Kundala Lake
#8sur 10 lieux à visiter à MunnarMunnar, Kerala
Aussi appelé Kundala Dam · Kundaly Lake
L'essentiel
Horaires d'ouverture : 09:00–17:00. L'entrée est gratuite. Comptez 1 hr. Meilleure période : 09:00 – 11:00.
Mis à jour le · Rédigé par Traveliac, avec assistance IA · 4 min de lecture
- Horaires d'ouverture
- 09:00–17:00
- 09:00 – 17:00 daily; boating typically ends by 16:30
- Prix d'entrée
- Gratuit
- Durée nécessaire
- 1 hr
- Meilleur moment de la journée
- 09:00 – 11:00
- Meilleurs mois
- Oct – Mar
- Adresse
- Kundala, near Top Station Road, Munnar, Idukki district, Kerala 685616
À propos de Kundala Lake
Kundala Lake formed behind a dam built in 1946 for the Pallivasal Hydro Electric Project, making it one of the older engineered reservoirs in the Munnar hills and, at roughly 20 kilometres from town on the Top Station road, one of the higher-altitude stops on the standard sightseeing circuit. Entry to the lakeside itself is free, with boating — pedal boats, row boats, and a Kashmiri-style shikara — charged separately at the jetty. The setting is what distinguishes Kundala from Mattupetty and Echo Point further back down the same road: the lake sits in a wider, more open grassland bowl, ringed by rounded hills that carry noticeably less tea cultivation than the slopes closer to Munnar town, giving an unbroken view across the water to bare, grass-covered ridgelines.
Meilleur moment de la journée : 09:00 – 11:00. Before the boat queue builds and while the surrounding grassland still holds the morning's cooler air.
Horaires de Kundala Lake
Kundala Lake ouvre à 09:00 et ferme à 17:00. Le week-end ne change rien : samedi et dimanche suivent les mêmes horaires.
- Horaires d'ouverture
- 09:00–17:00
Mon–Sun 09:00–17:00 - 09:00 – 17:00 daily; boating typically ends by 16:30
- Fermé le
- Ouvert tous les jours
Horaires d'ouverture établis à partir de dtpcidukki.com et de sources publiques, mis à jour le . Ils peuvent changer sans préavis — vérifiez avant de partir. Comment nous rédigeons ces guides
Prix d'entrée de Kundala Lake
| Billet | Prix |
|---|---|
| Visiteurs indiens | Gratuit |
| Visiteurs étrangers | Gratuit |
| Enfants | Gratuit |
| Caméra | Gratuit |
Walk-in entry to the lakeside is free. Boating is charged per boat: pedal boats and row boats run roughly ₹100–₹150 for about 30 minutes, and the Kashmiri shikara ride costs more; as of 2026, verify current boat rates at the DTPC counter.
Tarifs établis à partir de dtpcidukki.com et de sources publiques, mis à jour le . Ils peuvent changer sans préavis — vérifiez avant de partir. Comment nous rédigeons ces guides
Meilleure période pour visiter Kundala Lake
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Very busy
09:00 – 11:00
Morning OpeningBest time to go
Water is calmest and the boat jetty queue is shortest right after the 09:00 opening.
Quiet11:00 – 14:00
Circuit Peak
Tour taxis and buses on the Top Station route stop here in volume; boat wait times build noticeably through midday.
Very busy14:00 – 16:00
Afternoon Wind
Crowd thins as groups continue toward or return from Top Station; wind over the open water picks up.
Moderate16:00 – 17:00
Closing Window
Boating winds down by 16:30 ahead of the 17:00 closing; light turns golden over the grassland hills.
Quiet
Histoire de Kundala Lake
Engineers completed Kundala Dam in 1946, part of the same Pallivasal Hydro Electric Project scheme that Mattupetty Dam later reinforced in 1953, both built to regulate water supply for one of erstwhile Travancore's earliest hydroelectric stations. The Kannan Devan Hills tea plantations depended on a reliable electricity supply for their processing factories, and the two dams together secured that supply through the dry months.
