Sacred Heart Natural Science Museum

Kodaikanal (Kodai)


In the grounds of a former Jesuit seminary 4km downhill east of town, this museum has a ghoulishly intriguing miscellany of flora and fauna put together over more than 100 years by priests and trainees. Displays range over bottled snakes, human embryos (!), giant moths and stuffed animal carcasses. You can also see pressed famous kurinji flowers (Strobilanthes kunthiana).


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Kodaikanal (Kodai) attractions

1. Coaker’s Walk

0.49 MILES

Assuming it isn't cloaked in opaque mist, the views from paved Coaker’s Walk are beautiful, all the way down to the plains 2000m below. The stroll takes…

2. Bryant Park

0.57 MILES

Landscaped and stocked by the British officer after whom it’s named, pretty Bryant Park is usually full of tourists and canoodling couples.

3. Kodaikanal International School

0.78 MILES

Set up in 1901, the renowned Kodaikanal International School lends Kodai a bit of a cosmopolitan air, with students from around the globe.

4. Kurinji Andavar Temple

1.73 MILES

Dedicated to Murugan, this nondescript temple 3km northeast of town affords beautiful panoramas of the surrounding hills and the plains miles below.

5. Bear Shola Falls

1.8 MILES

Compact Bear Shola Falls are in a pocket of forest on the northwest edge of town.

6. Dolphin's Nose

1.83 MILES

A narrow rock lookout overhanging a precipitous drop, with views of the valley below. Follow the trail to it for 15 minutes from Vattakanal, or walk all…

7. Green Valley View

2.23 MILES

Green Valley View, 6km southwest of Kodai centre, has spectacular views to the plains far below.

8. Pillar Rocks

2.83 MILES

About 7km west of town, these towering boulders have jaw-dropping views to the Tamil Nadu plains below.

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "india/tamil-nadu/kodaikanal-kodai/attractions/sacred-heart-natural-science-museum/a/poi-sig/1287915/356504",
      "destination": "Kodaikanal-(Kodai)",
      "continent": "Asia",
      "country": "India",
      "city": "Kodaikanal-(Kodai)",
      "position": "superzone"
    }