Tourist Places to see/visit in and around Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu
When you go to Coimbatore and ask the people there about what are the tourist places that one can visit in and around Coimbatore, you could be surprised if they come up with five names! But having visited many places in and around Coimbatore over the last six months, I could say one thing for sure – There are some awesome places to visit in Coimbatore city itself and some breath-taking places to visit around Coimbatore.
In this article, I present to you the various tourist locations that one can see/visit while they are in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. Please note that I have not included Theme Parks, Malls, Cinema Theaters, Temples/ Ashrams in this list. And I have also not included Ooty/Konnoor, which is a very famous hill station in India and located near Coimbatore, as I did not get time to go there.
So, let’s get going with our list of tourist places to see/visit in Coimbatore:
1. Kovai Kutralam/Siruvani Water Falls, Coimbatore:
Kovai Kutralam is a wonderful water falls located in a scenic location (Its a forest/protected area) located around 35 KM on the road that goes to Siruvani Dam (Okkadam – Perur – Karunya). The road leading to the water falls has a think green vegetation cover. There is even a observatory that enables one to view breathtaking scenery. Click here to read more about Kovai Kutralam Falls.
2. Regional Science Center, Coimbatore
The Regional Science Center in Coimbatore is a gem of a place for kids to learn about the practical application of scientific principles. There are detailed explanations near each exhibit, which is mostly a working model (some of them don’t work, though). There is a 3D dinosaur theater, a pre-historic park with dinosaur models, etc. Half day of edutainment right next to CODISSIA trade center. Click here to read more about Regional Science Center.
3. G.D.Naidu Museum & Industrial Exhibition, Coimbatore
The G.D.Naidu Museum & Industrial exhibition was a surprise in every sense. This museum is not only about the legendary inventor and industrialist G D Naidu, but they have collected and chronicled most of the scientific inventions and electronic gadgetry used from maybe 1950’s to current date. There is also a section to showcase scientific principles through practical experiments. This is located in the Avinashi Main road next to Nilgiris. Click here to read more about G D Naidu Museum in Coimbatore.
4. VOC Zoo & Park, Coimbatore
The VOC Zoological park is situated in the heart of Coimbatore city (Next to Nehru Stadium complex). Its a small zoo with a handful of animals and birds. Luckily, the peacock had extended its feathers and posed for me – which enabled me to take the above photo 🙂 They were planning to shift this zoo to some other bigger premises shortly. There is also a nice park adjacent to this Zoo. Click here to read more about VOC Zoo & Park in Coimbatore.
5. Government Museum (Near VOC Park), Coimbatore
The Government Museum is near VOC Zoo/Park in the Nehru Stadium Complex. This is a very small museum (actually a couple of rooms) where they showcase the history, coins, tools, statues, etc made/ used by the local cultures/ people. Click here to read more about the Government Museum in Coimbatore.
6. Ramayana Theme Park, Coimbatore
This one, is again a real surprise. The Ramayana Theme park is located in the Ramakrishna Missions campus in Periyanaicken Palayam, Coimbatore. Ramayana is one of the epic stories in the Hindu religion. In this park, there are a lot of games for kids to play, each one modeled around a particular incident in Ramayana. The statues and the games have been well designed and the park is neatly maintained. Click here to know more about the Ramayana Theme park in Coimbatore.
7. Race Course Road, Coimbatore
The Race Course Road is like any other road but with two differences : The road is circular with a beautiful lane for walkers/ joggers & at some places along the road, there are miniature models of famous monuments – like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, shown in the above picture. All along the walkway, there are lot of decorative plants, and the whole area is green with a lot of trees. Click here to read more about Race Course Road in Coimbatore.
8. H A Gass Forest Museum, Coimbatore
The H A Gass forest museum is located in the Forest college campus in R S Puram, Coimbatore. The campus is located in the heart of the city, but looks more like a forest with a lot of trees and greenery. There are a lot of stuffed animals, birds and other collections in this museum. What impressed me the most were the educational posters dealing with some important questions on forest/ animal conservation. Click here to read more about the HA Gass Museum in Coimbatore.
9. TNAU Botanical Gardens, Coimbatore
The TNAU Botanical Gardens is located near the TNAU (Tamil Nadu Agricultural University) Campus, within the city limits of Coimbatore. Its a huge garden with a large variety of plants and trees. You can even see Green Houses in this campus. They were making it like a full fledged garden/ park when I went there. If you are in Coimbatore in the month of January, don’t miss the Covai Flower Show which is conducted every year in this campus. Click here to read more about TNAU Botanical Gardens.
10. Palamalai (Balamalai), Coimbatore
Palamalai, is a small and an interesting hill near Coimbatore. Its located about 8 KM on the left after crossing Ramakrishna Missions (Periyanayakan Palayam) in Coimbatore. The hill has a good tar road for going up, and the climb on a motorbike is like an adventure! After going up for about 4 KM, there is a Perumal Temple. Click here to read more about Palamalai in Coimbatore.
Now, let’s see some tourist places to see/visit in the towns around Coimbatore. I went to three of them: Pollachi, Palakkad & Sathyamangalam (Sathy). All these locations are around 50 – 70 KM from Coimbatore. Of course, this is not a comprehensive list as I was not able to go to some more places nearby due to lack of time.
Here are some tourist places in towns around (but very near) Coimbatore –
11. Azhiyar Dam & Gardens, Pollachi (Near Coimbatore)
Doesn’t the above photo of the lake, mountains and boats look too inviting? The whole of this area is very picturesque! The Azhiyar Dam is located almost on the foothills of the Valparai mountains (which is another excellent place to visit). The Dam & Gardens are very well maintained and nature’s beauty really dominates here. Click here to read more about Azhiyar Dam & Gardens.
