South India for two - 2009 Jan/ Feb (19 days)

kwalker · Dec 10th, 2008, 04:43

My sister and I are traveling to India just after Christmas. I spent 6 weeks in Northern India (Delhi, Agra, Kolkata, Dharmsala, Mumbai, Aurangabhad, Varanasi) earlier this year. This will be my second visit to the country and my sisters first. I have traveled in Asia several times and she has traveled in China. We are 65 and 55 years old and are traveling on a medium budget. We are Canadian.

We have already booked the first half of our trip. We will see Delhi, Agra and Rajasthan by car from Dec 26 to Jan 14. It is the part of our trip from then that we would like some help with. On January 14 we will be driven back to Delhi from Agra. We would like to go directly to the domestic airport and take a flight to the south that afternoon. At the end of our time in India we fly out of Mumbai the afternoon of February 6 to return home. So far we have no arrangements in place from the moment we are driven back to Delhi, until our flight leaves Mumbai. We have 19 days after we arrive in the south.

We are flexible about how we travel. We can take a flight or two to cover some distance. We are game to take buses and trains but my sister would rather avoid overnight travel on trains or buses. We might be tired of car and driver travel by then but it is an option for a leg here or there as needed.

We want to see Hampi. Given the travel time involved in getting there, we thought we would make that our last destination before going to Mumbai. We thought we would take a train or bus to Hubli from Hampi (which seems to be the nearest airport that has scheduled flights) and fly to Mumbai.

We would like to spend a couple of days in Mumbai but our government has a travel alert at the moment that affects our health insurance. If that clears up, we would spend a couple of days there (one more than shown below), otherwise we would plan our flight from Hubli to arrive the morning of Feb 3 or perhaps the evening before and be there one less day than shown below.

We would like to visit Kerala, see Fort Cochin and the backwaters.

We have talked about visiting Goa more for its history, food, architecture and cultural differences than for beaches. We aren't the sun and surf or beach party sort.

Pudicherry has caught our eye as a place to visit although I am not sure really why. French influence perhaps.

Since the part of our trip before we head south will have us on the move nearly everyday, we might want a slower pace for this part.

We would be grateful for any suggestions or comments about the following plan (none of which is set as to destinations or time spent in each place) and help with ideas to fill in the gap.

Jan 14: Fly south from Delhi to ?
Jan 15:
Jan 16:
Jan 17:
Jan 18:
Jan 19:
Jan 20:
Jan 21:
Jan 22:Kerala
Jan 23:Kerala
Jan 24:Kerala
Jan 25:Cochi
Jan 26:Cochi to Goa by ?
Jan 27:Goa
Jan 28:Goa
Jan 29: Goa to Hampi by train
Jan 30: Hampi
Jan 31: Hampi
Feb 1: Hubli to Mumbai
Feb 2: Mumbai
Feb 3: Fly out of Mumbia at 13:35

Suggestions please?

Ken

josh4u · Dec 10th, 2008, 15:22

South India visit you can start from Hyderabad, you can see the Moghul and arab architectural sites like charminar, Golconda Fort and Ramoji Rao Film City. Salarjung Museum has rare collections of a single man. Good place for shopping for jewelleries, art pieces and pearls. Express trains/ Volvo buses and cheap flights are available from there to Chennai.

Chennai has good places to visit like the Marina beach memorials, valluvar kottam, vandalur zoo, kalakshetra, A-Z shopping in T Nagar, Pondy bazar and Spencer Plaza.

Mahabalipuram rock temples can be visited enroute to Puducheri. Puducheri is also good shopping place and night happenings. Botanical garden and Aurobindo Ashram are worth visiting place.

If you take the Grand South Trunk Road, Trichy will be first to visit the Srirangam and Rockfort and Bragadeswara temple of Tanjore, Next come Madurai - and Rameswaram - all heritage sites.

Kodaikanal can give you break in a hill station and valley views showing the rich colonial past. Preserved in the natural environment are the palni hills and Shenbaga hills by the Anglaide Institute.

Kanyakumari is the south tip of the penisula with the kumari temple, Gandhi memorial and Vivekananda rock memorial - Indian spiritual and cultural areas. Trivandrum has a nice beach - Kovalam with professional ayurvedic spas and rejuvenation centers.

Alapula and Kumarakom are 6 hrs cab drive for the stay in boat houses in backwaters.

more details check in these sites

www.ttdconline.com www.tamilnadutourism.org
www.keralatourism.org

Take a short flight from Cochin, the nearest place to Mysore (to Hampi ) or to Goa

Lord Average · Dec 10th, 2008, 15:51

I can give you a few pointers, but am not so good at working out a clear itinery.

