Field note · India · Kerala

Kanthalloor

Kanthalloor sits 14 km off the Munnar – Udumalpet highway at Marayoor, so nearly everything is either a direct Munnar bus down the Marayoor road or a change at Marayoor onto whatever is going up the hill.

Researched: 21 September 2026
Reviewed: 29 September 2026
Ways of moving: 6, 13 sources
Not confirmed: 7
Fares seen: 2025–2026

The place

Kanthalloor is a village in Devikulam taluk, Idukki district, Kerala. It is a village nestled in the Western Ghats of India. The salubrious climate and the picturesque landscapes and wide variety of tropical crops coupled with the close proximity to Munnar, has transformed this village into a tourist destination.

Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The place page has what to see, do and eat, and every way there from the planner.

How transport works here

6 ways of moving, each with its rule

We confirmed six ways of moving to, from or around Kanthalloor: three by road and three hired or on demand, from 13 sources. Two of them run only on demand or when the seats are full, so there is no timetable to show; the rule is written where the timetable would be. Three need a phone call or a message before you turn up.

The fares were seen in 2025 to 2026; a fare from an older year is a floor, not a price. Two fares carry no year, because they could not be confirmed and the field says so. We rate 1 of the 6 high confidence, our own judgement of the sources. The entry was checked on 21 September 2026, and ends with seven things we could not confirm.

3 ways

By road

bus

KSRTC Munnar – Kanthalloor bus

Munnar – Marayoor – Kovilkadavu – Pius Nagar – Kanthalloor

Leaves from the Munnar KSRTC stand; ask for the Kanthalloor or Marayoor service. Boards are in Malayalam. It is a fare-stage limited-stop bus, so it will pick you up at Marayoor or Kovilkadavu too.

When: From Munnar 06:40, 11:30, 12:30, 13:40, 15:20, 17:20, 18:10, 18:20. From Kanthalloor 05:45, 08:20, 09:15, 15:00, 16:00, 17:15 (Marayoor only), 18:00
Takes: About 1h 50m for roughly 50–55 km
Fare 2026: ₹94 on KSRTC

SeasonYear-round; landslides on the Munnar ghat in June–September can suspend services. BookingNone for the ordinary service, pay on board; depot enquiry 04865 230201. Run byKSRTC, Munnar depot.

bus

Private buses down from Kanthalloor before dawn

Kanthalloor to Marayoor and Munnar

These are the buses the village actually uses to reach Munnar for work and markets, and they start long before any tourist is up. They are not on booking sites – stand at the Kanthalloor stand on the main road and ask.

When: 02:50, 05:00, 07:00, 09:45 and 13:10 from Kanthalloor
Takes: About 1h 50m to Munnar
Fare: Not confirmed; expect roughly the KSRTC level of about ₹94

SeasonYear-round. BookingNone, pay on board. Run byPrivate operators.

bus

Munnar – Udumalpet interstate bus, change at Marayoor

Munnar – Marayoor – Chinnar – Udumalpet, on State Highway 17

Use the Munnar stand signed for Udumalai and Coimbatore. This is the frequent service on the corridor; get down at Marayoor and cover the last 14 km to Kanthalloor by local bus, auto or jeep. It is also how you arrive from the Tamil Nadu side – TNSTC runs the same corridor as an express.

When: From Munnar 05:30, 07:15, 08:45, 10:00, 10:30, 15:00, 16:00, 18:00, 19:15. From Udumalpet 02:15, 03:15, 05:00, 10:00, 11:30, 13:15, 15:00, 19:30, 22:00
Takes: About 3h 45m for the full 85 km; roughly an hour Munnar to Marayoor
Fare 2026: ₹122 for the full Munnar – Udumalpet run

SeasonYear-round; the road crosses Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary. BookingNone, pay on board. Run byKSRTC interstate ordinary, plus TNSTC express from the Tamil Nadu side.

3 ways

Hired, booked and on demand

share auto

Marayoor to Kanthalloor local hop

Marayoor town up the hill to Kovilkadavu, Pius Nagar and Kanthalloor, 14 km

Marayoor is the junction everything passes through. Autos and taxis wait near the Marayoor bus stand, and the Munnar – Kanthalloor buses also run this leg. For short trips inside Kanthalloor village, autos are the normal way to move.

