Pack your bags, not your worries!
Sans Souci
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A couple of cats lounging around lazily in the sun and a few dogs cuddled in blankets, yawning at intervals. A red-brick house with a fireplace and a cottage beside it – and all this in the middle of the tea gardens. Sounds too good to be true? It’s Sans Souci – where you get a chance to discover that it can actually be reality!

Sans Souci, as the name implies, is owned by Sunita and Marcus and the estate sits prettily in the middle of a tea garden, covered on all sides by trees, about a kilometer from the main road. It’s about 8 kms from Coonoor town and is surrounded by the Non Such tea estate. The road is long and winding and as you make your way towards Sans Souci – the expanse of green in front of you is a sight for sore eyes!

Sunita and Marcos use the main house – a red-bricked structure - when they are visiting. The cottage (earlier a longish shed) next door has been converted into a home stay. The large long room has been converted into seamless spaces comprising of the kitchen, dining, and sleeping areas. The place is pretty basic but comfortable as we found during our stay. It grows on you after a while. Through the window you get a tantalizing glimpse of the vast green tea gardens – a refreshing sight to wake up to in the mornings!

The caretaker and his wife look after you well – there won’t be any complaints on that front! The food is served in the main house –they are simple, but amidst this bounty of nature, even the simplest food tastes just as good. Just make sure to keep everything out of reach from Rascal, the cat who is known for his mischievous ways. Including pouncing on other’s meals!

There are a lot of options to walk around and discover the country side. The caretaker’s young son will be only too happy to show you around. Just make sure how far and long he intends to make you walk, when you venture out. Since he’s young and energetic, he is also under the impression that everyone else should be the same way!

There are tea gardens all around, and besides the Non Such, there is also the large sprawling expanse of the Glendale estates. Further up the hill is the Orchary tea garden. From this plantation, you get a clear view of the vast expanse of the Mettupalayam plains from Echo Point. From there you can walk to a Toda village (one of the ancient tribes of the Nilgiris) and get a glimpse of a Toda temple. You can’t enter it though – only people from the community can enter one.

From there, enjoy the fresh air of the hills and the song of the birds and walk down through the large expanse of Glendale estate. Some of the stretches seem quite unending! There are other walks too – some more strenuous – that you can choose depending upon your enthusiasm and fitness levels.

Or you can choose and even better option - laze around at Sans Souci, pour yourself a cup of tea and occupy yourself with Rascal and the rest of the pack. Or catch up on some reading amidst the peace and quiet. After all this, don’t be surprised if you come back from your holidays and dream of the green expanses of tea gardens. And Rascal, of course!

Detailed tariff:

Cottage: Rs. 3500/ max 4 people (including breakfast)
Meals: Veg Lunch/Dinner: Rs. 100/- per person
Non-veg on request to be paid separately
Trekking: Rs. 100/- per person


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