Kerala, the land of beaches and backwaters, also has a number of cool and inviting hill stations tucked away in the luxuriant Western Ghats in the east. Much of Kerala's exotic appeal is centred in the highland area of the Western Ghats. Rising to an average height of 1520 metres, the tropical forests of the Ghats house a wide variety of flora and fauna. One can also find expansive, loamy plantations of tea, coffee, rubber and fragrant cardamom. Some major hill stations in Kerala are Munnar, Peermade, Vythiri and Ponmudi.