Western Ghats is one of the world's 34 biodiversity hotspots. While considering the abundance of Wildlife and the adorable beauty of Nature, Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary is perhaps the most attractive region in the entire stretch of Western Ghats. Here one can ensure the peace of mind by engulfing the nature's enchanting beauty to its maximum, tucked away in the valley between the Anamalai Ranges of Tamil Nadu and the Nelliyampathy Ranges of Kerala, situated on the majestic Western Ghats, this virgin valley is truly a glorious tribute to untouched nature. Thus it is popularly revered as 'Nature's own abode'.  It has a total area of 285 Sq. Kms. Three Dams have been built here under the Parambikulam  Aliyar  Project and the Reservoirs harbour a variety of aquatic fauna including Mugger Crocodiles that are often seen.

During the 19th century, the forests of Parambikulam were felled in Sungam Forest Reserve and Parambikulam Forest Reserve. Porter in 1886 wrote the first ever Plan to manage the Sungam Forest Reserve. Heavy exploitation of forests for valuable timber started then. Teak planting began in Parambikulam during 1921 and in 1983 the last plantation was raised. One of the major milestones was the introduction of Tramway in 1905. It was designed to exploit the forests and remove valuable timber from Parambikulam to Chalakkudy before exporting to rest of the world as 'Cochin Teak' from Cochin Harbour. The present day Cochin Port was developed from the revenue generated from Parambikulam Teak.

Lying in the southern part of Western Ghats, immediately south of Palghat gap, Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, exhibits mountainous terrain with altitude ranging from 300 m to 1438 m above MSL. There are 7 major valleys and 3 major river systems. Major Peaks in the Sanctuary are Karimala (1438m), Pandaravarai (1290m), Vengoli (1120m) and Puliyarapadam (1010m). Apart from the natural rivers and streams, the Sanctuary possesses 3 man-made reservoirs namely Parambikulam, Thunakadavu and Peruvaripallam with a total  waterspread of 20.60 Sq. Km.

Rainfall varies from 1400 mm to 2300 mm. July is the wettest month and January, the driest. Sanctuary is blessed with rains from both South West and North East monsoons. October – March is the best season to visit the Sanctuary.The sanctuary experiences wet tropical climate. Temperature varies from 15° C to 32° C. March is the hottest month and January the coolest.