Vanakkam! Welcome to Sleeping Beauty, where your senses awaken to the splendour of a canvas painted by nature. The fairy-tale Nature Stay is a gateway to the Blue Mountainsor the Nilgiris and offers a panoramic view of a cloud-snagged mountain range locally known as Sleeping Beauty. The cosy getaway snuggles in the hamlet of Aruvankadu, mid-way between Coonoor and Ooty in Tamil Nadu.
In keeping with the name of the Nature Stay, the 8 rooms are named after the characters in the 1959animated Disney film of the same name. They are dubbed, Merry Weather Fauna, Flora, Queen Leah, Ferry, King Hubert, Princess Aurora…
hill-top property has wrap-around views of tea plantations and a virgin rain forest as well as a misty mountain range that resembles a sleeping maiden (Hence the name, Sleeping Beauty.)Wake up to the chirping of birds and sip tea on your private balcony even as you take in emerald-green vistas and the Blue Mountains capped with scudding clouds.
Sprinkle fairy dust on your vacation; let your imagination take flight at Sleeping Beauty and transport you to a world of child-like wonder and beauty.
Nilgiris
Discover the nilgiris
Nilgiris… the name itself is like a love song, a caress, evoking images of the blue-green mountains shared by Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala…
And nothing is lost in translation for nila means blue and giri means mountains…Blue Mountains is an equally evocative name.
Aruvankadu is a small hamlet located in the Nilgiris District, Tamil Nadu, India, and perched 1,890m above sea level. The town nestles between Coonoor and Ooty on the NH 67, 6 km from Coonoor town and 12 km from Ooty. It is connected by frequent bus services from various towns and cities. Aruvankadu is also connected via the Nilgiri Mountain Railway.
Aruvankadu lies in close proximity to a number of Instagram-worthy places such as the Ketti Valley, a hidden gem on the Ooty-Coonoor road. Thanks to its unvarnished beauty, the valley is also known as the Switzerland of South India.
Ootacamund, queen of the hill stations, is only 22 km away while Kotagiri and Wellington are other spots that visitors can explore at leisure. Scale the highest peak in South India – Dodabetta – all of 8,649 ft; head out to Mukurthi, another lush rainforest area or the hills and dales of upper Bhavani.
Responsible Tourism
We are “earthy,” we love our planet and will go the extra mile to preserve it for future generations. Our Homestay is located in a heritage bungalow which is surrounded by tea estates and we have spared no effort to give our guests the best and most authentic plantation experience possible. We also strive to leave a light footprint – minimize use of plastic, over-use of detergents, have good waste management practises, enhance the quality of soil, water and air and purchase everything locally. We want to keep our corner of the earth as pristine as when it first awakened to life!
Our Green Code
- We have installed foam flow faucets to reduce water consumption
- Degradable / bio degradable waste is segregated
- Plastic / paper / glass / metals (cans) waste are recycled
- All the shampoo, conditioner and lotion bottles are returned to the supplier so that they can be sterilized, refilled and recycled
- We are continuously working at minimizing noise levels at the homestay
- Our staffs are accommodated within the property.
- Energy-efficient cfl bulbs are used on the property
- We have planted native species of trees within the resort. These include fruits and plants that are the natural habitat of birds and amphibians
- We have taken steps to minimize formal landscaping
- Our efficient usage of lights in public areas minimizes disturbance to nocturnal wildlife
- We have restored and maintained the heritage structure in which tea nest is located.
- Restoration material was sourced locally.
- Our kitchen and restaurant work to showcase local cuisine.
- About 80 percent of our staff is local
- Our resort supplements the income of local taxi drivers, doctors and families
- We purchase our groceries and vegetables from local markets
- The resort complies with all the labour laws of the state
- Wherever possible, we ensure that products used at the resort are not made by child or bonded labour
- We ensure that suppliers are paid a fair price for their products and services
Climate
An ideal climate makes Nilgiris a year-round destination. The air here is fresh and crisp and the temperature remains cool throughout the year, even during the summer months. And the monsoons bring their magic with transparent veils of mist fluttering over the mountains.
| SEASON | MIN | MAX | CLOTHING |
| March - May | 17 Deg C | 29 Deg C | Light woolens |
| June - September | 15 Deg C | 22 Deg C | Thick woolens & rain wear |
| October – February | 7 Deg C | 20 Deg C | Heavy woolens |
| Variation in temperature thoughout the year is 5.2 degree celcius | |||
Travel
Sleeping Beauty sits atop a hillock in the middle of a tea plantation and commands views of a rain forest and a mountain range resembling a sleeping woman in the distance.
To reach it, one must take a small detour (400 mtr) from the scenic mountain road between Coonoor and Ooty.
Closest Airport: Coimbatore (80km)
Closest Railway Stations: Mettupalayam (40km) on the main line and Coonoor (6km) on the toy train line between Mettupalayam and Ooty (12km)
The toy train
When you travel on the toy train in the Nilgiris, the journey is indeed the destination. For this quaint little train that recently chugged into the listing of Unesco world heritage sites, brims with raj nostalgia. Built over a century ago, the 40 km track ducks through 16 tunnels and trundles over 362 bridges, snakes up mountains that are carpeted with virgin forests, rolling meadows and the neat geometric patterns of tea plantations. And if you are lucky, you might even get to see a herd of wild elephants crossing the track.
According to Discovery channel, the narrow gauge track between Mettupalayam and Coonoor is one of the steepest in world and it was one of the very first railway projects to use the cogwheel to negotiate the incline.
The toy train is a year-round service. It chugs out of Mettupalayam every morning and returns in the evening. Its timings tie in with the overnight Nilgiri Express between Chennai central station and Mettupalayum via Coimbatore.
The railways run an additional service between Mettupalayam and Ooty to cope with the summer and Diwali vacations rush.
In addition, there are morning and evening shuttle services between Coonoor and Ooty – 19 km apart.
Getting to Sleeping Beauty Nature Stay by road
(Distance in Kilometers)
Getting to Sleeping Beauty Nature Stay by road
(Distance in Kilometers)
| CITIES | ROAD |
| Coonoor | 6 km |
| Ooty | 12 km |
| Coimbatore | 80 km |
| Salem | 244 km |
| Kochi | 267 km |
| Mysore | 261 km |
| Bangalore | 287 km |
| Chennai | 543 km |
| Hyderabad | 884 km |
| Mumbai | 11802 km |
(The closest airport and main-line station to the resort)
Time in Hours
| CITIES | AIR | RAIL |
| Salem | -- | 2.5 |
| Kochi | 30 minutes | 4 |
| Mysore | -- | 5.5 (bus) |
| Bangalore | 30 minutes | 8 |
| Chennai | 1 | 9 |
| Hyderabad | -- | 24 |
| Mumbai | 1 hours 50 minutes | 36 |
The drive from Coimbatore to the nature stay is about 2.15 hrs
Location
Latitude : 11.353002
Longitude : 76.795909
Altitude : 6204 feet or 1891 meters above sea level.
