amrithapuri

Good morning all,
Has anybody been to Amrithapuri lately and if so, do you have any advice on accommodation and transport?
We're heading that way in October - my wife is very keen on meeting Amma - and the little information I can locate on the forum is dated.

You can travel to Thiruvanandapuram or Cochin by Air/train and take a cab from there. Contact the ashram for accomodation.

Thank you, RamaKrish - that sounds like a plan.
Any idea how long the drive from Cochin would be?

Hi Keith-H,
it could be 3 & 1/2 to 4 hours , depending on the traffic

Cheers NeenuRaj,
Might spend a couple of nights in Allepey and make the trip from there.

that would bring it down to, an hour and half - two hrs , driving

Cheers!

Thanks - that sounds better than driving from Cochin. This way we get to have a bit of a look around Allepey too.

Keith,

This is a little vague from recollection -- though checking now with my Lonely Planet '07, it seems not at all vague:

According to them, if you take the backwater ferry sort of half-way between Kollam (Quilon) and Alappuzha (Alleppey), it passes by Amma's ashram, and they can drop you off here.

All I know is that years ago I did indeed pass by here on one of several backwater rides, and had considered stopping off, but then somehow decided against it. Which is why I hadn't been sure of which stretch it was, but the above if correct would seem clear enough. It would surely be a nice way of getting there, don't you think.

Whether they welcome impromptu visitors these days I'm not sure, and LP does add that "Visitors should dress conservatively and there is a strict code of behaviour."

I think looking it up for others here over the years, they appear to have several dedicated websites, but I guess this is one of them: http://www.amritapuri.org/. If your wife is set on seeing Amma in person, my understanding is she travels around a lot, so you should check this or other sites of theirs as to whether she'll be around at all.

Mach,
Yes, arriving by river seems like a nice idea and one we will look into when we are in the area.
I too had wondered about the likelihood of access if one just turns up at the Ashram; they would surely have concerns regarding the sincerity of the visitor, security and so on.We've looked at the website but are no wiser. I guess we'll have to play it by ear.