I think you are right for planning in Fort Cochin and the backwaters. Unless you want to pioneer across unexplored backwater, then the main tourist areas of Cochin & Alleppy can all be done in four days, including a 24hr houseboat cruise, two days in Cochin and a day around Kumarakom / Alleppy.

If you want some beach time, then the options (going north to south) are:
Kannur for less developed beaches, a very relaxed scene and interesting culture.
Cherai Beach (very near to Fort Cochin) which I guess would suit your requirements well.
Varkala for more of a Goa type vibe (but without any parties)
Kovalam for a more busy (but still relaxed) set up with developed tourist infrastructure.

My favourite beach area is definately Kannur, but it is more off the beaten trail and eats into the travelling time a bit.

I always think the real decision to make is where you want the balance to be for travelling harder and seeing more places, versus relaxing more, seeing less and appreciating where you are.

If you are set on seeing Hampi, then this will definately mean some very hard travelling to fit the other main places in, or making some sacrifices.

Therefore if you cut out the far south (ie Kanyakumari, Kovalam, Trivandrum, Varkala) then you will spend less time travelling.

The two other main opportunities of the south are the temple towns of Tamil Nadu (ie Madurai, Trichy, Tanjore), and the Western Ghats (ie Periyar Wildlife reserve, Kodaikanal, Munnar, Ooty)

If it was me, I would do Fort Cochin / Cherai Beach & Backwaters (4 to 5 days). Then get a taxi to take up to Periyar and Munnar for 4 days. Next a taxi down to Madurai for two or three days. You can then fly to Mumbai (or Bangalore) from Madurai, and take another flight to the nearest airport to Hampi to finish.

kwalker · Dec 10th, 2008, 22:54

Terrific, thanks LA and Josh. I hoped posting here would get me some pointers to places I had not considered and help prioritizing. This sort of information is exactly what we are looking for. We will work on these ideas and see what we can come up with.

I know that beaches are an important feature of the south but they aren't what we are looking for. Thanks for the variety of ideas here.

kwalker · Dec 15th, 2008, 07:58

Every time I look at this, I come up with different ideas. The latest, which has some date overlaps that must be fixed, looks like this:

Jan 14: Drive back to Delhi from Agra and stay the night
Jan 15:Fly to Chennai, 2 hour bus to Mamallapuram
Jan 16: Stay Mallapuram
Jan 17: 2 hour bus to Puducherry
Jan 18: Stay Puducherry
Jan 19: Bus to Trichy (5 hours)
Jan 20: Trichy
Jan 21 Train to Madurai 3 hrs
Jan 22 Madurai
Jan 23:Marduai to Munnar 6 hrs on the bus
Jan 24:Munnar
Jan 25:Munnar to Kottayam (bus 5 hours)
Jan 26: Public Ferry 2.5 hrs to Alleppy
Jan 27:Alleppy
Jan 28:Train or Bus to Ernakulam, Kochi and then get ferry to
Mattancherry/Ft Cochin
Jan 29:Kochi
Jan 30:Cochin to Goa (fly)
Jan 31:Goa
Jan 29:Panaji to Hampi by train
Jan 30:Hampi
Jan 31:Hampi
Feb 1:Hampi to Hubli
Feb 2:Hubli to Mumbai fly
Feb 3: Mumbia to UK

Date overlap around Jan 30 must be fixed by cutting something out somewhere . . .

dhans · Dec 15th, 2008, 13:21

Walker's last scheme is doable is you forget about the public boat thingy. Go straight from Munnar to Cochin and book yourself a night on a houseboat.

Hans

kwalker · Dec 22nd, 2008, 08:20

We are having trouble sorting out the best route and our destinations keep changing. We have dropped Goa (not interested in the beach scene or the party scene) but want to keep Hampi. We want to keep Pondicherry and Aleppy/Ft Cochin. Munnar appeals to us, but the long bus ride in and out seem a burden.

Hampi should be either the beginning or the end of our time frame as flying in or out of Hubli to Mumbai seems to cover some distance in a short time reducing the time getting in and out of Hampi takes. I say Hubli because I can't find flights in or out of Bellary. The train would work for the other end of getting to or from Hampi.

It looks like the other end of the trip, should start or end in Chennai since it is handy to Pondy and Mamallapuram.

Between the two we would like to see a hill station, and think Madurai would be interesting. We would like to visit the backwaters in Kerala.

Trichy I am not sure about. Mysore appeals to me but doesn't seem to fit.

Lots to see . . . getting confusing.

