kerala
                                                                                             fixed departures for 2008
10 Sept – 24 Sept
10 Oct – 24 Oct
 10 Nov – 24 Nov
10 Dec – 24 Dec
10 Jan – 24 Jan

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About the holiday:
Kerala is known as God’s Own Country, without exaggeration. This holiday sketches out a unique route to give you a complete sense of Kerala: from highlands to rivers to backwaters to beaches. This takes you deep into the picturesque Kerala – its unknown territories, a culturally rich river valley civilization, green aromatic spice gardens, famed backwaters and endless beaches.

Through out the trip you will be accompanied by natural and cultural interpreters and story tellers who will take you through our traditions, culture, folklore and our way of living. In the two weeks you spent with us and fellow travelers, you will be enjoying folk expressions, musical trail, country boat and traditional house boat cruises, nature trails, farm stays, spice tours and walking safaris in wildlife sanctuaries.

This trip covers, Wayanad, River Nila, Chimmony, Fort Cochin, Backwater regions of Alleppey and Kumarakom and Varkala.

Accommodation option ranges from small heritage properties, farm stays and even 2 nights of camping in the middle of rainforest. We need a minimum of 4 guests to organise this holiday. Maximum of 10 guests. Trip starts in Cochin and ends in Cochin. Hotels on twin sharing. Single supplement extra.

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The itinerary
Day 1: Cochin – River Nila : Individual pickups from the airport and transfer to Cheruthuruthy along River Nila, the longest river in Kerala (209kms) offers one of the most unique cultural experiences as it has an ancient and steeped in tradition river civilization.

Late evening visit to a nearby village to see fire worshipping, folk performances, handicraft making and pottery. Post twilight is dedicated to percussionists who will take you through many unheard rhythms and sounds. The performance organized by the villagers will be held in the courtyard of one of the houses in our village.

Driving distance in Kms:90  Duration:2hours

Day 2: River Nila : By noon we leave for an organic farm visit that hosts a 400 year old heritage house that represents traditional living in our area.

Post lunch with the family, we will go for a country boat cruise that goes through a stunning landscape comprising small canals, rivers and backwaters of relatively unknown area called Tirur. This trip goes through several small islands where various communities of toddy tappers, coir rope workers and fishing communities live.

Driving distance in Kms:55  Duration: 1hr 30 mins

Day 3: River Nila – Wayanad : Forenoon is dedicated to showcase the percussion culture of the river valley civilization. This involves a lecture demonstration of various styles of music and how certain school of music evolved on the banks of the river Nila. Imagine the symphony with traditional musical instruments!?.

Afternoon drive to Wayanad through the beautiful mountain ranges of western ghats. Overnight in a spice farm.

Driving distance in Kms :Morning 25 kms Duration:45mins.Afternoon 130 kms Duration 4 hours

Day 4: Wayanad : Vasco da Gama came to Kerala looking for the spices in the district of Wayanad. Rich in wildlife, Wayanad's mountainous terrain houses the best in wildlife and spreads the aroma of coffee, cardamom and vanilla. Situated in the southern region of the Deccan plateau bordering Karnataka state, this district is as good as a wildlife sanctuary.

Today we go for a spice plantation tour and to meet with local farmers. Evening we go for a short trek to the waterfalls inside the rainforest. Overnight in planters house.

Driving distance in Kms:15 Duration:45 mins.

Day 5 Wayanad: The two wildlife Sanctuaries of Tholpetty and Muthanga in Wayanad offer excellent wildlife spotting. The animal population of the sanctuary ranges from Asiatic Elephant, Tiger, Panther, Jungle cat, Civet ,Nilgiri Langur, Wild dog, Wild gaur, Spotted deer, Sambar, Malabar squirrel and Bear.  Peacock, Babblers, Cuckoos, Owl, Wood pecker and Jungle fowl are only a few among the different types of birds seen in the area.

Walking safari in the wildlife sanctuary. Our guides know the best watering holes  and the best grazing spots. Afternoon we climb the hills to explore the mysteries of Edakkal Caves. Overnight in the planters house.

Driving distance in Kms: 47  Duration:1hours 30 mins.

Day 6 Wayanad – Chimmony: Drive down the stunningly beautiful ghats to the historic city of Calicut. Transfer to Thrissur by train. The train crisscrosses many rivers, paddy fields and rivulets before you reach Thrissur. This 3 hour journey will take you through places like Kallai, Kadalundi, Tirur and Shornur along the Nila.

From Thrissur, you will transferred to boat landing area in the Chimmony Wildlife Sanctuary. Options to go by boat or trek couple of hours to reach the camp site. Overnight camping.

Driving distance in Kms: By road 105 Duration:3 hours. By train 200kms 3 hours

Day 7 Chimmony:

Short trek for wildlife spotting. Almost all the species of fauna of the peninsular India are well represented in the sanctuary. Bonnet macaque, Nilgiri langur, Lion tailed macaque and Slender Loris are generally sighted. There is also a small population of Leopards in the sanctuary. Other species like Asiatic Elephant, Mongoose, Sambar deer, Spotted deers, Wild dogs, Sloth bear, Indian giant squirrels and wild guars have been spotted within the sanctuary limits.

