One of the most important cities of Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore lies at the foothills of the Nilgiri Hills and is one of the most influential cities of Tamil Nadu. One of the most important cites of Tamil Nadu, a tour to Coimbatore is a definite requirement if you are planning a trip to Tamil Nadu.
Coimbatore, also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Coimbatore District and a major textile and engineering hub of South India. It is referred to as "the Manchester of South India" due to the presence of a flourishing textile industry. It is a heavily industrialised city with textile factories, engineering firms, automobile parts manufacturers, health care facilities and technical educational institutions. The hill stations of Ooty, Coonnor and Valparai are close to the city making it a good tourist attraction throughout the year. The city is situated on the banks of the Noyyal River and is close to the Siruvani Waterfalls.
Coimbatore is an important industrial town in Tamil Nadu and is better known as 'Manchester of South India' among the western tourists. Coimbatore is the hub of textile manufacturing and is also known for the manufacture of motor pump sets and varied handloom products. Coimbatore is the second largest city of Tamil Nadu after Chennai. Located on the foot of Western Ghats, at an altitude of 430 m above sea level, and situated on the extreme west of the state, Coimbatore shares one of its boundaries with the natural wonder Kerala. Also one of the most advanced cities of Tamil Nadu, the city is rich in culture and is home to many religions. The chief language spoken here is Tamil but English and Hindi is also widely used. The city is the highest producer of textile in the whole country due to its rich black soil cover that helps the growth of cotton. Shop for the cotton textiles as here you can fetch the best bargain. Coimbatore has transformed itself into a happening tourist spot by wholeheartedly maintaining the natural gifts and all the historical monuments that were passed on to them from their great ancestors. Temples like Perur Temple and Marudhamalai Temple which are a good blend of history and culture, and sceneries like Siruvani Waterfalls make Coimbatore a must visit destination for all tourist.
Coimbatore earlier was not as popular a tourist destinations as other parts of Tamil Nadu. But with time, Coimbatore has reinvented itself to such an extent that now it attracts almost the same number of tourist as any other famous tourist hot spot. The options which you can choose, range from historical temples, the most advanced theme parks to the natural splendors like waterfalls and wildlife parks.
The second largest city in Tamilnadu, Coimbatore used to be called Korai, after the Irular tribes of Korai, who were settled in Kongunadu in early times. The place was then conquered by the Cholas and various other dynasties thereafter. When the British came here, they called the place Coimbatore.
Air: Coimbatore Airport, known as Peelamedu Airport, is at a distance of 10 km from the city center. Taxi will charge about Rs 200 from airport to city. Coimbatore is connected by air to airports in South India, especially to Chennai. Chennai and Karipur airports are nearest international airports which are well connected to many gulf countries and other foreign cities.
Rail: Coimbatore junction is a major railway station in Southern railway. It is well connected to all the rail heads in India.
Road: State road transport corporations of Tamil Nadu and Kerala operate many bus services from Coimbatore connecting various cities in the state. Many Super deluxe buses connecting Coimbatore to Trivandrum, Cochin, Chennai, Kozhikode, Hyderabad and Bangalore are available. These buses charge about Rs 3 – Rs 4 per km.
Coimbatore is a major industrial centre in Tamil Nadu noted for its textile mills, agricultural, auto parts and engineering industry. One can buy cotton apparels and hosiery products from Thiruppur. The best places to go shopping are Big Bazaar at Oppanakkara Street and Raja Street at Ranga Gownder Street. However, for Handloom Saris, one may opt for Sukravar Pettai.
Being a metropolis, Coimbatore has many up-market malls featuring all the major international brands. Raja Street and Sukravar Pettai are the places where you will get good textile apparels. The city has the best kind of khadi, which is Indian hand-woven cloth, in Khadicrafts.
Coimbatore may not be a popular shopping destination but one can surely look forward to buy a few things. Coimbatore is an important industrial city of Tamilnadu renowned for its textile mills and engineering industry. Coimbatore is famous for markets housing automobile parts that are among the cheapest in southern India.
Some of the main places to shop in Coimbatore are, Big Bazaar at Oppanakkara Street, Raja Street at Ranga Gownder Street, Sukravar Pettai (for Handloom Saris), Poompuhar Handicrafts Emporium, Co-optex, Khadikrafts and Tansi Sales Center.
Coimbatore has a number of hotels and tourist houses fully equipped to provide comfort and warmth to the visitors to the city. These include hotels of all ranges of budgets including economy hotels for travelers on a shoe-string budget.
Bird Watching
Bird watching is yet another activity that you can indulge in, while on a tour of the Anamalai Wildlife Sanctuary, near Coimbatore. The wide variety of avifauna found here makes the sanctuary almost a paradise for the bird watchers. Rocket-tailed Drongo, Red Tree Pie, Whiskered Bulbul, Spotted Dove, Black Headed Oriole, and Pigeon are the birds that can be commonly seen within the premises of the sanctuary.
Pilgrimage
Almost every city in South India has at least one famous temple to boast of and Coimbatore is no exception to this rule. One of the famous temples in the city is the Perur Temple, one of the seven Kongu Sivalayams, which boasts of ancient art and architecture. Then, there is Maruthamalai Temple, dedicated to the ‘Dandayuthapani’ form of Lord Murugan. If you are willing to cover the distance of a few kilometers, do make sure to visit Thirumoorthy Temple, situated on the highway from Palani to Coimbatore.
Wildlife Viewing
Hardly 90 km from Coimbatore, you will step into Anamalai Wildlife Sanctuary, spread over an area of approximately 950 sq km. Also known as Indire Gandhi National Park, this sanctuary is home to a wide variety of wild animals, which include Panther, Elephant, Gaur, Sloth Bear, Tiger, Deer, Wild Bear, Porcupine, Wild Dog, Flying Squirrel, Jackal, Civet Cat, and Pangolin. Along with that, you can also find a large number of crocodiles at the sanctuary, in a reservoir (Amaravati reservoir) therein.