Dec 10th, 2008, 04:43	#1
kwalker Ken Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Vancouver Island British Columbia Canada Posts: 17	South India for two - 2009 Jan/ Feb (19 days) My sister and I are traveling to India just after Christmas. I spent 6 weeks in Northern India (Delhi, Agra, Kolkata, Dharmsala, Mumbai, Aurangabhad, Varanasi) earlier this year. This will be my second visit to the country and my sisters first. I have traveled in Asia several times and she has traveled in China. We are 65 and 55 years old and are traveling on a medium budget. We are Canadian. We have already booked the first half of our trip. We will see Delhi, Agra and Rajasthan by car from Dec 26 to Jan 14. It is the part of our trip from then that we would like some help with. On January 14 we will be driven back to Delhi from Agra. We would like to go directly to the domestic airport and take a flight to the south that afternoon. At the end of our time in India we fly out of Mumbai the afternoon of February 6 to return home. So far we have no arrangements in place from the moment we are driven back to Delhi, until our flight leaves Mumbai. We have 19 days after we arrive in the south. We are flexible about how we travel. We can take a flight or two to cover some distance. We are game to take buses and trains but my sister would rather avoid overnight travel on trains or buses. We might be tired of car and driver travel by then but it is an option for a leg here or there as needed. We want to see Hampi. Given the travel time involved in getting there, we thought we would make that our last destination before going to Mumbai. We thought we would take a train or bus to Hubli from Hampi (which seems to be the nearest airport that has scheduled flights) and fly to Mumbai. We would like to spend a couple of days in Mumbai but our government has a travel alert at the moment that affects our health insurance. If that clears up, we would spend a couple of days there (one more than shown below), otherwise we would plan our flight from Hubli to arrive the morning of Feb 3 or perhaps the evening before and be there one less day than shown below. We would like to visit Kerala, see Fort Cochin and the backwaters. We have talked about visiting Goa more for its history, food, architecture and cultural differences than for beaches. We aren't the sun and surf or beach party sort. Pudicherry has caught our eye as a place to visit although I am not sure really why. French influence perhaps. Since the part of our trip before we head south will have us on the move nearly everyday, we might want a slower pace for this part. We would be grateful for any suggestions or comments about the following plan (none of which is set as to destinations or time spent in each place) and help with ideas to fill in the gap. Jan 14: Fly south from Delhi to ? Jan 15: Jan 16: Jan 17: Jan 18: Jan 19: Jan 20: Jan 21: Jan 22:Kerala Jan 23:Kerala Jan 24:Kerala Jan 25:Cochi Jan 26:Cochi to Goa by ? Jan 27:Goa Jan 28:Goa Jan 29: Goa to Hampi by train Jan 30: Hampi Jan 31: Hampi Feb 1: Hubli to Mumbai Feb 2: Mumbai Feb 3: Fly out of Mumbia at 13:35 Suggestions please? Ken

Dec 10th, 2008, 15:51	#3
Lord Average Giant Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Glastonbury Posts: 196	I can give you a few pointers, but am not so good at working out a clear itinery. I think you are right for planning in Fort Cochin and the backwaters. Unless you want to pioneer across unexplored backwater, then the main tourist areas of Cochin & Alleppy can all be done in four days, including a 24hr houseboat cruise, two days in Cochin and a day around Kumarakom / Alleppy. If you want some beach time, then the options (going north to south) are: Kannur for less developed beaches, a very relaxed scene and interesting culture. Cherai Beach (very near to Fort Cochin) which I guess would suit your requirements well. Varkala for more of a Goa type vibe (but without any parties) Kovalam for a more busy (but still relaxed) set up with developed tourist infrastructure. My favourite beach area is definately Kannur, but it is more off the beaten trail and eats into the travelling time a bit. I always think the real decision to make is where you want the balance to be for travelling harder and seeing more places, versus relaxing more, seeing less and appreciating where you are. If you are set on seeing Hampi, then this will definately mean some very hard travelling to fit the other main places in, or making some sacrifices. Therefore if you cut out the far south (ie Kanyakumari, Kovalam, Trivandrum, Varkala) then you will spend less time travelling. The two other main opportunities of the south are the temple towns of Tamil Nadu (ie Madurai, Trichy, Tanjore), and the Western Ghats (ie Periyar Wildlife reserve, Kodaikanal, Munnar, Ooty) If it was me, I would do Fort Cochin / Cherai Beach & Backwaters (4 to 5 days). Then get a taxi to take up to Periyar and Munnar for 4 days. Next a taxi down to Madurai for two or three days. You can then fly to Mumbai (or Bangalore) from Madurai, and take another flight to the nearest airport to Hampi to finish. __________________ Live your life. Be Free

