Love is in the Air- Sponsored Article





Love is in the Air at the Tall Trees Resort
Sponsored article, written for Marg Hotels

The small but distinctive Tall Trees Resort opened to its discriminating clientele on Valentine’s Day in the year of our Lord (and Lady) 2001. Ever since, the Lords and Ladies have been arriving in droves. Mainly in the form of honeymooning couples!

Tall Trees, is one of the distinctive properties managed by Marg Hotels & Resorts. This gem of a resort is planted in the little hill station of Munnar, Kerala.  Marg’s CEO Vijay Cherian specializes in nurturing "one of a kind" properties. The kind that the multinationals avoid because they are not as standardized or predictable.

When he is not pursuing perfection on behalf of his properties and guests, Vijay is a walking buff. Not surprisingly, he liberally prescribes various walks and nature trails to his guests. He also sets an example himself. Not only does he get up and trot around hill and dale, but he also expects everyone around him (this writer included) to join him.

At Tall Trees, Vijay gets his way. Guests have to walk up a hill even for the basics like the delicious breakfast buffets the resort serves up. One battle Vijay lost to was when the resort installed Cable and TV on the repeated pleas of his line Managers.

The resort grows its own organic produce and serves much of it to guests. Even though the facility is small, it boasts a World class Chef who serves up delectable fare.

With the new emphasis on ecotourism, small locally managed facilities have an edge over multinational monstrosities. Tall Trees is one of those rare finds. Perched delicately on the undulating mountain tops of the Western Ghats, which were named a World Heritage site in 2012 for their biodiversity by UNESCO.

Munnar which means three rivers is some 8,000 feet above sea level and the Western Ghats are older than the Himalayas.

The area is surrounded by protected sanctuaries including the new Kurinjimala Sanctuary to the east, the Chinnar Wildlife SanctuaryManjampatti Valley and the Amaravati reserve forest of Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary to the north east, the Eravikulam National Park and Anamudi Shola National Park to the north, the Pampadum Shola National Park to the south and the proposed Palani Hills National Park to the east.

All this means that Tall Trees is not easy to get to. Getting there can be an adventure driving up the steep and winding roads from Ernakulam (the nearest Train Station) and Cochin (the nearest airport). It must be worth it though; the 19 cottages at Tall Trees were packed when this writer visited during the rainy/off peak season. (If you are coming with children, not to worry each has a generous sized living room and three cottages have two bedrooms).

Reservations well in advance are advised, especially if you are planning to visit between December and early January.

Aju Abraham, the warm and genuine General Manager of Tall Trees is clearly a nature buff. He says that there were 100 varieties of Fern in the area, 88 bird types and 40 different types of butterflies in the area. The Munnar region according to Aju is also home to the amazingly melodious Whistling Thrush, the Nilgiri Mountain Goat or Tahr and the Malabar Giant Squirrel which can be larger than a cat.

Other more reclusive denizens of Tall Trees are the zero pollution lichen which needs a pollution free environment to thrive and the Neela Kurinjil plant which blooms just once in 12 years (the next bloom is in 2018).
Resorts like this have a big role to play in sensitizing the public about the importance of balance in our ecosystem and the joys of loving nature. After all, loving nature helps us love people better.



Written by Pravin Joseph Philip on July 9, 2014 for Marg Hotels

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