How to Reach Munnar: Nearest Airport, Railway Station and Road Routes (2026)

The nearest airport to Munnar is Cochin International Airport (COK) at Nedumbassery, about 110 km away. The drive takes 3 to 3.5 hours on NH85 via Perumbavoor, Kothamangalam and Adimali. Madurai (about 160 km) and Coimbatore (about 165 km) are the other options, and they make sense if you are combining Munnar with Tamil Nadu. Pre-book your cab, because the airport's prepaid taxi counter does not sell trips to Munnar.

No. Munnar has neither. The town did once have a railway. The Kundala Valley Railway carried tea to Top Station until the July 1924 flood destroyed it, and it was never rebuilt. Today every journey ends by road, either from Cochin airport (110 km), Bodinayakanur station (about 64 km) or Aluva station (110 km). The last leg is a ghat drive of 2 to 3.5 hours, depending on where you start.

Bodinayakanur (BDNK) in Tamil Nadu is the closest railway station to Munnar, about 64 km away over the Bodimettu ghat. It has limited service, mainly the Chennai Central to Bodinayakanur Superfast Express (20601), which runs six days a week (not on Saturdays). For most travellers, Aluva (110 km) is the better pick because it gets trains from Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and across Kerala. Angamaly (120 km) and Ernakulam Junction (125 km) are the next options.

Munnar is about 110 km from Cochin International Airport, a drive of 3 to 3.5 hours. The figure of 125 to 130 km you also see quoted is from Kochi city (Ernakulam), which is 3.5 to 4 hours away by cab. The KSRTC bus from Ernakulam takes about 3 hours 45 minutes. Add 30 to 60 minutes on December and January weekends, when traffic near Cheeyappara falls slows to a crawl, and more in heavy rain.

There are no trains into Munnar itself, but there are plenty of direct buses. KSRTC runs services from Ernakulam, Aluva, Kothamangalam, Kottayam and Thrissur. TNSTC and private buses come up from Madurai and Theni through Bodinayakanur. Overnight private sleepers run from Bangalore and Chennai. The nearest trains stop at Bodinayakanur, Aluva, Angamaly and Ernakulam, and you finish the trip by bus or cab.

The cheapest way to reach Munnar is a sleeper-class train to Aluva or Ernakulam, followed by a KSRTC bus. The bus from Ernakulam starts at Rs 188 and takes about 3 hours 45 minutes, and it is a little cheaper from Aluva. An overnight train also saves you a night's hotel bill. From Tamil Nadu, the equivalent budget route is a train to Madurai or Bodinayakanur and a state bus up via Theni and Bodimettu.