Things to do on your next Trip to Coorg – Attend a Coorgi Wedding!!!

Planning your next Trip to Coorg? Want to do something interesting? Why not plan to attend a Coorgi wedding.

Coorgi wedding are probably rivaled in gaiety and pomp only by Punjabi weddings.
Witnessing a Coorgi wedding replete with symbolic rituals of dancing and mock martial practices is quite a spectacle. Coorgi weddings usually take place only between March and June in traditional wedding halls called Kalyana Mantaps.

Traditional Coorg Wedding Meal is a treat that you are guaranteed to remember for a lifetime, especially if you fancy non vegetarian cuisine. The Coorg wedding is perhaps the only Hindu wedding where alcohol and meat are served. No wedding in Coorg is complete without Kadambutt/Pandi Kari, Noolputte/Koli Kari to name a few.

On your next trip to Coorg, make sure you have a Kodava wedding on your itinerary.

Coorg Home Stays and not Destination Resorts key Tourism driver in Karnataka

If you think of Coorg Tourism today, after coffee estates and misty hills what comes to your mind are the 100’s of Home Stay options that are fast becoming the new Signature of Coorg Tourism. (There are around 300 Home Stays at last count in Coorg).

When you think of a Coorg Resort, you first think of Orange County. Orange County is the benchmark for a Destination Resort that all new upcoming Resorts would have to measure up to or differentiate to create new destination properties in Coorg.

Destination Resorts are those which are not near a large town or tourist attraction but instead contain all the ingredients and attractions to become destinations in their own right. (All the entertainment and activities required to keep you engaged are built into the Resort). Club Mahindra, Coorg is a recent addition to the Destination Resort category in Coorg. In a very short period of time the Mahindra property has been able to match the benchmarks set by Orange County.

While quite a few new Destinations Resorts with attractions such as Golfing are in the offing, surprisingly Home Stays are stealing the thunder from Destination Resorts and fast becoming the poster child of Eco-Tourism in india.

Home Stay’s in Coorg, while sharing a common lineage in that they are usually formed by re-purposing some portion of a family owned Coffee Estate, they have come a long way from these simple roots. Home Stays today have evolved beyond this simple premise, offering various formats and variations to cater to an emerging trend where travelers demand personalization and not mass tourism.

Coorg Home Stays have achieved an additional objective of promoting eco-friendly tourism in Kodagu and set a role model for Eco-Tourism in Karnataka. This has helped protect the eco-system from degradation through invasive or mass tourism.

Here are few variations of the Home Stay format that have evolved to carve a unique niche for themselves in the competitive Coorg Tourism market. Quality, Standards and themes they cater to vary widely.

• Type of Activities – Estate Walks, Fishing, Birding, Boating and Trekking.


• Target Group – Different Home Stays specialize their offering ranging from Kid Friendly activities to Corporate Team Building and special interest programs.


• Luxury Levels – From being very basic back to Nature Living to full-fledged Spa facilities they vary in the level of create comforts provided

Top Home Stays in Coorg as rated by Holiday IQ and Enjoy Images and Photos from Coorg Tourism

• Rainforest Retreat,Coorg,Karnataka - Reviews, photos, packages

• Polaycad Bungalow,Coorg,Karnataka - Reviews, photos, packages

• Jade Hills,Coorg,Karnataka - Reviews, photos, packages

• Cicada Trails,Coorg,Karnataka - Reviews, photos, packages

Home Stays are here to Stay and hopefully spread beyond Karnataka's Tourism circuits and create multiple success stories for sustainable Eco-Toursim in India.

How many names does Coorg, Karnataka Tourism’s top destination go by?

Described by the Lonely Planet as the most under rated destination of India, Coorg has fast become synonymous will both Eco-Tourism in Karnataka and HomeStays

A multitude of superlatives and names are used to describe both Coorg the place and the “Coorg Experience”. For starters Coorg itself is an anglicized derivation of its traditional name Kodagu is derived from “Kodi-male-nadu” which in the local dialect means “Higher Forest Land”.

If we were to catalogue a list, here are a few that would surely come to mind.