Explore the wildlife Sanctuary through the lake in a bamboo raft. Overnight camping.

Day 8 Chimmony to Fort Cochin: Post breakfast, transfer to Fort Cochin. Chinese and Arab traders are believed to have been the first traders to this port, heralding a wave of subsequent visitors, the Portuguese, Dutch and British, who brought in the era of colonial power to the region. Though one of the most popular tourist destinations in Kerala, Fort Cochin still maintain its laid back nature.

Overnight in a small heritage hotel. Driving distance in Kms:115  Duration:3 hours

Day 9 Fort Cochin: One thing that all colonial visitors had in common was the quest for exotic spices, like pepper, ginger, cardamom, cloves and turmeric. Kochi was able to offer in abundance the best of the spices to the world, a reputation that continues to this day. Take a tour of spice market, see how they fix price and call for quotes.

Get to know Kochi more through a day visit including Jew town, Synagogue, and Beaches.Overnight in the heritage hotel. Driving distance in Kms:  Duration:

Day 10 Fort Cochin to Kumarakom: Transfer to Kumarakom. The village of Kumarakom is a cluster of little islands on the Vembanad Lake, and is part of the Kuttanad region. Known for its birdlife, Kumarakom is one of the most popular backwater regions in Kerala.

Relax and overnight in the backwater resort. Driving distance in Kms:80 Duration:2 hours

Day 11 Kumarakom – Alleppey: Transfer to the boat jetty to board the houseboat. The magnificently built traditional house boats will be cruising through the backwaters of Kuttanad -the rice bowl of Kerala and Alleppey (Alappuzha) in Kerala. The cruise will go along vast paddy fields, Chinese fishing nets, coconut grooves, and local villages to provide a glimpse of local culture and activities. This region is probably one of the few areas in the world where paddy is cultivated below sea level.

Sunset cruise and anchor the boat. Overnight in the houseboat. Duration:5 hours of cruise 

Day 12 Alleppey – Varkala : After a short morning cruise and breakfast, transfer to the beach destination of Varkala. Varkala is a seaside tourism destination famous for its beaches and cliffs with countless coconut palms in the backdrop. It is also an important Hindu centre of pilgrimage.

Spend the evening in the beach. Overnight in the beach hotel.
Driving distance in Kms:120  Duration:2hours 30 mins

Day 13 Varkala: Visit a local project that has literally changed the lives of many hundreds of children and women. Meet them in their schools, interact, tell them and listen to some stories.

Rest of the day all for yourselves. Overnight in the beach hotel.

Day 14 Varkala – Cochin Airport: Transfer to Cochin Airport according to your flight timing. End of service. Driving distance in Kms:176  Duration:3hours 30 mins.

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How this holiday benefits local people and the environment:

Our company was set up to help raise funds for Nila Foundation to revive and regenerate a dying river in Central Kerala. 20% of the profit from our business is annually kept apart for the foundation.

Once practiced in several places in Kerala and especially on the banks of River Nila, featured art forms and rituals are no longer financially viable for people who practice it as there are less and less people who are showing interest in these rituals (change in life style and attitude). This has affected the way of life of these ritualistic performers and they have been looking for other jobs based on daily wages. The Responsible tourism initiative has helped some of our community members to continue their lifestyle and earn from what they know for many generations; instead of having to look for a lifestyle they aren’t comfortable with.

Due to many social restrictions, they have no access to perform in temples and courtyards which are otherwise restricted only to musicians of upper caste Hindus. These members from the poor families make a living out of traditional launderettes and daily-wage jobs which are very seasonal. Now the program has shown them an alternative source of income and more than everything, sense of pride and social recognition.

The boats we travel were traditionally used for transporting fine sand and coconut husks to different locations. (In River Nila, most of the boats are used for illegal sand mining). A slump in the local economy and falling market prices along with the ban in sand mining has hit the boat owners and workers. We believe that by hiring these boats from them instead of owning our own boats, for ferrying tourists, we could give them an alternative source of income. This in turn gives them a dignified job and decent income to live with.

Part of this holiday supports those people who live on the fringes of the forest as trackers, guides and interpreters. Due to several "social re-engineering" and political decisions, many of the tribal people have been forced to leave the forest and are no longer associated with its day to day activities. This particular trip focuses on their role as care takers of forest, its resources and wildlife and by doing so also assures them a decent livelihood with dignity. Sustainable income through responsible tourism ensures increasing interest amongst local community members, which in turn supports conservation of wildlife and forest resources.

The Kodeeri Natural Camp is a pioneering partner of Nila Foundation and The Blue Yonder that brought in our traditional life style back into our communities. The centre provides jobs to local women and is now setting up a Self Help Groups for women to engage in organic farming and provide market assistance for the same.

Lullaby at Varkala is a pioneering project that uses tourism as a tool for greater social awareness amongst local people as well as travelers. By facilitating interaction between tourists and locals and by channelling the wealth of tourism for the uplifting of children, women and economically weaker sections of society, Lullaby seeks to create a symbiotic relationship between tourism and the populace.
 

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