An enjoyable stay
We went there in July 2nd week for 4 days. We landed around 11 PM, the reception staff gave us a welcome drink but we refused as we were too tired to do anything other than taking the room keys and sleep.
This hotel is located in Upper Coonoor, at a higher elevation than the rest of the town, and has very few people, so we found lot of peace and solitude to walk around the hotel and the nearby locations.
Taj Garden Retreat, even though quite a pricey 3,450 rupees/day inclusive of taxes (around $86 USD/$92CDN for a standard room, they have premium and suite rooms too, more pricey though), but was value for money. The room consisted of a fireplace very close to the entrance and a room heater nearby and a well laid out bed, 2 people could comfortably sleep on it. The room was 9x20 size at least with 1 closet for hanging probably 10 cloth pairs. The only downside we could think of was the less amount of walking space in the direction of where one's leg would end up. Only one person could pass the area but other than that it was no big deal. The washroom was huge, at least 12x15 if not more.
The hotel was quite well maintained, and total it contains only 33 rooms, the number of people you would encounter is so less, it is a welcome change.
The breakfast is a part of the room pricing. I booked the room from Canada itself on their website. The room pricing can go upwards of $125 during the summer rush. It’s a low season for that time of the year and hence the hotel was 2/3rd empty. The dining room has probably around 12 tables, some of which can seat 4 and some can seat only 2.
There was no speck of dust or flies anywhere. It is a buffet system and contains a bevy of options (bread, muffins and omelets for the westernized folks) and the Indian cuisine is not the best but is alright (you have Idlis, Vadas, Uttappam, Idiappam, Uppuma, Pongal etc, pancakes can be ordered, very crisp and very thin with good chutney to boot) plus milk shakes, juices, fruits, coffee and tea (some days coffee was good, other days tea was better).
The hotel charges a heavy premium for food served at your room or at dinner/lunch. One day we got late in the evening (10 PM) and we ended up paying 580 rupees (for a bowl of curd rice, 6 sandwich slices and chips, $15 that is). They serve lunch and dinner too at a price but we did not utilize it as we were busy cruising around the town.
The rooms were quite clean, the flooring was old style grey wood and the bedsheets smelled fresh and clean and no bugs either at all. While going out we could slide the plank on the door to indicate that we needed the room to be cleaned. Nothing of our personal belongings were misplaced or out of place or stolen but we took our own precautions to lock suitcases and carry the credit cards and cash with us.
Room service was quite prompt and the toilet is western style and very clean. The wash basin was all white marble counter-top with fresh white towels and the necessary toiletries (washing soap, shaving cream, shampoo in small plastic bottles).
The attendants all could speak English well and dressed neatly. Of course a local smattering of Tamil would be a bonus.
The Taj has a good and clean garden with the beautiful overview of the mountains from the distance. For children, they have some swings to play with and bicycles to ride.
They have a Yoga centre (have to pay extra) and internet service too (160 rupees per hour or something close to it).
They also arrange for the taxis to take you to the tourist spots nearby. We did not utilize that option.
We had told the reception to wake us in the morning on the day we were supposed to leave and they did call at the correct time.