Ooty Toy Train / Nilgiri Mountain Railway - History, Timings & Entry Fee

At a distance of 0.5 km, Ooty Bus Station, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway, also known as Toy Train, is a world heritage toy train in Ooty, Tamil Nadu. It is one of the mountain railways in India and among the must-visit places as part of Ooty Tour Packages.

The Nilgiri Mountain Railway was built by the British in 1908 and was initially operated by the Madras Railway Company. Now it is operated by Indian Railways, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway runs from Mettupalayam to Ooty, and is one of the popular train journeys in India. In July 2005, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway was declared a UNESCO world heritage site of the Indian Mountain Railways along with the Himalayan Railway in Darjeeling, and the Shimla-Kalka Toy Train.

The idea of the toy train was thought of in the year 1854, which took around 40 years to be finally executed. The initial line was built by a Swiss inventor, Riggenbach, and created a lineup to Coonoor by the year 1899. The line was later extended up to Fernhill and then Ooty in the year 1908. The first 5 miles are plain, but the next 12 miles, the engine pushes the coaches upwards to a height of 4:363 feet. Being very steep, the Nilgiri Mountain Railway Toy Train works on a unique system called ABT (Alternate Biting System), also known as the rack and pinion system.

Covering 46 km in length, the Toy train runs between Mettupalayam & Ooty daily with an average speed of just 10.4 km per hour and is regarded as the slowest train in India. The train starts from Mettupalayam railway station and passes through Hillgrove railway station, Coonoor railway station, Wellington railway station, Aruvankadu railway station, Ketti railway station, Lovedale railway station, and finally reaches Ooty. The whole journey takes around 4 to 5 hours to reach Ooty from Mettupalayam.

The train route winds its way through 208 hair-raising curves, 16 fearful tunnels, 250 bridges, and deep ravines full of verdant vegetation, gurgling streams, and tea gardens. Another fascinating feature of the train is that its youngest X-class locomotive is over 50 years old and the oldest is 80 years old. The sound of the steam engine spells an old-world charm to the travelers and gives the feel of the time of British rule.

There are three different categories in the seating - first class, second sitting, and an unreserved category. The first-class seats are limited to just 16 and are hard to get, and the others are expanded to 160 seats. It is highly recommended to choose the first class seats because the experience in that coach is priceless!

Timings:

Ooty - Coonoor: 9:15 AM & 2 PM
Coonoor - Ooty: 10:40 AM & 4 PM
OOty - Mettupalayam: 2 PM
Mettupalayam - Ooty: 7 AM

Entry: Rs. 205 for First Class, Rs. 30 for Second Class, & Rs. 15 for Unreserved Category