Luxury holidays in Tamil Nadu

When to go

Temperatures are at their coolest in January, when harvest celebrations all but guarantee performances of traditional music amid lively festivities. To catch the full-moon festival of lights, visit in November or December. Weather is manageably warm (but not always dry) from July through September.

Getting there

• Planes

  Chennai International Airport is the third largest airport in India after Mumbai and Delhi; direct flights arrive from an assortment of major airports, including London, Frankfurt, Hong Kong and Singapore. Other international hubs include the Coimbatore Airport, Madurai Airport and Tiruchirapalli Airport.

• Trains

  Southern Railway services from major cities all over India stop at Chennai station; express trains connect the Tamil state capital to Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata.

• Automobiles

  Capital city Chennai is one point on the Golden Quadrilateral project, which connects the four major metropolitan cities of India – Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.There’s also an extensive road network within the state, so if you’re feeling up to the adventure of navigating (and it is an adventure…), you can drive between Tamil Nadu’s urban centres and lush rural vistas.