Couple seeking help with itinerary Tamil Nadu and Kerala

Gomango24

My wife and I are in our early 60s and from NZ.
We arrive in Fort Cochin on 28 Sept, there for 6 days ,and then do voluntary work at a school in Cochin for 4 weeks.
While at the school we have the weekends off.

We fly into and out of Kochi Airport and would very much appreciate some assistance in planning our itinerary for the balance of our stay, ie 6 weeks.

We are not sure whether we should experience Kerela first, followed by Tamil Nadu or go straight to Tamil Nadu and finish off back in Kerela.

We would prefer a more leisurely stay at interesting places where we can get the feel for the area and culture etc, rather than rush thru too many places as tourists.We enjoy all things natural including nice beaches,the arts and culture. We would be happier in guest houses and homestays etc rather than resort style accommodation.

The places I thought could be of interest in Kerela included Munnar, Thekkad, Kumarkoam, Mysore, Karnataka, Varkala, Kovalam, Varkala and maybe Kumbakunam but I have no idea what order or if there are other more interesting places that we should not miss.

Also in Tamil Nadu I had earmarked the following places of interest, Chennai, Mahabalipuram, Pondy, Tranquebqr, Tanjore, Thanjavur, Chettinad, Kumbakunam,Karaikudi, Mysore Dindigul and Kanyakumari, but once again unsure about what order, what to leave out and is there any other not to be missed locations.

Any advice that will assist with an interesting itinerary would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks
Gomango24

snonymous

"in Tamil Nadu I had earmarked the following places of interest, Chennai, Mahabalipuram, Pondy, Tranquebqr, Tanjore, Thanjavur, Chettinad, Kumbakunam,Karaikudi, Mysore Dindigul and Kanyakumari,"

Welcome to Indiamike Gomango,

I think you meant Madurai instead of Mysore here. Tanjore & Thanjavur are the same. The route could be Chennai Mahabalipuram Pondy Tranquebar Karaikudi Kumbakonam Thanjavur Chettinad Dindigul Madurai Kanyakumari. There are a lot of wonderful places to see and experience in this itinerary, especially if you enjoy visiting ancient heritage sites. Since you have six weeks at hand, you could also consider fitting in Trichy.
From Kanyakumari you could go on to Trivandrum, Varkala, Thekkady, Munnar.

As you will have your weekends off in Cochin, you can visit a lot of nearby places like Kodanad elephant camp, Thattekad sanctuary, Thrissur, Athirampally falls, the backwaters and so forth. Cherai beach is also nice.

Im sure N Kumar, PM Velu and a lot of our other members will give you a lot more detailed information about routes, accommodation, what to see .... In the meantime, go through the TN and Kerala forums to see what may be of specific interest to you.

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pmvelu

@Gomango,

Snonymous have provided the info. To addon to it ,

My suggestion is :-

Out of 6 Weeks, May be 4 weeks in Tamilnadu and 2 weeks [ If you are more interested to Culture / Temple architecture] Or Kerala for 4 weeks and Tamilnadu for 2 weeks[ If you like, Scenic locations, Nice Beaches, Very Nice Houseboats, Scenic Hillstations etc]

Just a rough itenary.

In Kerala:-

From Cochin - Munnar [ 3 Days] [ Scenic / Hills / Plantation town] - Thekkady [3 Days] [ Plantation Town / Visit to Tea Factories / Boating in lake with Animal Sightings / Exploring Periyar Sanctuary] - Alappuzha & Kumarakom [ 2 Days with 1 Day in Houseboat in Alleppey Or Kumarakom lake and 1 Day for just enjoying the scenic beauty and the calmness]

From Alleppey , Move to Thrissur / Guruvayur [ 3 Days] [ For very old temple in Thrissur and Most Famous temple visit in Guruvayur and also the "Punathur Kota"[ An elephant Enclosure with around 55 elephants ]

Tamilnadu :-

From Thrissur , Move to Ooty [ 3 Days, Hillstation / Nice climate, Scenic place and being october, No crowd will be there and Rains also won't be much . Plan out the uphill trip in "Toy train" which is very nice one]

Karnataka :-

From Ooty, Move to Mysore [ Just over 4 Hours Journey].
In Mysore [ 3 Days] [ Nice climate , Palaces , Parks, Somanathpura Temple for Hoysala Architecture, Talakkadu [ An interesting town with temples under sand ]

