Bested only by Tokyo, Japan, the serene hill station of Munnar in ‘God’s own country’ has been named the second-greatest travel destination in the world by TripAdivsor. Surrounding by sprawling tea plantations, Munnar beat out Cambodia’s Siem Reap and Kyoto and Naha in Japan to round out the top-five in the Traveler’s Choice Destination awards for 2010.

“Millions of travellers rely on TripAdvisor for travel inspiration. So we are thrilled and humbled that Munnar has been honored by travellers this year,” said Kerala Tourism secretary Dr Venu. “The awards are particularly meaningful as they are determined by real travellers.”

Winners were determined by a combination of travellers’ destination comments, favorite places, and overall destination popularity on TripAdvisor.

While Munnar has been a favourite for both Indian and foreign tourists, in recent years the hill station has started attracting adventure travellers. The region’s topography makes it idea for paragliding, trekking and rock climbing. There is also the Eravikulam National Park, home to an array of wildlife, including the endangered Nilgiri Tahr (ibex), ruddy mongoose and over 120 bird species. 

Eight other Indian destinations made it to the top 25 Asian destination choice list, including Andaman and Nicobar Islands at 6th spot, Manali (7), Hampi (8), Goa (9), Udaipur (12), Gangtok (19), Bangalore (20) and Dharamsala (22).

Kerala Tourism director M Sivasankar said: “With 15 million registered members, TripAdvisor is no doubt the world’s most popular and largest travel community. So we are delighted and thrilled to learn that Munnar has rated so well with such an esteemed audience of travellers.” 

Now in its eighth year, the annual TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice awards honour the world’s best destinations. Unlike any other awards programme, TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice winners are based on reviews and opinions about destinations on tripadvisor.com and content from across the internet.

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