Seven Malai Residency

Great views, and reception and service from appu were good. Everything was working as expected, and you can order food from zomato. If you find a room for around 1000-1500, it’s a good deal, and biker groups should find the place ideal. The road is off-road, narrow and tricky for sedans or larger cars. Reversing out from the property can be hard, so you’ll want to be confident driving your car or have a 360 cam. On the second day, our bathroom started smelling bad, apparently because something went wrong with the water.

The rooms at 7 Malai Residency, Munnar are spacious and clean, with fresh white walls, and the bathrooms are roomy and nicely done too. There’s no restaurant, but you can order from Swiggy or Zomato, and the complimentary tea and coffee were very good. Parking is plentiful for cars and bikes, and the staff were friendly and helpful. Even with a bit of a language barrier, the host took time to explain things and make sure we were comfortable. The grounds were well kept, with plants and colorful flowers. The setting among the tea estate is peaceful, and the view is lovely to wake up to. It’s in the old Munnar area, about 500 meters from the main road. The last stretch is very steep and fully off-road, so reaching the hotel takes some effort. Once there, it’s a scenic and comfortable place for a quiet stay among the tea gardens.

The view is lovely and the service was fine, but getting here and parking were a real hassle. The hotel sits on a hill, reached by a steep, narrow, broken route that barely counts as a road. Each time we took the car in or out it was stressful and needed excellent driving skills. Parking space is very limited. At checkout we waited more than half an hour because a vehicle was blocking the gate, with several others parked along the side.

The only real positive is the tea estate surrounding the hotel. Service was bad, there’s no restaurant or food, and the rooms felt like a lodge. There’s practically no road you can drive on to reach it. You’d need a four-wheel-drive off-road vehicle.