• Kodaimalenadu (Meaning Higher Forest Land)
• Kodagu (Local name for Coorg)
• Scotland of the South India (The British dubbed it so because of its misty hills, picturesque towns and breathtaking views)
• Land of Coffee, Honey, cardamom, pepper, coffee, oranges (Well known for its coffee and tea estates, Coorg is one of India’s largest Coffee production region.)
  Land of the Kodavas (A book by Jeannette Isaac, According to the Puranas the word Kodava means the people blessed by Godmother Kaveri. Where ‘Kod’ means give or bless and 'avva' means mother i.e. Kaveri)
• Kashmir of Southern India
• Switzerland of India
• Land of the Brave and the Beautiful (The Kodagu people, especially men have always stood apart. Their martial tradition has produced many generals for India)
• Home of the Cauvery (Birthplace of the River Cauvery, it is considered to be the abode Goddess Cauvery)

Have heard or can you think of anymore?

Two Decades of Eco-Tourism in Karnataka - Wildlife Safaris, Island Living, River Rafting, Angling and Organized Treks

Karnataka is endowed with most magnificent forests (which are around 20 percent of its geographical area) in the county ranging from majestic evergreen forests of the Western Ghats to the scrub jungles of the plains. The Western Ghats of Karnataka (about 60% of the Western Ghats are located in Karnataka) are one of the 25 global priority hotspots for conservation and one of the two on the Indian subcontinent. Several economically important species such as Sandalwood, Rosewood, Teak, White Cedar grow naturally in these forests.

Karnataka boasts of the highest elephant and Gaur bison population (greater than 6000 & 8000 respectively) in India. Its forests hold some of the largest remaining populations of the endangered tiger and leopard.

Eco-tourism has been extremely popular in Karnataka, it was one of the first states in India along with Kerala which tapped the potential of Eco-Tourism. Jungle Lodges and Resorts, setup as a unit of Karnataka Tourism was established two decades ago with the vision of tapping the vast potential of Eco-tourism within Karnataka.

Major Eco-Tourism destinations in Karnataka cover a wide range of Eco-tourism options including Wildlife Safaris, Island Living, River Rafting, Angling and Organized Treks. Eco-tourism options for both Budget and Luxury options have progressively Two to three new eco-tourism circuits and or destinations are being added every year providing new avenues for travelers to experience Karnataka’s rich eco-diversity.

Eco-tourism provides the Urban Dweller an opportunity to experience various facets of Karnataka’s bountiful nature and wildlife. This has resulted in wider participation in conservation efforts from travelers who have experienced what nature has to offer.

Eco-Tourism Hotspots in Karnataka

• Widlife - Nagarhole, Bandipur and Kabini Backwaters - Near Mysore


• White Water Rafting, River Sports - Kali River at Dandeli Near Hubli, River Tern Near Chickmaglur


• Fishing Camp on the Cauvery – Bheemeshwari Near Bangalore


• Island Living – Devbagh Near Karwar


• Wilderness, Hill & Plantation Living – Coorg, Chickmaglur, Hassan


• Beach and Water Sports – Devbagh (Diving), Honnemaradu(Near Shimoga) Karwar, Udupi, Malpe and Gokarna

Seven Wonders of Karnataka

Do you want to take a guess what the Seven Wonders of Karnataka Tourism would be? Would we agree on the list? Is there an absolute list at all? Any list we come up with, would surely be just one possible opinion on what monuments deserve a place in this list.

Knowing fully well this list is open to debate, here goes the list...

• Gomateshwara Monolith in Sravanabelagola, Hassan, Karnataka. (Video)


• City of Ruins, Hampi, Karnataka (Video)


• Halebid and Belur temples, Hassan, Karnataka (Video)


• Somnathpur Temple, near Mysore, Karnataka (Video)


• Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur, Karnataka (Video)


• Aihole and Pattadakal, Badami, Karnataka (Video)


• Mysore Palace, near Mysore, Karnataka (Video)
  
  

Comments and opinions welcome, Few top rated Photos on Karnataka Tourism for the chosen Seven Wonders of Karnataka.