Move to Belur / Halebedu / Shravanabelagola [ 2 Days for the excellent Hoysala Architecture and the Tallest Monolithic status of "Gomatheswara"]

Move to chennai Via Bangalore

Tamilnadu :-

Chennai - Mamallapuram [ 3 Days for Excellent pallava Architecture, Beaches , Sculptures Carving ]

Pondicherry :-

From Mamallapuram , Move to Pondicherry [ Just over 2 Hours Journey] [ 3 Days for Nice Beaches, French Architecture, Auroville [ An international Village], Aurobindo Ashram

Tamilnadu:-

Chidambaram [ 2 Days ] [ For Magnificent Temple, Visiting the very unique Mangrove forests]

Move to Tanjore [ 2 Days ] [ For Pallava Temples ]

Move to Chettinadu [2 Days ][ For Chettinadu Houses]

Move to Madurai [ 3 Days] [ For the Temple, Culture, Saraswathi Mahal ]

Move to Kanyakumari [Just over 4 Hours Journey] [ 3 Days] [For the Beaches, 133 feet Thiruvalluvar statue, Vivekanandar rock, Extra-Beautiful sunrise]

Kerala:-

Move to Trivandrum Via Suchindram [ A Magnificient temple] , Padmanabapuram Palace . [ Overall 1 Day in car ]

Trivandrum [ 5 Days] [ For the Kovalam Beach , Cherai Beach, Veli Beach, Shangumugam beach, PRadmanathasamy temple]

Get to Cochin [ Little over 4 Hours Journey]


General :-

1) Please go over it and if you have any questions or would like to add / remove any place , Post !
2) I specified the place name, Number of days tentatively at each location and also on the significance of the place !
3) All of these places I visited except Houseboat Stay and this way you cover the "better among the places " with No Repeat Circuits and No Tiring very long journeys between places and also covering Tamilnadu , Kerala , Karnataka and Pondicherry.
4) The sample itenary in this post should be covered in the same order [Ofcours yes with deletions / additions of places as per your wish] just to avoid back & forth travel and the plan is made with Starting & Ending point as Cochin !

Hope this helps

Regards
Velu

Gomango24

Thank you so much Snonymous and Velu for your wonderful input.
What great information.We will surely be able to work out an interesting itinerary.
We did Nthn Rajistan and Goa last year so possibly would prefer the second option Velu, but also to include some heritage, temples etc.
Can you please advise which in your opinions would be a "must see" in the itinerary suggested.
Would it be worth visiting the famous Tibetan Monestry in Kushalnar near Coorg, and also the commune where the Hugging Nun is?
Can you advise the best way to travel, as 6 weeks is a long time and I suppose there will be a combination of trains, buses and private taxis. Would there be an overnight train trip, say to Chennai
Is there a nice lake area included in the itinerary.
Thanks for any assistance you may be able to provide.
We leave NZ on 28 September, not far away now is it
Kind regards
Gomango24

pmvelu

Nice to know our posts helped you in planning Gomango !

Updating the same Itenary with Few Additions /Deletions as per your interests and also with the other Modes of Transportation [Apart from Car but at the same time comfortable too] .

Few additional info on the Itenary :-

0. If you mean "Mata Amrithandamayi" by "Hugging Nun"
,the commune is near Cochin only . I did not visited till now this commune

1. Cochin - Munnar Could be done in Bus [Buses are Frequent - 4 Houra Travelling time in Fantastic Roads

2. Between Munnar & Thekkady/ Periyar , you may chose one as Majorly both look alike and My preference would be Munnar

3. Thrissur Could be avoided and you may directly Visit Guruvayur and the Nice beach nearby and also the Punnathur Kota [Elephants Enclosure]

4. From Guruvayur Railway Station, Get back to Trichur Railway Station and from there catch train to Coimbatore Jn for comfort

5.From Coimbatore Jn, get a Cab until Mettupalaiyam Jn [ There are lot of buses BUT invariably all will be crowded in a very High Traffic Road. Anyways it's going to be 45 minutes Journey in Cab with aroud 40 kms Distance]

6.Reserve Well in Advance, Mettupalaiyam to Ooty "Toy Train". Reserve "First Class " for Nice Views and comfortable Sitting !

