Thaindian News

Thiruvananthapuram, May 11 (IANS) Munnar, the picturesque hill station in Kerala’s Idukki district, has been rated as the second best Asian tourism destination after Tokyo by TripAdvisor, a popular travel guide and research website.

“Millions of travellers rely on TripAdvisor for travel inspiration. So we are thrilled and humbled that Munnar has been honoured by travellers this year,” said V. Venu, secretary, Kerala Tourism.

Munnar has won TripAdvisor’s 2010 Traveller’s Choice Destination award, which is determined by a combination of travellers’ comments, unbiased reviews and overall popularity of the destination.

“With 15 million registered members, more than 34 million monthly visitors, and 30 million traveller reviews and opinions, TripAdvisor is no doubt the world’s most popular and largest travel community. So we are delighted and thrilled to learn that Munnar has been rated so well,” Said M. Sivasankar, director, Kerala Tourism.

Munnar’s mountains, pristine valleys, sprawling tea plantations, and cool air have long been a favourite of Indian and foreign tourists.

In recent years, this beautiful hill station has been attracting adventure tourists. They are enamoured of the area’s stunning topography, which is ideal for paragliding, trekking and rock climbing.

Nature lovers usually make a beeline for the Eravikulam National Park, which is home to colourful wildlife, including the endangered Nilgiri Tahr (ibex), ruddy mongoose and 120 bird species.

Eight other Indian destinations — Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Manali, Hampi, Goa, Udaipur, Gangtok, Bangalore and Dharamsala — also figure in the top 25 Asian destinations list.