Kerala is the gentler side of India: backwaters instead of desert, tea-scented hills instead of forts, and a coastline that ends in red cliffs rather than a party strip. This route runs south from Kochi's old port, up into the Western Ghats for tea and wildlife, then back down to the coast for a boat, a beach and a cliff.
At a glance
The route
5 stops
- Bus
- Minibus
Is this route for you?
This suits a first Kerala trip, and a first India trip if you'd rather ease in with backwaters and hill air than start with a desert or a big city. It's a good match for anyone who wants nature and a slower pace over forts, temples or nightlife, and it works well as the tail end of a longer South India trip that starts in Goa or Hampi.
Pick something else if you want the desert forts and camel safaris of Rajasthan, the backpacker-hostel energy of Himachal Pradesh, or high-altitude lakes and monasteries in Ladakh. If beaches and nightlife matter more than hills and boats, Goa suits you better than Kerala; see the Goa, Gokarna and Hampi route for that trade-off.
Day by day
Fishing nets, spice streets and a Kathakali show
Kochi
- Morning
- Watch the Chinese fishing nets on Fort Kochi beach, then wander the colonial-era streets nearby.
- Afternoon
- Mattancherry Palace (the Dutch Palace) for its mural paintings, then Jew Town and the Paradesi Synagogue, finishing with a walk through the spice market's sacks of cardamom and pepper.
- Evening
- A Kathakali performance at a Fort Kochi cultural centre. The dancers usually apply their face paint before the show, which is worth watching. Show times and ticket prices vary by venue, so check with the centre.
Eat Kerala-style meen curry (fish curry) with red rice at a Fort Kochi restaurant; appam and stew for breakfast.
Local tip Go to the fishing nets early or late in the day for softer light.
Into the tea hills
Munnar
Getting there Kochi to Munnar by KSRTC bus, about 84 km and roughly 4 hours; a private taxi takes a similar time but is more flexible, and worth splitting between a group.
- Morning
- Travel morning, with the road climbing steadily into tea country from about the halfway point.
- Afternoon
- The Tea Museum for the history of Munnar's tea industry.
- Evening
- A viewpoint over the estates if there's time and light left, otherwise settle in for the night.
Eat Banana chips and filter coffee from a Munnar stall; a simple Kerala dinner.
Local tip If you get travel sick, sit near the front of the bus; the road climbs in hairpins.
Tahr, tea and a spice tasting
Munnar
- Morning
- Eravikulam National Park, home to the Nilgiri tahr, a mountain goat of the Western Ghats. The park was closed from 1 February to 31 March in 2026 for the tahr's calving season and reopened on 1 April. Closures are announced each year, so check the dates before you plan this morning.
- Afternoon
- A walk through a working tea estate, then Mattupetty Dam or Kundala Lake for boating if you'd like the water time.
- Evening
- Free, or a short walk through a spice garden near your guesthouse.
Eat Appam with vegetable stew; a cardamom or clove tasting on a spice-garden walk.
Local tip Buy tea and spices from an estate or plantation outlet, where you can see what you're buying.
A lake safari and a spice plantation
Thekkady
Getting there Munnar to Thekkady (Kumily) by road via Devikulam, about 3 to 4 hours by bus or taxi.
- Morning
- Travel morning.
- Afternoon
- A boat ride on Periyar Lake inside the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Boats are run by the Forest Department and by KTDC, and fares and slots differ, so book through an official booking page rather than a street seller.
- Evening
- A spice plantation walk and cookery demonstration.
Eat Kerala spice-rubbed grilled fish; a fresh pepper or cardamom tasting on the plantation walk.
Local tip Wildlife sightings from the boat vary and aren't guaranteed, so go for the forest and the lake.
Into the backwaters
Alleppey
Getting there Thekkady to Alleppey by road, about 4 to 5 hours by bus or taxi.
- Morning
- Travel morning.
- Afternoon
- Onto the backwaters, by a shared day cruise or a canoe through the narrower canals rather than a private overnight houseboat (see the tip below).
- Evening
- Sunset over the canals, and a Kerala thali either on the boat or at a canal-side restaurant.
Eat Karimeen pollichathu (pearl spot fish steamed in a banana leaf) if a boat kitchen or canal-side place is cooking it that day; otherwise a full Kerala fish thali.
Local tip Private overnight houseboats are priced by the boat, and listings quote their rates for two people, so a solo traveller either pays for a whole boat or looks for something shared. A shared day cruise, a State Water Transport Department boat between Alleppey and Kottayam, or a half-day canoe trip through the quieter canals will all get you onto the water. In a group, a private houseboat booked together makes sense. Check that a houseboat is registered before you book, and wear a life jacket on any boat. Kerala has had fatal tourist-boat accidents, including the Tanur capsize in May 2023, which killed at least 22 people. Onmanorama reported in January 2024 that about half of the roughly 800 houseboats on Vembanad Lake were operating without a licence.
Cliffs over the Arabian Sea
Varkala
Getting there Alleppey to Varkala by road, roughly 2 h 30 min to 3 h by taxi.
