Kerala Itinerary 7 Days: Kochi, Munnar, Thekkady and the Alleppey Backwaters

Twenty minutes, free. Kochi airport is an hour and a quarter from Fort Kochi, the old peninsula where most travellers stay. After check in, start at the basilica, five minutes’ walk from the centre: the current building dates from 1905, on the site of the church the Portuguese built in 1505, and the ceiling is painted with scenes of the Passion. Cover shoulders and knees to go in.

Forty minutes, free. Built in 1503, it is the oldest European built church in India and passed from Portuguese to Dutch and then Anglican hands. Vasco da Gama died in Kochi in 1524 and lay here until 1539, when his remains were taken to Portugal; the original gravestone is still in the floor, left of the altar. Look up at the punkahs, the large cloth fans worked by rope.

An hour, free, five minutes’ walk from the church. The nets, wooden frames about 10 metres high balanced with stones, probably arrived with Chinese traders between the 14th and 15th centuries, and each needs four to six men to work it. Late afternoon is best, with low light and boats coming home. Some fishermen will let you help haul a net for a tip of 100 rupees.

In the evening, Fort Kochi’s kathakali centres stage Kerala’s dance drama, with the make up session open to the audience before the show. For the best performance of the trip, save Day 5.

An hour and a quarter, with a ticket of about 100 rupees for foreigners; closed on Fridays. It is 15 minutes by auto rickshaw from Fort Kochi. It is worth it for the murals: the royal bedrooms are covered in scenes from the Ramayana painted in the 16th and 17th centuries, among the best preserved in Kerala. The palace was a Portuguese gift to the Raja of Kochi and became the Dutch Palace after the 1663 renovation. No photos inside.

Forty five minutes, a token ticket, two minutes’ walk from the palace. It opens Sunday to Thursday, 10 am to 1 pm and 3 pm to 5 pm, and closes on Fridays, Saturdays and Jewish holidays. Built in 1568, it is the oldest active synagogue in the Commonwealth. The floor has 1,100 hand painted tiles from Canton, no two alike, and the ceiling is hung with Belgian chandeliers. Cover shoulders and knees, and no photos inside.

An hour and a half, lunch included. The street leading from the synagogue is lined with antique dealers, textile shops and galleries in 18th and 19th century houses. At the far end, the port warehouses still weigh and bag ginger, pepper and turmeric, and some spice shops sell straight from the godown. In the years of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, December to March, these warehouses fill with contemporary art. The afternoon is free to walk back along the waterfront.

Twenty minutes, free. Leave Fort Kochi at 8 am: it is 130 km and four to five hours to Munnar, the second half a winding climb through rubber and cardamom. Past Neriyamangalam, the falls drop in seven steps right to the edge of the highway, and the driver pulls over on the shoulder. They are full from June to December and almost dry by April. Watch out for the monkeys, which steal snacks.

An hour and a quarter, a ticket of about 100 rupees; closed on Mondays. After check in, head to the Nallathanni estate, ten minutes from the centre. The Kannan Devan Hills Plantations museum tells how the British opened the estates in the late 19th century, shows a short film and has a demonstration factory where the leaf is withered, rolled, fermented and dried. The tasting at the end is worth it: buy your tea here, the same as in the shops at factory prices.

Two and a half hours, with a ticket of about 500 rupees for foreigners that includes the forest department bus. Book online on the official site and be at the car park by 7:30 am: at weekends the queue tops an hour. The bus climbs to Rajamala, the zone open to visitors, where the Nilgiri tahr, a mountain goat found only in the Western Ghats, grazes beside the paved path. Behind it rises Anamudi, 2,695 metres. The park usually closes in February and March for the calving season.

Forty five minutes, a few rupees to enter and the boat extra. The dam is 13 km from Munnar on the road to Top Station. The reservoir is ringed by tea estates, with the Indo Swiss dairy farm next door. Skip the speedboat if time is short: the view from the top of the dam is enough. Further on, the same road passes Echo Point and Kundala Lake, which are worth no more than a look from the window.

An hour, free, 32 km from Munnar. The viewpoint, at about 1,700 metres, is just over the line in Tamil Nadu and looks down on the Theni valley; the name comes from the top station of a ropeway that carried tea down to the plains in the early 20th century. Mist usually rises in the early afternoon: if the day dawns clear, reverse the order and come here first. Head back to Munnar before dark, as the road is narrow.

With an extra day in Munnar, add sunrise at Kolukkumalai, the highest tea estate in the world, reachable only by 4x4 jeep booked through your hotel.

Twenty minutes, free. Leave Munnar at 8:30 am on the Bodimettu highway: 15 km out of town, the Gap Road cuts across the slope and the Lockhart Gap viewpoint opens over whole valleys of tea. It is Munnar’s last big view before the road drops through Poopara and Nedumkandam, among cardamom estates, to Thekkady. It is about 100 km and three and a half hours.

An hour and a half, with the guided tour at about 200 to 300 rupees. After check in at Kumily, the town at the gate of the Periyar reserve, the Green Park Spices guide shows you cardamom growing at ground level, pepper climbing the trunks, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and coffee. The shop at the end charges more than Kumily market: taste, note the name and buy in town if you want to save.

An hour, 250 to 300 rupees, five minutes from central Kumily. Kalaripayattu is Kerala’s martial art, more than a thousand years old, and the early evening show at Mudra has leaps, stick fighting, sword and shield, and a finale with rings of fire. Arrive 20 minutes early for a front row seat around the arena. The same centre stages kathakali at another time, if you missed it in Kochi.

Two and a half hours, with entry of about 500 rupees for foreigners, including the bus to the jetty, plus 250 to 450 rupees for the boat. Book the 7:30 am boat on the reserve’s official site and be at the Anavachal car park 45 minutes before. The lake was created by an 1895 dam and the trunks of the drowned forest still rise from the water. On the banks you may see elephants, gaur, sambar and otters; tigers are rare.

Two and a half hours of cruising in the late afternoon, after four hours on the road through the Kottayam area. Boarding is at the Punnamada Lake jetty, around 2 pm. The boat drifts along canals between paddy fields below sea level, churches and waterside homes, and stops at 5:30 pm, when state rules require houseboats to anchor. The onboard cook makes lunch, dinner and breakfast with fish bought along the way.

If you prefer somewhere quieter, stay in Kumarakom, across Vembanad Lake, or pass by boat along Pathiramanal island, full of birds.

Forty minutes, a ticket of a few dozen rupees. The houseboat returns to the jetty around 9 am; the striped 1862 lighthouse is 15 minutes away by car, near the beach. The spiral staircase climbs to the gallery, with views over a town cut by canals and the straight line of the coast. Visiting hours change with the season: check at the ticket office.

Forty five minutes, free, five minutes’ walk from the lighthouse. The pillars of the 19th century pier still run into the sea, and the wide beach is a family outing at weekends. Do not swim: currents are strong, especially in the monsoon. Then head to Kochi airport, two hours by car, in time for the evening flight.