautiful temple of Rama and Sita is located here. Hanuman is also found facing towards the temple. It's rare to find Rama without Lakshmana. Even Rama doesn't hold his usual weapons in this temple. Near this temple, you can find few Pyramid like rocks. Due to these rocks, this place is named as Pakoda Point.
Mont Ford School:
Mont Ford School is one of the famous and reputed schools not only in Yercaud, but even in the entire Tamil Nadu state. Mont Ford school is one of tourist destinations in Yercaud, due to its beautiful statues, class room buildings, plants and trees, colorful flowers, well maintained parks and a handful of selected animals and birds.
Shevaroyan Temple:
Shevaroyan temple is the highest point in Yercaud. You can get an extremely better view of Shevaroy hills from this location. There is a cave temple dedicated to Shevaroy (Servarayan), the God worshiped by tribes. You can also find the idol of Kaveri in the cave temple. It's a good cave temple located in a pleasant site. This is a place which you should never miss to visit in Yercaud.
There is another temple in Yercaud - Raja Rajeswari temple. It's a small beautiful temple where you can find a rare idol of Rajeswari which is not found anywhere else. Rajeswari is the supreme mother goddess, who is found seated on Sada Shiva, and other Gods and Goddesses such as Rudra, Ishwar, Vishnu, Brahma, Saraswati, and Lakshmi surrounding her.
Lakes and Parks:
Lakes are the main attractions in Yercaud. There are two lakes - Big Lake and Small Lake. Small Lake is just for viewing purpose. However, in Big Lake you can even go for boating.
There are two parks located near Big Lake. Anna Park is a typical park of hill station with a lot of colorful flowers and few ornamental plants. Deer park is a small well maintained park but you can find only few deer here.
Summary:
Overall, if you want to spend your weekend leisurely, Yercaud is one of the best places in Tamil Nadu state of India.
Happy travelling.
Fast Facts:
Site Name: Yercaud
Site Type: Hill station
Location: 30 kms from Salem city, Tamil Nadu state, India; around 350 kms from Chennai city, Tamil Nadu state, India
Nearest Railway Station: Salem
Nearest Airport: Chennai has both national and international airports
How to reach: Easily reachable by road from Salem
Hotel: Many star hotels, luxury hotels/resorts, and budget hotels are available in Salem; Many resorts and hotels are available in Yercaud
Restaurants: Only few good restaurants are available in Yercaud; Most of the good restaurants are situated within the hotels/resorts/cottages
View Larger Map
What to see in Yercaud?
Rose Garden:
If you visit Yercaud during the season, you will find enormous amount of roses in various colors in Rose Garden. Even though Rose Garden in Yercaud is not as big and attractive as Ooty Rose Garden, it has its own charm. You can find well maintained nursery and garden, different kinds of plants and trees and ornamental plants as well. If you keep walking towards the end of Rose Garden, you will reach Children's Seat. Children's Seat is a small view point from where you can watch the beauty of Yercaud.
Similar to any other hill station in India, Yercaud also has a lot of view points from where you can view the beauty of hill station and surroundings. Lady's Seat view point is the most popular view point in Yercaud. There is a telescope to view the distant mountain ranges. However, the telescope is not so good - not maintained properly.
Gent's Seat view point and Children Seat view point are located very near to Lady's Seat view point. Obviously, you will not get different views from these two view points.
Annamalaiyar Temple will give you a better view from a higher altitude. This view point is located near the small beautiful temple of Annamalai (Shiva). The temple is generally closed. You can go to this place only if you want to get a better view of Shevaroy hills.
The best view point is Pakoda Point, where the arrangements are better. Also, the place itself is a scenery. A small beautiful temple of Rama and Sita is located here. Hanuman is also found facing towards the temple. It's rare to find Rama without Lakshmana. Even Rama doesn't hold his usual weapons in this temple. Near this temple, you can find few Pyramid like rocks. Due to these rocks, this place is named as Pakoda Point.
Mont Ford School is one of the famous and reputed schools not only in Yercaud, but even in the entire Tamil Nadu state. Mont Ford school is one of tourist destinations in Yercaud, due to its beautiful statues, class room buildings, plants and trees, colorful flowers, well maintained parks and a handful of selected animals and birds.
Shevaroyan Temple:
There is another temple in Yercaud - Raja Rajeswari temple. It's a small beautiful temple where you can find a rare idol of Rajeswari which is not found anywhere else. Rajeswari is the supreme mother goddess, who is found seated on Sada Shiva, and other Gods and Goddesses such as Rudra, Ishwar, Vishnu, Brahma, Saraswati, and Lakshmi surrounding her.
Lakes are the main attractions in Yercaud. There are two lakes - Big Lake and Small Lake. Small Lake is just for viewing purpose. However, in Big Lake you can even go for boating.
There are two parks located near Big Lake. Anna Park is a typical park of hill station with a lot of colorful flowers and few ornamental plants. Deer park is a small well maintained park but you can find only few deer here.
Summary:
Overall, if you want to spend your weekend leisurely, Yercaud is one of the best places in Tamil Nadu state of India.
Happy travelling.
Fast Facts:
Site Name: Yercaud
Site Type: Hill station
Location: 30 kms from Salem city, Tamil Nadu state, India; around 350 kms from Chennai city, Tamil Nadu state, India
Nearest Railway Station: Salem
Nearest Airport: Chennai has both national and international airports
How to reach: Easily reachable by road from Salem
Hotel: Many star hotels, luxury hotels/resorts, and budget hotels are available in Salem; Many resorts and hotels are available in Yercaud
Restaurants: Only few good restaurants are available in Yercaud; Most of the good restaurants are situated within the hotels/resorts/cottages
View Larger Map
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