Kerala Itinerary

DozGert

Hi,I appologise in advance for the length of this post. I'm organising a trip to the Sth with a friend & was hoping someone could check over my itinerary.
My friend is after not too much travel & more relaxing. She does like animals though & some temples etc (have to be pretty special). She arrives on 13 Dec & wants to be in Goa by 30 Dec to spend the rest of her time there so we are quite limited.
Sooo after meeting her in Triv (where she lands), I so far have the following.

13 Arrive 9pm Triv (taxi straight to Varkala)
14 Varkala
15 Morning to Allepey
16 Allepey
17 Houseboat from Allepey
18 Houseboat ends. Ferry to Kottayam?
19 Morning in Kottayam. Afternoon to Periyar
20 Periyar
21 Periyar
22 Periyar to Munnar (morning)
23 Munnar
24 Morning Munnar to Kochi
25 Kochi
26 Kochi to Hampi
27 Hampi
28 Hampi
29 Hampi –night? Train to Goa
30-11 Jan Goa
11 Jan Train to Mumbai
14 Flight leaves

My questions, is this too long at Periyar? Should I make things shorter & fit in Mysore or anything else? (I can go anywhere missed alone when she leaves). Is there anything else that she definitely should do/see? Should I skip Varkala seeing as we'll be going to Goa anyway (see Triv for the day instead)? And finally, am I going too fast for her? I have told her that we’ll be travelling a bit before Goa but she knows nothing about India & doesn’t want to know any plans before she gets there. Just don't want to go too fast for her. She has travelled a lot but in Europe & the like. I’ve been to India twice but never south.

Ooh one more, I just read about Mudumalai…does anyone know how this compares to Periyar?

Thanks in advance for any advise you can give.

SitaParityaga

Hiya DozGert! Your trip sounds very cool, especially considering you're taking a loved one on her first trip to India. I have done the same in the past, and I've found starting out in the south a better, easier intro to India than the busier places up north. I like how you're focusing on some "natural" spots, where the travelling is easier for the newbie, especially one who is into animals!

First off, since you're doing the houseboat thing, you may want to try and get there early in the morning to take a boat out for an overnight. You can arrange to have the houseboat end in Kottayam, where you can easily go up to Periyar in about 4 to 5 hours by car. This will give you an extra night elsewhere. Don't think I'd want to spend a night in Allepey unless I had too, not a bad place at all, its just the alternative places you've chosen are more interesting.

Periyar is such a nice spot, especially if you stay in the town area versus staying in the park or just outside of it. Even though everything is pretty close, its nice to be able to walk out from your hotel and check out the little town. Its a sweet little walking town, easy going, small, manageable. Lots of fun taking the boat ride around the lake, just make sure you do the last ride of the day (around 4 pm'ish) or early in the morning to see all the animals. Spend a few hours looking around a spice plantation...also very relaxing and laid back. And if you're friend likes the "spa" treatments, stop by one of the places on the road just outside of the park....they advertise "ayurvedic" massages, and who knows if they really are, but I had a wonderful half day "spa" treatment there.

Otherwise, your planning looks very well thought out. I'm wondering though, how are you getting from Kochi to Hampi? The trip from Munnar to Kochi is about 4 hours. And Kochi is a very fun place...also lots of things to see, and easy to stay in for several days. If you have an extra day to fit in somewhere, I'd recommend Kochi.

Mudumalai is a bit off your chosen track, and may take several days extra to fit in. Personally, I have Mudumalai on my list of must see places in India, but I've put it off for trips to come because I'd like to spend at least 3-4 days there in itself.

pundabee

Edit: Cross posted (danger: some repetition!)

Much easier to provide assistance when people give such detailed information. Your itinerary for Kerala is realistic, but I would do things slightly differently.

1. Due to the late arrival, I would stay overnight in Thiruvanathapuram and get an early train to Varkala the next morning. Alternatively, you could spend a day in Thiruvanthapuram (there is a daytrip going south which is quite nice).

2. One day in Varkala (there is a cliff and a beach) is more than enough since you will be going to Goa. You could even consider leaving out Varkala and go straight to Allapuzha, but a relaxing first day in Varkala does make some sense, and it breaks up the journey nicely.

3. On the day the houseboat trip ends you could be dropped in Kottayam and go straight to Periyar from there (3 hours in car, 3-4 hours on the bus). There isn't really any reason to stay for the day in Kottayam unless you, for instance, decide to stay for a day or two in a backwater village homestay or similar.

4. You can easily spend a week in Periyar if you like the activities on offer. There are many treks, wild life programmes etc. to occupy your time with, but this depends on your interests and budget.

5. Whilst in Periyar, I would do a day trip to Madurai. It takes 2½ hours in taxi or 3 hours on the bus. Madurai has the temple of this part of South India (nothing comparable in Kerala), and Madurai is completely different from Kerala and Goa, and worth experiencing.

6. I would leave out Mudumalai. It is too far off your route.

DozGert

Thank you both for your great tips. I've made a few changes as per your suggestions.
Mainly stay in Triv first night, spend second day in Varkala to relax, third day to Allepey am to organise HB then day 4 start houseboat overnight & end in Kottayam on day 5 then onto Periyar. Then same with an extra day in Periyar (go to Madurai)& an extra day in Kochi.
As for Kochi to Hampi. Can I go directly or do i have to get a train to maybe Mangalore & go inland from there? I'll have a look into this more anyway but assumed it was possible one way or another in 1 day. maybe wrong.
Thanks again
Erin

Qosmos

Kochi to Hampi in a day is not advisable. You can either catch the Bangalore Express from Kochi and then take the over night bus to Hampi or take a train to Mangalore and hop on a bus from there. Here are a couple of links that might help:

http://www.indianrail.gov.in/

http://www.redbus.in/

Also note that there are 2 train stations in Kochi, Ernakulam Town and Ernakulam Junction. Both have advance reservation counters.

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DozGert

Thanks Qosmos, would it be possible in a day (ableit a long one) to catch the 12.50pm from Kochi arriving Guntakal 10.20pm then getting a taxi straight to Hampi?