7. Ooty to Mysore, there are many Buses and once you are in ooty, Just enquire for "Super Deluxe Bus Type" in Ooty Bus stand and board that for Max Comfort . There is also a A/C Bus in that Circuit in Day time which will be best for comfort as well as enjoying scenic Beauty

8. From Mysore, get a Cab for [May be 2 days] and you may cover Somanathpur Temple, Talakkad temple followed by a visit to Tibetan Settlements with a night halt at Madikeri [ Coorg]

9.In the entire Circuit what I have provided, you can use Train for " Thrissur to Coimbatore" , " Mettupalaiyam to ooty" , " Mysore to Hassan" , "Bangalore to Chennai" , "MAdurai to Kanyakumari " and "Trivandrum to Ernakulam Jn"

10.In the Entire Circuit, "Must See" kind of places are " Munnar , Cochin , Guruvayur,Kumarakom / Alleppey, Ooty, Mysore,Mamallapuram, Thanjanur, Madurai, Kanyakumari and also Trivandrum [ If you are inclined to beaches ]"

11.I do not know any impressive lakes near the itenary. May be there are 2 beautiful Waterfalls in a scenic Surroundings Near Thrissur [ Place Name Athirapally. That's seasonal. Just enquire once you are in Trichur about the water level of these falls and if it's positive, you can include to your trip ]

12. In Chettinadu, the best Place to see the "Chettinad Architectured Houses " is "Kanaadu kathan"[ Place name] .

General :-

1. And As Always,any doubt you have or you hear any new places once you reach Kerala, you may post here and IM'ers will provide their experiences !

2. If You need more info on any of these , Please Post !

Have a Safe & Fantastic trip

Regards
Velu

Gomango24

Once again Velu you have been most helpful with your input and advice, much appeciated.
Some quick questions if I may?
Is it possible or worthwhile to visit the Nilgiris area and the Todas tribe
What about Kottayam, considered to be a beautiful district near the Vembanad Lake?
Also Vaikom, There may be an elephant pageant on Nov/Dec
In Kumarakom is the Sabarimalai worth a visit
Have you included Trichy in the itinerary and what is the main purpose of a visit to Trichy
Thanks for any help you may care to offer Velu, you have been wonderful, regards to snonymous

Gomango

snonymous

Well, as PM Velu already suggested, you can take the Nilgiri Mountain Railway i.e. Toy Train from Mettupalayam to Ooty. There is a Toda mund on top of the botanical garden which has a typical Toda temple and a couple of traditional Toda houses. It is walking distance from the Charring Cross area. The Toda people there are quite happy to show visitors their home and to provide any information. If you want a more serious visit, then go to Palada where the Tribal Research Centre and museum is located. It is 6km from the Ooty station, near Cairn Hill and you can also go for a pleasant nature walk in C. Hill. Im not sure if the autos go there but you can take any public bus towards Palada, Good Shepherd or Ithalar, the service is frequent.

Trichy is well known for its Rock Fort which has three temples and offers good views of the plains from the top. It is perhaps better known for the island of Srirangam 7km away, in the Cauvery river, and its magnificent ancient Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, which in my opinion is architecturally more magnificent than the better known Madurai Meenakshi. From Trichy, it is just about an hour and half drive to Thanjavur, a pleasant alternate route to the highway is to go along the scenic country road along the banks of the Cauvery, passing the Kal Anai [ancient 2000 year old Chola era dam].

For routing and more information, PM Velu is the best!

pmvelu

@Gomango,

Already snonymous provided information on Trichy & Nilgiris !

For your other queries !

You could include Kumarakom which is in the Kottayam district near vembanad Lake !

Sabarimala is a different kind of temple and not usually included in tourneys !. You may skip that ! I did visited that temple as Pilgrim during the season when it will be very heavily crowded but as a part of tour programme, My personal opinion is to skip !

Hope this helps
Velu

Gomango24

Hi Snonymous and Velu.

Once again, I thank you both most sincerely for your wonderful input.My wife and I are most grateful and we are sure that we will have a wonderful time in Southern India.

Kindest regards
Gomango from NZ

pmvelu

You are Most Welcome Gomango !

Have a Fantastic & Safe Trip Ahead !

Best Regards
Velu