Dec 15th, 2008, 13:21	#6
dhans Uru Buru member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 1,842	Walker's last scheme is doable is you forget about the public boat thingy. Go straight from Munnar to Cochin and book yourself a night on a houseboat. Hans __________________ Tips for trips to India with (young) children: India with kids Stories about our travels in India: Journal

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Dec 10th, 2008, 15:22	#2
josh4u La isla bonita Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: GOA - INDIA Posts: 51	South India visit you can start from Hyderabad, you can see the Moghul and arab architectural sites like charminar, Golconda Fort and Ramoji Rao Film City. Salarjung Museum has rare collections of a single man. Good place for shopping for jewelleries, art pieces and pearls. Express trains/ Volvo buses and cheap flights are available from there to Chennai. Chennai has good places to visit like the Marina beach memorials, valluvar kottam, vandalur zoo, kalakshetra, A-Z shopping in T Nagar, Pondy bazar and Spencer Plaza. Mahabalipuram rock temples can be visited enroute to Puducheri. Puducheri is also good shopping place and night happenings. Botanical garden and Aurobindo Ashram are worth visiting place. If you take the Grand South Trunk Road, Trichy will be first to visit the Srirangam and Rockfort and Bragadeswara temple of Tanjore, Next come Madurai - and Rameswaram - all heritage sites. Kodaikanal can give you break in a hill station and valley views showing the rich colonial past. Preserved in the natural environment are the palni hills and Shenbaga hills by the Anglaide Institute. Kanyakumari is the south tip of the penisula with the kumari temple, Gandhi memorial and Vivekananda rock memorial - Indian spiritual and cultural areas. Trivandrum has a nice beach - Kovalam with professional ayurvedic spas and rejuvenation centers. Alapula and Kumarakom are 6 hrs cab drive for the stay in boat houses in backwaters. more details check in these sites www.ttdconline.com www.tamilnadutourism.org www.keralatourism.org Take a short flight from Cochin, the nearest place to Mysore (to Hampi ) or to Goa

Dec 10th, 2008, 22:54	#4
kwalker Ken Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Vancouver Island British Columbia Canada Posts: 17	Terrific, thanks LA and Josh. I hoped posting here would get me some pointers to places I had not considered and help prioritizing. This sort of information is exactly what we are looking for. We will work on these ideas and see what we can come up with. I know that beaches are an important feature of the south but they aren't what we are looking for. Thanks for the variety of ideas here.

Dec 15th, 2008, 07:58	#5
kwalker Ken Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Vancouver Island British Columbia Canada Posts: 17	Every time I look at this, I come up with different ideas. The latest, which has some date overlaps that must be fixed, looks like this: Jan 14: Drive back to Delhi from Agra and stay the night Jan 15:Fly to Chennai, 2 hour bus to Mamallapuram Jan 16: Stay Mallapuram Jan 17: 2 hour bus to Puducherry Jan 18: Stay Puducherry Jan 19: Bus to Trichy (5 hours) Jan 20: Trichy Jan 21 Train to Madurai 3 hrs Jan 22 Madurai Jan 23:Marduai to Munnar 6 hrs on the bus Jan 24:Munnar Jan 25:Munnar to Kottayam (bus 5 hours) Jan 26: Public Ferry 2.5 hrs to Alleppy Jan 27:Alleppy Jan 28:Train or Bus to Ernakulam, Kochi and then get ferry to Mattancherry/Ft Cochin Jan 29:Kochi Jan 30:Cochin to Goa (fly) Jan 31:Goa Jan 29:Panaji to Hampi by train Jan 30:Hampi Jan 31:Hampi Feb 1:Hampi to Hubli Feb 2:Hubli to Mumbai fly Feb 3: Mumbia to UK Date overlap around Jan 30 must be fixed by cutting something out somewhere . . .

Dec 22nd, 2008, 08:20	#7
kwalker Ken Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Vancouver Island British Columbia Canada Posts: 17	We are having trouble sorting out the best route and our destinations keep changing. We have dropped Goa (not interested in the beach scene or the party scene) but want to keep Hampi. We want to keep Pondicherry and Aleppy/Ft Cochin. Munnar appeals to us, but the long bus ride in and out seem a burden. Hampi should be either the beginning or the end of our time frame as flying in or out of Hubli to Mumbai seems to cover some distance in a short time reducing the time getting in and out of Hampi takes. I say Hubli because I can't find flights in or out of Bellary. The train would work for the other end of getting to or from Hampi. It looks like the other end of the trip, should start or end in Chennai since it is handy to Pondy and Mamallapuram. Between the two we would like to see a hill station, and think Madurai would be interesting. We would like to visit the backwaters in Kerala. Trichy I am not sure about. Mysore appeals to me but doesn't seem to fit. Lots to see . . . getting confusing.