Southern Comfort

Tea and coffee estates offer accommodation ranging from luxurious pool villas to homestays for those interested in a vacation full of leaves, berries, waterfalls and forests.

- Aarti Kapur Singh

Aanavilasam Luxury Plantation Thekkady Kerala

Every story has its own spice. And that also holds true for the spices that make your meal palatable. Fortunately, spice plantations in south India are a treasure trove of such stories. With seven acres of private estate that allow plantation tours, birdwatching, cookery demonstrations, pampering spa sessions, boat cruises on Periyar lake, excursions to Mullaperiyar Dam, bamboo rafting, jungle patrols and tiger trails, Aanavilasam Luxury Plantation is bound to make you soak in tales spicy and vibrant. Surrounded by pristine cardamom and pepper plantations, the estate, owned by Salim Pushpanath, is luxuriously appointed and yet not overbearingly so. Aanavilasam Luxury Plantation House is an ideal place for a plantation stay as well as to see how the spices are grown, harvested and processed.

A small, friendly village, where one can see and visit typical Kerala-style homes, is within walking distance. Aanavilasam is a small and cosy place with four accommodation units: two suites and two private pool villas and the personalised attention adds to the experience. Open-air dining and a fire add to the feel of adventure in the silence of the evenings, one hears the wildlife on the outskirts of the estate.

Address Pathumury-Aanavilasam Road, Thekkady, Kerala Contact [phone]

Email [e-mail], [e-mail]

Website www.aanavilasam.com

Tariff From `6,000 (for Deluxe Room) to `18,000 (for Presidential Suite)

Windermere Estates Munnar Kerala