Evolve Back, Coorg
The recently rebuilt Evolve Back has kept its crown as the best place to stay in Coorg, previously known as Orange County Resort. The resort offers 43 villas (all with private pools) in different categories and is situated in Chikkana Halli Estate, a 300-acre coffee, and spice planting. Villas are built in Kodava style, with the traditional sloping tiled roof common to Coorg. The architecture is built in brick and stone.
There are only seven options in the resort, including a light moonlit meal at the lake and private dining on the treetop macha – don’t miss the local pandy curry specialty (spicy pork curry) with a flat-bread akki roti. Relax and rejuvenate in the spacious Ayurvedic spa, Ayurveda Village, which offers the most outstanding treatments including herbal bats, oils, and beauty treatments.
The Casiita
The Casiita offers 17 rooms and cottages in the center of the swaying palm trees, just off the Madikeri-Kushalnagar Road that passes by Coorg. Rooms are decorated in vibrant colors and feature all basic amenities such as en-suite bathrooms. The resort features family and group rooms for 4 to 8 people and elegant cottages with a thatched ceiling. A breakfast buffet of South Indian cuisine and a bakery menu is served at the Casiita. The restaurant offers no meals except for breakfast, although an outdoor barbecue can be organized at the evenings on request. There are also a number of restaurants serving local and international cuisine in the nearby city, Madikeri.
The complex has a large garden and a playground, which is on request doubled as a campfire. Transfers, car rentals and local tours are very usefully arranged at the reception desk.
Old Kent Estates
Return to time to the British Raj era in Old Kent Estates, a restored grounds in the middle of an English garden, with a 200-acre coffee plantation and dense forests. The patrimony dates back to the 19th century, with the hotel reception, the dining room, the library, and the games room and theatre housed in a stately, colonial-style lodge. The hotel has 8 cottages and offers plenty of privacy around the estate. Each cottage has period furnishings and has a large bathroom with a sky top and natural bath products made locally. Each cottage is also equipped with an outdoor manicured, private garden.
Dine on local delicacies of Coorg or take part in the English and Continental fare. Do not miss out on freshly prepared specialty coffee, whatever you do. Take a swimming pool, browse through a library or walk to a plantation, several marked hiking trails, and a lot of watching birds are close by. Subsequently,
The Tamara
Located in the luxuriant green of coffee, pepper, and cardamom plantations, The Tamara Coorg is a luxury hideaway, surrounded by gurgling rivers and cascading waterfalls. A number of cottage-style villas on stilts are built in the 56-key resource. Each cottage comes equipped with warm wood panels, pastel colors, and elegant decor and has large windows overlooking the Coorg Valley. Splurge in one of the two-holiday homes with two bedrooms, massive living rooms, and a solarium with loungers and a jacuzzi for extraordinary reasons. For your convenience.
Meals are served in the restaurant The Falls, which is located on a bridge over the valley and on a natural stream. The resort can organize a dinner by a picturesque waterfall for a more intimate experience. Take a plantation tour, trek or see birds, or do a few Yoga Temple sessions under the supervision of a skilled guru.
The Ibnii
The Ibnii is a beautiful luxury resort spread across 125 acres of a coffee estate, perfect for a solo stay. There are 22 pool villas of ‘Kopi Luwak,’ 10 wooden cottages overlooking the lake, and one Premium Suite of ‘Poinsettia.’ The suite and villas have open showers, a swimming pool, and a whirlpool. The Ibnii is the first eco-luxury resort in India to receive Platinum Certification from the Indian Green Building Council for a number of Green initiatives including harvesting rainwater, plastic-free premises, and recycled fabric for bedding and bath linen.
Enjoy regional dishes at the Baalelle’s vegetarian restaurant, celebrate the Kebabs and the barbecue in Masi Kande or grab a Mediterranean dish at The Fig. The cell service here is sporadic, making it easy to disconnect from the world and take part in one of The Ibnii’s many wellness packages; five-night Naadi and 7-night Abhasa packages are highly recommended for relaxation and rejuvenation.
Taj Madikeri Resort & Spa
The Taj Madikeri Resort & Spa is the luxurious offering of the Taj Group at Coorg, which is surrounded by a 180-acre rainforest. The resorts comprise 63 rooms split into cottages and villas with a magnificent view over the rainforest and the valley. All the rooms have a working fireplace, besides the Superior Cottages. Pool villas have 3,300 m2 of living room, dining area, sleeping areas, a butler garden, and a 4-foot heated paddock with a fully retractable roof. Pool villas are ideally suited to luxury.
Diners can choose from Ferntree’s all-day multi-cuisine restaurant, Nellaki’s co-course restaurant, and Dew’s wellness restaurant, not least the poolside grill, and Hive Bar, the ideal place to have a lounge and play world music. The resort can also create personalized dining experiences such as a 4-course dinner or candlelit dining in the amphitheater in the Buddha Garden.