Marayoor

At a distance of 40 Kms from Munnar, Marayoor is a scenic place located between Munnar and Udumalpet and it is a pre-historic site on Kerala-Tamil Nadu boarder. It is one of the best sightseeing places in Munnar. Marayoor is the only place in Kerala that has natural sandal wood forests. The rare neelakurunji flowers that blooms once in every 12 years is native to this place. This is one of the top attractions you must include in Munnar packages.

The ruins of Stone Age civilization, which are older than 10,000 BC have been discovered here. The Stone Age structured of Megalithic Dolmens (chambers made of four stones placed on edges and covered with the cap stone) are located in Muniyara near Kovilkadavu (5 kms). Dozens of Dolmens at Kovilkadavu on both sides of the banks of the River Pambar, and rock paintings on the south-western slope of the plateau overlooking the river have attracted visitors. Apart from the dolmens of Stone Age, several dolmens of Iron Age exist in this region especially on the left side of river Pambar as is evident from the usage of neatly dressed granite slabs for the dolmens.

Apart from Dolmens, Marayoor is also famous for ancient rock paintings located in Attala, Ezhuthu Guha (near Kovilkadavu) and Manala. Attala is situated in the west part of Marayur Township and has more than 90 painted motifs. Most of the paintings at Attala are abstract designs except for a few human and animal figures. Ezhuthu Guha rock paintings are situated in the Sandalwood Reserve Forest in Koodakavu. Around 90 painted motifs can be seen here. This place is the most famous rock art site in Kerala and attracts a large number of visitors. Ten painted motifs are located on the south-western slope of the plateau overlooking the Pambar river. There is a rock painting at Manala in Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary near the Alampetty tribal settlement. Here, a picture of a deer and a man can be seen. In close proximity to this art site, a new rock painting has been newly discovered.

Lakkam Falls (1.5 kms), Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary (17 kms) & Thoovanam Waterfalls (10 kms), Amaravathi Dam (20 Kms) are some of the famous tourist places visited from Marayoor.

Marayoor is connected by frequent buses from Munnar.