Kumarakom Travel Video Guide

Kumarakom Travel Itinerary

• Maps and flag of India
• Kumarakom travel photos
• Kumarakom travel forum
• Flights to Kumarakom
• Hotels in Kumarakom
• Hostels in Kumarakom
• Buy the guide book!

KUMARAKOM , 16km west of Kottayam, is technically an island on Vembanad Lake. Although right in the thick of a tangle of lush tropical waterways, it can be reached quite easily by bus from Kottayam (every 10min). The peak time to visit the Bird Sanctuary , which is no longer negotiable by boat since the channels have been choked by African moss, is between November and March when it serves as a winter home for many migratory birds, some from as far away as Siberia. Species include the darter or snake bird, little cormorant, night heron, golden-backed woodpecker, crow pheasant, white-breasted water hen and tree pie. Enthusiasts should visit the sanctuary at dawn, which is the quietest and best time for viewing, and the early rays of sunlight falling through the lush tropical canopy are beautiful. Although the island is quite small, a guide is useful; you can arrange one through the KTDC Water Scapes or another of the luxury hotels.

Next to the sanctuary, set in waterside gardens, a refurbished colonial bungalow that once belonged to a family of Christian missionaries and rubber planters forms the nucleus of a luxury hotel , The Taj Garden Retreat (tel 0481/524377; Rs2500 and upwards). There are a couple of dozen "cottages" and a kettu vallam longboat grouped around a landscaped garden and direct water access to the lake. However, it's not nearly as impressive as the very friendly and understated Coconut Lagoon Hotel (tel 0481/524491, fax 524495; Rs2500 and upwards), 1km northwest and reached by launch (you can telephone for the boat from a kiosk at the canal side). Superbly crafted from fragments of ruined Keralan palaces, with beautiful woodcarvings and brass work, the building alone merits a visit. It was designed in traditional Keralan style, and its air of low-key elegance is set off perfectly by the location on the edge of Vembanad Lake. Even if you can't afford to stay here, consider eating Keralan specialities at the restaurant .

A new rival has emerged, the Kumarakom Lake Resort , 3km from the village and just before the Taj (tel 0481/524900, fax 524987; Rs2500 and upwards). This ostentatious place takes the concept of a heritage resort to the extreme with two beautiful 300-year-old palaces recovered and reconstructed on site, ultra-luxurious cottages made up from bits of old Keralan houses, each with an outdoor bathroom hidden in a little lush garden behind. The Ayurveda centre has two doctors, four massage rooms, and the swimming pool has a jacuzzi whose water laps the edge of the lake. Nearby, the slightly cheaper KTDC's Water Scapes right on the lake (tel 0481/525861, fax 525862; Rs2500 and upwards) consists of comfortable a/c cottages built on stilts. Unfortunately, very few of the cottages have a decent view over the lake and there are too many ugly metal walkways and buildings on the lakefront; it is however, very convenient for the bird sanctuary. Alternatively, you can drift across the lake on one of their luxury kettu vallams moored here (book through Water Scapes ; Rs2500 and upwards). If you are on a budget, take advantage of the excellent Moolappura Guest House , just 200m before the bus stand at the

Taj (tel 0481/525980; Rs400-600), which has just two simple rooms with attached bathrooms in the family house. The family is very warm and welcoming: they offer rides on their dugout boats, and can even boast of a professional chef among their number, who whips up delicious Keralan and continental dishes.

Besides the hotels, the only other place to eat is KTDC's uninspiring cafe at the Tourist Complex near where the bus from Kottayam pulls in, close to the Taj gates.

Your Tips For Kumarakom

IMEO

SHAIK IMRAN says "HOW TO MAKE TAJMEHEL [INSUTREMENTS
"

• Kerala India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  A sliver of dense greenery sandwiched between the Arabian Sea and the forested Western Ghat mountains, the state of KERALA runs down the southwest coast of India, around 550km long and 120km wide at its broadest point. - India
  

• Calcutta (Kolkata) India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  One of the four great urban centres of India, CALCUTTA is to its proud citizens the equal of any city in the country in charm, variety and interest. - India
  

• Agra India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  The splendour of AGRA - capital of all India under the Moghuls - remains undiminished, from the massive fort to the magnificent Taj Mahal . - India
  

• Delhi India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  Delhi is the symbol of old India and new ? even the stones here whisper to our ears of the ages of long ago and the air we breathe is full of the dust and fragrances of the past, as also of the fresh and piercing winds of the present. - India
  

• Fatehpur Sikri India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  The ghost city of FATEHPUR SIKRI , former imperial capital of the great Moghul emperor Akbar , straddles the crest of a rocky ridge, 40km southwest of Agra. - India
  

• Bombay (Mumbai) India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  Young, brash and oozing with the cocksure self-confidence of a maverick moneymaker, MUMBAI (formerly Bombay ) revels in its reputation as India's most dynamic and Westernized city. - India
  

• Rajasthan India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  India's largest state, RAJASTHAN , emerged after Partition from a mosaic of eighteen feudal kingdoms, known in the British era as Rajputana , "Land of Kings". - India
  

• Varanasi India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  Older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together . - India
  

• Goa India Travel Videos
  India Travel Itinerary
  If one word could be said to encapsulate the essence of GOA , it would have to be the Portuguese sossegarde , meaning "carefree". - India