12. Monkey Falls, Pollachi (Near Coimbatore)
Monkey falls is situated on the way to Valparai hill. Its actually located a few kilometers after the Azhiyar Dam & Gardens mentioned above. I am not sure why they are calling it Monkey falls, but there were a lot of mischievous monkeys in that locality. Walking on the rock to reach the falls is slightly difficult, but once you reach the falls, its water all over you! Click here to read more about Monkey Falls.
13. Palakkad Fort, Palakkad – Kerala (Near Coimbatore)
Palakkad is located in Kerala, which is about 45 KM from Coimbatore. The Palakkad Fort (shown in the above picture) is one of the few intact forts/ castles in India. The fort was constructed before many centuries but it was strengthened and constructed to its present structure by Hyder Ali (The erstwhile ruler of Mysore and the father of Tippu Sultan). Click here to read more about Palakkad Fort.
14. Malampuzha Dam & Gardens, Palakkad – Kerala (Near Coimbatore):
Malampuzha Dam & Gardens is located at around 7 KM from Palakkad. The above photo was taken in the Malampuzha Gardens and behind it lies the dam. There is a rope car available here that will take people over the gardens for an Ariel view. There is also a snake park and an aquarium near this place. Click here to read more about Malampuzha dam & Gardens.
15. The Rock Gardens, Palakkad – Kerala (Near Coimbatore)
The Rock Gardens in Malampuzha, Palakkad was another surprise. This garden, has a different theme – Its filled with statues, paintings and other structures made of stones, rocks, tiles, etc. Its actually a mammoth effort with so many different structures on various themes and topics. Don’t miss this place, if you go to Palakkad. Click here to read more about Rock Gardens.
16. Kodiveri Falls, Sathiyamangalam near Coimbatore
Sathyamangalam (Sathy) is a heavily forested area near Coimbatore. The Kodiveri falls seen in the above photo, is an interesting tourist place on the way to Gobi from Sathy. People are allowed to bathe in the falls from the other end and there are small circular boats to go from one end to another in the Bhavani river shown above. Click here to read more on Kodiveri Falls.
17. Bhavanisagar Dam & Gardens, Sathyamangalam near Coimbatore
Bhavanisagar Dam is a large dam in the Sathyamangalam district near Coimbatore. Its a huge dam, but the permission to walk over the dam is restricted. There is also a garden near this premises. Click here to read more about Bhavanisagar Dam & Gardens.
Destination Infinity
Cool.. Though my native is Erode, I visited very few of the listed places. I have always looked out places far away.
Good to know there are lot of good places around Coimbatore. Some of them I heard already and some were new.
Thanks for the list DI!! 🙂
I had written about all these places individually, but thought that a collection like this might be useful to many people. I wanted to visit Erode/ Salem too, but didn’t have time. Well, there is always a next opportunity 🙂
Destination Infinity
Can I refer you to my parents? They were thinking of settling down in Coimbatore… and it would serve good to know this info!! 😀 😀
Yeah sure, why not? 🙂 But any other place might have its own attractions too…
Destination Infinity
wow! thanks for the post!! I may visit Coimbatore for a conference ..will check out these places. how far is Coimbatore from Bangalore?
Overnight journey. Not sure how many Kilometers. If you don’t get the train, go by KSRTC Airavat busses – they are very good, and have frequent services.
Destination Infinity
It is 350km from Bangalore 🙂
Great information.. till date I thought near coimbatore only ooty is there to see but after seeing your blog, come to know I am wrong.
If you get a chace to see other water falls, I can advise you to see Chattisgarh waters falls (huge ones and plenty)
tks.. soon I wl visit coimbatore and near by places.
Chattisgarh water falls? Need to go there one day…. Ooty is a place that I did not have time to cover, but I guess its been sufficiently covered elsewhere on the Internet.
Destination Infinity
There is no water fall with the name “Chhattisgarh”. This is the name of a state carved out of Madhya Pradesh. The capital of the new state of Chhattisgarh is at Raipur. 300 kms South there is a district place by the name Jagdalpur. Again if you travel some 40 kms west of that place, there is the largest waterfall of the state known as Chitrakot(e). Yes its very beautiful.
It’s my dream to travel to western, central, northern and eastern parts of India. Right now I am restricting myself to the South, but one day I will definitely explore more. Thanks for your input.
Destination Infinity
Dear admin,
I’m happy to see a site where a lot of attractions are published. Being a coimbatorean, I would suggest the following places too which are worth a visit.
1. Vellingiri Hills – For Trekking – Kailash of the south
2. Isha Yoga Center – For a peaceful Meditation
3. Anaikatty – For Bird Watching
4. Silent Valley – For a peaceful experience in forest
5. Valparai – A beautiful hill station filled with tea plantations
6. Marudhamalai – A temple located on a small hill.
7. Vaidehi falls – A wonderful falls within deep forest which needs prior permission.
and many many more…
Thanks for your input. The 7. Vaidehi falls is not open to the public anymore. Others are good suggestions.
Destination Infinity
Mr. Edward Nelson appears to have concealed his identity. I wanted to know about one of the oldest houses in the Race Course which could be seen in some very old photographs. It is supposed to still exist.
I was unfortunate for the info on this blog was not available when I was at Coimbatore for more than a fortnight. Thanks. Have noted down.
There is always a next time 🙂
Destination Infinity
I read recently in The Hindu about a place near Coimbatore which the author had compared with Paris.The name the author gave was:Sri Pothai
I have not been locate such a place in the net.Do you know by chance?
Not sure. Actually, I lived in Coimbatore for a short time and that’s when I visited all these places. If someone from Coimbatore is reading this comment, they might want to reply?
Destination Infinity
Great write up and wonderful images. Look like had good time. Thank you for sharing.