- Morning
- A short stop in Alleppey town, on the beach or along the canals, before the transfer.
- Afternoon
- Varkala's cliff path and Papanasam Beach.
- Evening
- Sunset from one of the cliff-top cafés.
Eat Fresh-catch seafood at a cliff café; tender coconut water from a stall along the cliff path.
Local tip Papanasam Beach is named for the belief that a dip in the sea washes away sins, and Hindus use it for ritual bathing. Keep back from the cliff edge: a section of cliff collapsed at Papanasam Beach on 5 July 2026 after rain, and the Tourism Police warned visitors to take extreme care.
A last morning, then depart
Varkala
- Morning
- A cliff walk, or a beach yoga class at one of the cliff-top studios.
- Afternoon
- A last swim or a browse of the cliff-top shops, then transfer to Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram) International Airport, roughly 1 to 1.5 hours by road.
Eat Puttu and kadala curry (steamed rice cake with a spiced chickpea curry) for a last Kerala breakfast.
Local tip If your flight is in the evening, ask your guesthouse whether it can keep your bags after check-out.
The 10-day version
Ten days adds Wayanad's forest hills before Munnar and a slower finish at Kovalam after Varkala.
| Day | Where | What | Eat |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kochi | Fishing nets, Mattancherry, a Kathakali show | Meen curry |
| 2 | Kochi to Wayanad | Travel day, settle in | Wayanad-style thali |
| 3 | Wayanad | The Edakkal Caves (closed Mondays) or the Chembra Peak trek (forest permit and guide needed) | Forest-edge thali |
| 4 | Wayanad to Munnar | A long cross-country transfer | Banana chips en route |
| 5 | Munnar | Eravikulam, a tea estate walk | Appam and stew |
| 6 | Munnar to Thekkady | Periyar lake boat safari | Spice-rubbed fish |
| 7 | Thekkady to Alleppey | Shared backwater cruise | Karimeen pollichathu |
| 8 | Alleppey to Varkala | Cliff and beach time | Cliff-café seafood |
| 9 | Varkala | Cliff walk, a yoga class | Puttu and kadala curry |
| 10 | Varkala to Kovalam, depart Trivandrum | Kovalam's lighthouse beach | Fresh coconut water |
What changes: Wayanad sits north of Kochi rather than on the direct road to Munnar, so the Wayanad-to-Munnar transfer is the trade-off for adding it. It's about 310 km, roughly 5 hours by car and around 8 hours 45 minutes by bus, so plan nothing else around it. If you'd rather skip that leg, treat Wayanad as its own short trip from Kochi and keep the 7-day route above for the coast-to-hills-to-backwaters loop.
What it costs
We don't have a sourced Kerala-only daily budget. Our India cost guide puts a careful backpacker at about ₹2,900 to ₹3,400 a day across India, including a dorm bed, local food and trains, and notes that it varies by region. Between towns, KSRTC buses are the cheapest option and taxis cost more.
Houseboat prices vary widely by boat and season, and the listings we found were undated, so we don't quote one. Before you book, ask for the price per boat, what's included and the boat's registration.
Getting there, away and around
Fly into Kochi's Cochin International Airport (COK) and out of Trivandrum International Airport (TRV) at the southern end of the route. Between towns, KSRTC buses link the main stops; taxis are easier with luggage and worth sharing on longer legs. Kochi itself has a metro line if you're staying a little outside Fort Kochi.
You'll need an e-Tourist visa to enter India. Our India visa guide has the fees, the application steps and the arrival forms.
Best time and festivals on this route
Most guides name November to March as the comfortable season for Kerala. For this route, November to January is the safest window, because Eravikulam National Park is open and the south-west monsoon is over. The Indian Meteorological Department counts October to December as the north-east monsoon season, so some rain is possible early in that window.
Avoid February and March if seeing the Nilgiri tahr at Eravikulam matters to you. The park closed from 1 February to 31 March in 2026 for the calving season, though the rest of the route is unaffected. The south-west monsoon runs from June to September, and heavy rain can affect the hill roads around Munnar and Thekkady in those months.
Onam, Kerala's harvest festival, falls in August or September. The main day, Thiruvonam, was on 26 August in 2026, and in 2027 it falls on 12 September. The festival brings banana-leaf feasts, boat races and flower carpets, but the weather can be wetter. Our Onam guide has the detail.
What to eat on this route
Kerala's food changes as you move: coconut-based fish curries and appam on the coast, spice-forward dishes around Thekkady's plantations, and simple vegetarian thalis in the hills. For the full list of dishes and where to find them, see our Kerala food guide.
None of our current trips run this exact hills-to-backwaters route. Our Goa, Hampi and Kerala Backwaters trip covers Kochi, Alleppey and Varkala as part of a longer west-coast loop, if you'd rather have that section booked with a group.
If you'd rather add a second region than fly home, Tamil Nadu connects from the same end of this route: Madurai is about 275 km from Kochi, at least 4 hours 35 minutes by car and longer by bus, and our Tamil Nadu itinerary covers Chennai down to Madurai in a week or 10 days.
