Review of Orchard Holiday Resort, Wayanad
During my recent visit to Wayanad, I was lucky to spend sometime at the Orchard Holiday Resort, which is a fine holiday resort in this hill station. Read further to see my review of this resort spread across several acres of land amidst the streams, valleys and hills.
When we plan a trip to a tourist location, one of the biggest headaches is to choose a place to stay. We need to consider several factors including the budget and the location to stay etc. Also, choosing the type of accommodation is another factor. Some people just want a place to sleep but many others prefer resorts with all amenities to make their stay a memorable part of their vacation.
We usually do not plan our vacation travel in advance. Rather, we would pack our stuff and drive off to the destination. No hotel booking and no strict itineraries. We have even changed our destinations during the drive!
Recently, we did a backpacking trip to Ooty and while returning to Kochi, we came via Wayanad. We had no hotel reservations in both the places. The drive from Ooty to Wayanad was a really amazing experience and was one of the most memorable part of this vacation.
More reading: In Ooty, we stayed in Hotel Lake View. We didn't have any booking. Due to the flower show, most of the hotels were full. After some driving around, we got a room in Lake View. It was a pleasant stay. Read my review of Hotel Lake View, Ooty.Orchard Holiday Resort
We were told by the resort staff that the resort is located about 1.5 km from the highway at Lakkidi, near Vythiri and we should be prepared for a short bumpy drive through the country road. While I was caring for my car through the narrow, country road, my wife was enjoying the fabulous view of nature and kids were having fun through the bumpy road.
We reached Orchard Holiday Resort in the morning by about 10am, which is located amidst a lot of trees. We were greeted by the manager with a cup of warm Wayanadan tea. We dropped our baggage in the room and walked out to see around.
Orchard Holiday Resort is spread across about 6 acres of land, filled with lot of trees, a small natural valley, a big natural pond and a lot of fruit trees. I saw a lot of trees with some kind of fruits that I've never seen anywhere else. When I stopped my kids from plucking those fruits, one of the staff members said it is safe to eat them. 
There are lot of places in the resort to walk around or sit and relax. There is a valley and a natural stream on one side of the resort. This area is not fully fenced and you may not want to cross the stream since the other side is forest land. Kids can safely run around and they will enjoy playing in such a big property. There are some play areas marked for playing sports like cricket. I am not sure if they provide cricket bats or foot ball but if you have them, you can have a full day of sports activities there. 
Kids Play Area
There is a small play area with many play structures. I had a tough time getting my kids back from the play area. For my kids, if they see some play structures, that will make their vacation fulfilled and they will give 5-Star rating for this resort just for the play structures they have there. During rainy days, the kids play area gets a bit of muddy, which was the case when we visited this resort. But that didn't stop my kids from enjoying the play area!
Amenities
There is a pretty large gym with many exercise equipments. I am not sure if anyone would bother to work out during a vacation but if you really can't skip your daily routine, they have got you covered. There is a table tennis table and some other basic indoor sports facilities.
Also, there is a party hall cum conference hall, which can seat 120 people. Wouldn't be great to have a corporate meeting in the lap of the nature, enjoying the beautiful weather at Wayanad?
The restaurant at the resort is also pretty big and can accommodate big groups of people, even though resorts aren't really meant to be public restaurants!
They have a natural pond and a small stream, but they don't have a swimming pool in the property, which is one shortcoming I would like to point out.
Here is a video of our visit to Orchard Holiday ResortWhat makes Orchard resort special?
There were couple of things we really liked here. First and foremost, we were lucky to experience the misty nature to its best after a drizzling evening. The next big thing for us was the large area of plantation open for our kids to run around without any worries. We went as a family including my kids and wife.
They have 6 or 7 cottages and 5 independent rooms. Each cottage has 3 bed rooms and a hall. Each bedroom has separate access door from outside and it could be rented as a full cottage or as individual rooms. For large groups, you could rent a full cottage with 3 bedrooms and have a lot of fun together. I was told many companies organize team building and group activities by hiring one or more cottages for their employees.
If you are looking for a clean, tranquil getaway for a relaxing vacation in Wayanad, you can consider Orchard Holiday Resort. The beauty of the nature together with the warm hospitality of the staff would make your vacation a memorable one.Nearby Attractions
A few places of attractions around this resort are Thamarassery Ghat Pass view point (3 km), Pookot Lake (5km) and Chain tree (3 km).
If you are more comfortable staying in a hotel than a resort, you may consider the Wayanad Gate hotel, which is on the highway side itself where I stayed the previous night before my visit to Orchard. Read my review of The Wayanad Gate Hotel.
Photos from Orchard Holiday Resort
I am from UP, dist Moradabad Sambhal city. I always want to visit Kerela to experience it's wonderful places and people. Resorts are expensive and I wonder whether there are cheaper accommodation options available in Wayanad and other tourist places in Kerela?