Tirupur
 

Anyone been to Tirupur in Tamil Nadu? It looks like the best bet is to fly to Coimbatore as it is 45 mins away by car. Any hotel suggestions in either Tirupur or Coimbatore?

I have passed through Tirupur. IIRC, its a hub for garment manufacturing, while CBE used (still is?) a hub for the textile and automotive ancillary industries.

It should be about 55kms north east of CBE. Probably a couple of hours drive one way.

I have spent some time in coimbatore with friends. Stayed at their home, so never tried the hotels. Coimbatore, IME was a very nice town with the people a lot more well mannered and polite, as compared to the rest of Tamilnadu.

The restaurants are predominantly vegetarian (at least used to be a few years ago) and very clean. You will have the opportunity to eat off of a plantain leaf. I assume that standard of cleanliness would extend to the hotels as well.

IIRC, there was a new 2 or 3 start being put up on Avanashi Road called The Residency or something. That was touted as being a "good" hotel. I don't think there are any 4 or 5 star or chain hotels (Marriott etc.).

The banana chips in Coimbatore are excellent. If you get a chance, buy some. The other place to check out is Sri Krishna Sweets - they make superb sweets, though extremely rich. So, you want to watch out for those calories and cholesterol. The other chain to sample is the Sri Annapoorna group. Their restaurants are pretty good too.



One last caution. you doubtless already do this, but drink only bottled water. If you can't find bottled water, try the Tender Coconut you get from roadside vendors. Those can't be tampered with and will generally cause no damage. When buying bottled water make sure the seals are intact, as refilling used bottles is a common tactic.

If you stay at The Residency on Avinashi Road, there should be a Nilgiris Supermarket nearby. You should find water and most other essentials there. They have pretty high standards for the stuff they sell.

Thanks for all the great information!

To second legionnaire's suggestion, the Residency Hotel on Avinashi road is the best pick of CBE.
While at the Residency, I would recommend the Afghani restaurant as a completely non-vegetarian option to contrast with the veggie offerings in CBE :-)

There is a newer hotel closer to the airport called Sohan Park Inn, but I have no personal experience of that hotel.

I have been to Coimbatore a LOOONG TIME back - but remember that there was a place where they had a 6 foot Dosa (South Indian Dish). While it would not be edible by one person - it might be worth a visit to that restaurant just to see this.

I guess it may not even exist anymore - and also I know for certain that there are other places that now have broken that record over and over - but at that time (circa 1990 or so) this was quite a big thing.

But this thread just made me remember that.