Before road access improved through the mid-20th century, the Kundala valley was also served by the narrow-gauge Kundale Valley Light Railway, built by British planters to move tea chests down toward the plains; the railway was destroyed by a major flood in 1924 and never rebuilt, after which an aerial ropeway system took over the same function until road transport eventually replaced it as well.
Règles et étiquette à Kundala Lake
Boat tickets are sold at the jetty rather than at the main gate, and each boat type has a separate counter — pedal boats, row boats, and shikaras are not interchangeable once booked. Life jackets are compulsory and non-negotiable; DTPC staff will not release a boat without one properly worn by every passenger.
Swimming is prohibited throughout the reservoir, both because it functions as an active hydroelectric water source and because depth and cold-water currents near the dam wall are unpredictable. As at the other Top Station Road stops, littering is discouraged under the district's plastic-reduction policy and carrying a reusable bottle avoids friction at the entrance.
Conseils pour visiter Kundala Lake
- 1
Arriving in the 09:00–11:00 window catches the calmest water and shortest boat queue, since Kundala is typically the last or second-last stop on the standard Munnar–Top Station taxi circuit and gets busiest as tour groups cluster through midday. The open grassland setting photographs differently from Mattupetty's tea-lined banks, so it is worth doing both rather than treating them as interchangeable stops.
- 2
A jacket is worth carrying even in warm weather — Kundala sits noticeably higher than Munnar town and the wind off the open water can turn cold quickly, especially if timing the visit for early morning light. Combine the stop with Top Station, roughly 12 kilometres further along the same road, to make full use of a single taxi fare for the circuit.
Comment se rendre à Kundala Lake
Nous n'avons pas encore localisé Kundala Lake avec précision ; la carte montre les autres lieux de notre guide Munnar. Utilisez l'adresse ci-dessous ou le lien d'itinéraire.
Kundala, near Top Station Road, Munnar, Idukki district, Kerala 685616Itinéraire sur Google Maps
Depuis Munnar town (bus stand)
₹350–₹50020 km · 40–45 min
Round-trip taxi, usually combined with Mattupetty and Echo Point).
Depuis Echo Point
5 km · 10–12 min
Included in the same combined taxi fare.
Depuis Top Station
12 km · 20–25 min
Included in the same combined taxi fare.
Aéroport le plus proche
Depuis Cochin International Airport (COK)
approximately 132 km, 4–4.5 hours by road.
Gare la plus proche
Depuis Aluva Railway Station (AWY)
approximately 127 km, 3.5–4 hours by road.
FAQ — Kundala Lake
Is there an entry fee for Kundala Lake?
No, walk-in entry to the lakeside is free. Only boating is charged, with pedal boats and row boats running roughly ₹100–₹150 for about 30 minutes and the shikara ride priced higher; verify current rates at the DTPC jetty counter, as of 2026.
How is Kundala Lake different from Mattupetty Dam nearby?
Kundala sits in a more open, grass-covered basin roughly 20 kilometres from Munnar, farther and higher than Mattupetty's tea-lined reservoir at 13 kilometres. Both were built for the same Pallivasal Hydro Electric Project, Kundala in 1946 and Mattupetty in 1953.
Can visitors swim in Kundala Lake?
No. Swimming is prohibited because the reservoir remains an active hydroelectric water source with unpredictable depth and currents near the dam wall. Boating under a compulsory life jacket is the only permitted water activity.
What was the Kundale Valley Light Railway mentioned in the area's history?
It was a narrow-gauge railway built by British planters to carry tea chests down from the Kundala valley toward the plains before road access existed. A major flood destroyed the line in 1924, after which an aerial ropeway briefly took over the same function until roads replaced both.
Rédigé avec l'assistance de l'IA à partir de sources officielles et de registres publics, et publié seulement après les vérifications décrites dans Comment nous rédigeons ces guides. Personne chez Traveliac ne s'est rendu sur place. Mis à jour le . Comment nous classons et vérifions les lieux
