Droog Fort and Ralliah Dam
Coonoor · 7 hrs · Cab included · Pickup from your stay
From ₹4300 for the whole vehicle, up to 4 people. The price is per car, not per person.
Vehicles
- Swift Dzire: Sedan. Best for a couple or a small family. ₹4300 for the vehicle.
The half of Coonoor the viewpoint circuit skips
Every sightseeing car in Coonoor turns down the same road towards Dolphin's Nose. Turn the other way and you get a Tipu-era hill fort with a two-kilometre walk to it, a reservoir at the end of a single-track estate road, and a park where the town actually spends its Sundays.
None of it is difficult, but all of it is awkward without a car. Droog is about 13 km out and the last stretch of track is not something to take a rental down. Ralliah has no bus and a gate that keeps its own hours. Katary and Wellington are in the opposite direction again.
So this is the quiet day: the fort climb first while the air is still cool, the reservoir after, then lunch and an easy afternoon at the park and the lake. You are booking the vehicle and the driver for the day, at one price for the car, and the driver checks in the morning whether the Ralliah gate is open before you spend an hour driving to it.
Why this one needs a local driver
The last kilometres to Droog are a track
The road narrows, then stops being a road. Local drivers know exactly where to park and where the walking path starts, which is not signposted.
Ralliah is not always open
The gate on the estate road keeps its own hours. Your driver checks on the morning rather than after you have driven out there.
A day with room in it
One climb in the morning, one long lunch, two easy stops after. This is the Coonoor day for people who have already done the lookouts.
Where you'll go
1. Droog Fort
A ruined hill fort on Bakasura Malai, held by Tipu Sultan in the 1700s and left to the grass since. The car goes as far as the track allows and the last stretch is a steep walk of about two kilometres. What is at the top is a view and some walls, and it is worth both.
2. Ralliah Dam
A reservoir on a single-track estate road with tea on every side and almost no one at it. The gate keeps its own hours and your driver will know on the morning whether it is open.
Entry or camera charges, where the gate collects them
3. Katary Park
Shola trees, cut lawns and a stream, on the road towards Kotagiri. It is where Coonoor goes on a Sunday and it is the right place to sit down after the fort.
Park entry ticket
4. Wellington Lake
A quiet stretch of water below the cantonment, with the barracks and the parade ground on the slope above. The last stop before you are dropped back.
How you get there
About 55 km, most of it on estate roads
Two directions out of Coonoor with lunch in the middle. The vehicle, driver, fuel, tolls and parking are one flat price for the car. The walk up to the fort is on foot from wherever the track ends, and no vehicle goes further than that.
- Pickup: Your stay in Coonoor, or Coonoor railway station, at 7:30 am
- Vehicle: Swift Dzire, up to 4 people, with driver
- Drive: About 55 km, single-track estate road in places
- Walking: About 2 km up to the fort and the same back, steep in stretches
- Drop: Back at your stay by about 2:30 pm
The day
7:30 am: Pickup
Early, so the fort climb happens before the sun is on the slope.
8:15 am: Droog Fort
Park where the track ends, then the walk up and back. About two hours.
10:45 am: Ralliah Dam
The reservoir and the tea slopes around it. About 45 minutes.
12:15 pm: Lunch
Back through Coonoor. Your driver picks the place, the bill is yours.
1:15 pm: Katary Park
Lawns, shola and the stream. About 45 minutes.
2:00 pm: Wellington Lake
The last stop, below the cantonment.
2:30 pm: Drop
Back at your stay.
In your price
- Private car with driver for the full day
- Pickup and drop at your stay or Coonoor railway station
- Fuel, tolls, driver allowance and parking
- A morning check on whether the Ralliah gate is open
- GoExplorer support number for the day
Not included
- Katary Park entry
- Ralliah entry or camera charges where collected
- Meals
- Anything personal
What you pay on the day
- Katary Park entry ticket
- Entry or camera charges at Ralliah, where the gate collects them
- Lunch and anything personal
Who this suits
People who are happy with a steep two-kilometre walk on a rough path. Children over 8 manage the fort well. If the climb is not for you, tell your driver at pickup and the day runs the other three stops at an easier pace for the same price. The car seats four; message us if there are more of you.
What to bring
Proper shoes with grip for the fort path, water, sun protection, a warm layer for the early start and some cash for the gates.
The fort path in the wet
The climb to Droog is grass and loose rock and it is genuinely slippery after heavy rain, so in those conditions the driver will say so and the day runs without the climb. If the estate road to Ralliah is closed by a landslip, you get a full refund or a free reschedule.
Cancellation
- More than 24 hrs before: Full refund
- Within 24 hrs: 50% refund, or reschedule free once
- No show: No refund
Safety and the operator
Run by a licensed local ground operator, one driver per vehicle, commercially registered and insured. The fort is an unrestored ruin with no railings and open edges, so stay off the walls. There is no phone signal on parts of the climb; keep your group together.
Questions
Is the price per person?
No. ₹4,300 covers the car and driver for the whole day, however many of you are in it.
How hard is the walk to Droog?
About two kilometres each way on a grass and rock path, steep in stretches, roughly 45 minutes up at a steady pace. Ordinary fitness and grippy shoes are enough in dry weather.
Can the driver drive us up to the fort?
No. The track ends well below it and the rest is on foot for everyone. Anyone who tells you otherwise has not been up.
Is Ralliah guaranteed to be open?
No, and we will not pretend it is. The gate keeps its own hours. Your driver checks on the morning and swaps in another stop if it is shut.