When: Through the day, following the bus times; autos leave when they have a load
Takes: 25–40 minutes
Fare: Not confirmed. No shared-seat fare for the Marayoor – Kanthalloor leg was found on any reachable page, and the one private-taxi figure traced for the 14 km is on a domain that now serves a for-sale parking page

SeasonYear-round. BookingNone, agree the price before you get in. Run byLocal auto and taxi drivers; KSRTC on the same stretch.

tour package

Munnar day tour that doubles as a transfer

Old Munnar to Kanthalloor and Marayoor: orchards, Anakottapara dolmens, sandalwood forest, Keezhanthoor and Erachilpara falls

Booked from Munnar rather than in Kanthalloor, with hotel pickup. Useful if the bus times do not work or you are carrying luggage, since the vehicle is yours for the day.

When: Daily, departing about 09:00 from the Old Munnar meeting point, back by 19:00
Takes: Full day
Fare 2025: ₹4,500 per car for up to 3 people, ₹5,500 per jeep for up to 6, including driver-guide and lunch

SeasonFruit season peaks around the September–March visiting window. BookingOnline or by phone in advance. Run byMunnar Info, +91 9400143111.

offroad 4x4

Village jeep hire in Kanthalloor

Kanthalloor and Marayoor off-road loops: waterfalls, sandalwood patches, viewpoints

Drivers work out of Kanthalloor main road and take bookings on WhatsApp; most homestays will call one. A full round of Kanthalloor and Marayoor is quoted at 4h 30m to 5h. Check current legality first – see the gaps below.

When: On demand, including sunrise and night runs
Takes: A full round of Kanthalloor and Marayoor is quoted at 4h 30m to 5h; the operator also sells half-day and sunset runs but gives no length for them
Fare 2025: The operator's own site gives two figures: safaris starting at ₹1,800, and full day, half day and sunset safaris from ₹2,500 per jeep

SeasonTracks are worst in the monsoon. BookingPhone or WhatsApp. Run byLocal jeep owner-drivers, e.g. +91 9943959920, +91 7845794922.

Not confirmed

What we could not find out

7 things the researcher looked for and did not find, in their own words, with where to ask instead. None of this goes into the planner; it stays here until someone confirms it.

01
Kanthalloor to Vattavada looks close on a map but is not. The 1938 Kundala – Kanthalloor road, also called Sethuparvathipuram Road, is shut by the Forest Department where 800 m crosses Anamudi Shola National Park. A resident describes the old run as 35 km in 1.5 hours; the legal route is now about 100 km via Munnar and over 4.5 hours. Source: https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2025/10/28/kundala-kanthalloor-road-closed-vattavada-residents-protest-forest-department.html
02
In July 2025 Idukki district banned off-road jeep safaris in the Marayur and Kanthalloor region, affecting over 300 jeeps, with only the Kolukkumala route exempted. Operators still advertise, so confirm with the Idukki Motor Vehicle Department or DTPC before paying.
03
No published TNSTC timetable was found for Udumalpet direct to Kanthalloor. Ask at Udumalpet bus stand for anything going to Marayoor or Munnar and change there.
04
kerala.taxi, previously the only source here for a Marayoor – Kanthalloor taxi fare of ₹619.2 over 14 km, now serves a domain-for-sale page with no travel content. The figure can no longer be checked and has been dropped, along with a ₹88 KSRTC Marayoor – Kanthalloor ticket price that had no source at all.
05
redbus.in, previously cited for a lowest listed fare of ₹107 Munnar to Kanthalloor, would not load over either HTTP/2 or HTTP/1.1. The KSRTC ₹94 on tickettogetlost is the only fare that could be checked.
06
Private bus fares from Kanthalloor are not published on any booking site; expect roughly the KSRTC level.
07
Share auto and share jeep fares on the Marayoor – Kanthalloor leg are unconfirmed.

In the planner

What the planner can route today

The options above live on the place page, not in the departure board: a boat that comes when you phone has no time to show. What the board can do for Kanthalloor is this.

Y: Scheduled flightsKochi (COK), 86 km
Y: Trains and coachesTransitous carries 2 timetable feeds for this country, 1 with real-time
N: Ferriesno crossing within 25 km
Y: Driving and taxiOpenStreetMap roads; cab fare from the country band
N: Bike and scooter shareno share feed known
N: Cruisesno open itinerary source anywhere

Y routable now · F found, not yet implemented · N no source known.