The Realm Resort, Coonoor — Hotel in Tamil Nadu

We recently stayed at the Realm for three nights, sharing some factors that made our stay pleasant.

The Location: The location is something to die for! The serene green slopes of the Sutton Tea Estate in all directions give you a sense of calm. The weather was just right - not too cold, not too hot. Walking around the estate was an experience by itself. Selva also took us on a soft trek to one of the peaks in the estate - the views were breathtaking.

The People: The people behind the Realm take a personal interest in catering to your needs, right from Nitin & Nikhil, who run the property, to Selva, Raja & Gopi, who manage day-to-day affairs. We had a pleasant experience at every touch point. Special credit goes to Selva for going beyond the call of duty at every step.

The Doggos: What's The Realm without Olive and her two pups, Harry Potter and Alex! (Harry and Alex may have all grown up by the time you meet them, though) They are the true stars of the property. Olive wouldn't let us leave the property without her leading the way for us! They were our guide dogs all through the 3-days.

PS: It might sound like an exaggeration; trust me, I am not! You have to experience the unconditional love of these 3-doggos.

The Stay: The rooms are basic but clean, comfortable and functional. Not a property you go for luxury interiors. But why stay indoors when the outdoors are so inviting?

The Food: Apart from being the caretaker, Selva is also a professional chef. His food isn't fancy, but simple, tasty, and makes you feel at home (now, that's subjective and relative to your palate). Given his past experiences, I am sure he can dish out a fancy meal if you request one. But we were happy with spicy potatoes with yummy sambar! He also set up a couple of barbeque dinners at our request.

TIP: The Realm is best enjoyed when it's calm and peaceful. But some travellers come to party and make merry, while some come to escape reality. Given that it's a small 3-cottage property, if you want to experience the stillness of nature, choose a time when it's unlikely to be fully occupied.

Areas of Improvement: The absence of decent wifi and the lack of Airtel signals hampered our plans to catch up with work during the break. Given the remote location, I don't know if it can...

The property is a great escape from urban surroundings. You need to take quite a detour from main route to reach the property which is located in the middle of tea estate. The roads are narrow and if you are driving own vehicle, be careful and confident that you know how to maneuver through narrow estate roads. The roads itself are generally well maintained and only last 100 metres is unpaved. The property concept itself is unique and consist of one main cottage and two smaller ones spread across property. This setup offers great privacy. One cottage can easily house upto 6 people. There are two bedrooms and one attic bed in each cottage except the main one. The food served is of excellent quality. But dont expect too much variety like a star hotel buffet. But the spread is quite adequate and every single dish served were excellent in taste and quality. Also note that once you're there, you have to have all your meals from there as there are practically no other good dining options within 15 kms at least. The staff were very helpful and courteous. The furnishings and bedding in rooms were clean and good quality. Being in the middle of tea estate and woods , you could expect a few insects visiting your room at night if you're not careful to keep doors closed.

However, the property has started to show its age. The door locks sometime dont function, some lights dont light up. These are minor things which property owners can easily fix if they pay more attention. But if its left unattended the property will loose its remaining charm very soon.

Overall I find it was an excellent stay and you will have an excellent time unwinding there and trekking to neaby scenic spots. But dont expect hotel like luxury as its more of a home stay...

We decided to escape from the city's madness for the long weekend and we were lucky to book a cottage at the Realm Resort as almost all the places were booked in advances. This is an off beat location situated ~15 kms from coonoor.

The package is inclusive of all meals - bfst, lunch, dinner along with coffee/tea in the morning and evening. Food is delicious and just felt like home away from home.. There is also a barbecue option on demand.. If the weather allows, it's a must try along with bonfire...

We stayed at a two bedroom cottage "Sunspear". The rooms were cosy and had all the amenities like TV in both rooms, water heater, hair dryer, kettle, tea/coffee bags, towels. There is also a mezannine floor with a queen size bed.. This ensured our family of 7 stayed comfortably in the cottage.. Both the rooms have got a balcony and view was breathtaking... Infact the entire resort is located inside a tea estate with a splendid view

Our kids (aged 4, 5 and 9) had a great time there - playing on the lawn, trampoline, indoor activities plus playing with the two extremely friendly four footers - Harry and Olive...

Morning walk around the tea estate, walk down the river stream and strawberry plucking at the nearby farm were the highlights. Also, we were fortunate to see the 100+ year old "Rudraksh" tree and spent more than 2 hours at the place.

Overall, we had a great time and will cherish this trip...

Note: the network connectivity is not good. You get good coverage on Vodafone network only.. However there is wifi connectivity...