It is the land of lord Padmanabha ; soil of the travancore kings in gods own country.
The mighty arabian waves wash through the enchanting coast, plush green coconut trees deck up most of the land which is surrounded by seven hills.
Thiruvananthapuram, meaning "city of Anantha Padmanabha", known internationally as "Trivandrum", is the state capital of Kerala, and is located on the western coast of mainland India. If you are looking for a beautiful landscape, great food, mix of modern times set in a backdrop of medieval Indian architecture and a wonderful cultural experience; this is the place to be.
How to get there: Thiruvananthapuram International airport , the first in the state is located around 15 kms from main city and is easily accessible. It is connected well to UAE, Singapore and seasonal flights to Australia/ Europe too. The Trivandrum central railway station and bus stand are located at Thampanoor and connect the capital to all parts of Kerala and India well. The roads are great, but watch out for occasional potholes , esp during the monsoon season. The state is densely populated, so the highways are not really "freeways" to zoom through. They are narrow and there are just too many heavy vehicles using it. To commute within the city, there are auto rickshaws that are reasonably priced. Taxis are available from the airport, railway station and bus stand.
When to go: If you love the rains, the best time to go is during the harvest festival season. Onam, the main festival in Kerala, is celebrated between August - September every year as per the local calendar. The city is decorated and there is a whole week of tourism promotional events that happen which ends with a grand procession. Spoiler Alert - Mind the rains and the crowd. Not for fussy travellers. October - February is usually considered peak tourist season. The native language is Malayalam, but the state is one of the most literate in India, so you can move around easily with English and Hindi too.
Where to stay: There are many 5 star beach resorts like - Taj , Poovar island resorts etc that a comfortable stay in world class facilities. For people who want to blend in with the city have an option of a good amount of hotels with accommodation within the city. One should think twice before booking secluded places and quite corners in the city. Homestays can also be tricky. With a sudden influx of labourers from other states in Northern India, the safety quotient of the city has gone down.
Places to see: The city has a good mix of places of historical importance, beautiful scenery and for relaxation. A typical tourist package would cover the below.
- Backwaters of Veli tourist village.
- Kovalam beach, hot favourite among tourists. This beach is one of the busiest during tourist season. It has some amazing beach shacks, resorts, traditional ayurvedic massage centres, local shopping centres etc.
- Shanghumukham beach - As the name suggest, the coast line is shaped in the shape of a conch.
- Varkala Beach.
- The Padmanabha swamy temple. There are some traditional rules followed here. Read up on some do's and don'ts before your visit to temple. For e.g: dress code. Apart from temple, there are lot more things to see and do at East Fort. Ramanayar Palace and KuthiraMalika palace museums have a good collection of antiques from the royal times.
- The city's zoo is a good picnic spot if you are travelling with kids. But do mind a little stenchy smell here and there.
-Sri Chitra art gallery. This is haven for the art lovers. They have a lovely collection of Raja Ravivarma paintings that are famous around the world.
- Kanakakunnu palace is the place where all the cultural festivities happen. It is the place to be during the harvest festival season. There are exhibitions, food stalls, traditional dance performances and a kids fair.
What to Shop: Most tourists come for the traditional ayurvedic experience which is getting more and more popular. They come and get a full ayurvedic treatment, buy oils and consumables for a year before they head back. The next best thing that people buy is gold. Almost every street has a jewellery shop, but look for ISI mark 22 carat pure gold. It makes sense to buy it from leading jewellery shops such as Bhima, Malabar gold, Joyalukkas, Kalyan etc. The traditional off white costume with pure gold zari work , a cotton hand weave of kerala also appeal to the west. Banana chips made from raw banana fried in coconut oil is another must buy. The local shops at East Fort , Chalai bazar and Palayam market are good places to buy all of these. Brass antiques and khadi weave from SMSM behind the old secretariat building is quite famous.
Food lovers paradise: When in the capital, a must have is the traditional tapioca and fish curry meal. A wide variety of local seafood flavours are available at most of the restaurants here. Mubarak, a non vegetarian paradise is located in the busy streets of chalai bazar. There are specific hotels for pure vegetarians. One should look for chains of "Aryaas, ananda bhavan, arya bhavan around the city. You can also get a decent North Indian, Chinese , Italian, Maldivian food around the city quite easily. One should also definitely not miss the late night food stalls, popularly known as "thattukada". The hot dosas served with sambar and spicy chutney is sure to leave your taste buds wanting more. While at it, do not miss the double omelet and end it with a piping hot cup of "chaya" (tea).
The mighty arabian waves wash through the enchanting coast, plush green coconut trees deck up most of the land which is surrounded by seven hills.
Thiruvananthapuram, meaning "city of Anantha Padmanabha", known internationally as "Trivandrum", is the state capital of Kerala, and is located on the western coast of mainland India. If you are looking for a beautiful landscape, great food, mix of modern times set in a backdrop of medieval Indian architecture and a wonderful cultural experience; this is the place to be.
 |
| "lakshadeepam festival at anantha padmanabha swamy temple. Happens once in 6 years. |
How to get there: Thiruvananthapuram International airport , the first in the state is located around 15 kms from main city and is easily accessible. It is connected well to UAE, Singapore and seasonal flights to Australia/ Europe too. The Trivandrum central railway station and bus stand are located at Thampanoor and connect the capital to all parts of Kerala and India well. The roads are great, but watch out for occasional potholes , esp during the monsoon season. The state is densely populated, so the highways are not really "freeways" to zoom through. They are narrow and there are just too many heavy vehicles using it. To commute within the city, there are auto rickshaws that are reasonably priced. Taxis are available from the airport, railway station and bus stand.
When to go: If you love the rains, the best time to go is during the harvest festival season. Onam, the main festival in Kerala, is celebrated between August - September every year as per the local calendar. The city is decorated and there is a whole week of tourism promotional events that happen which ends with a grand procession. Spoiler Alert - Mind the rains and the crowd. Not for fussy travellers. October - February is usually considered peak tourist season. The native language is Malayalam, but the state is one of the most literate in India, so you can move around easily with English and Hindi too.
Where to stay: There are many 5 star beach resorts like - Taj , Poovar island resorts etc that a comfortable stay in world class facilities. For people who want to blend in with the city have an option of a good amount of hotels with accommodation within the city. One should think twice before booking secluded places and quite corners in the city. Homestays can also be tricky. With a sudden influx of labourers from other states in Northern India, the safety quotient of the city has gone down.
Places to see: The city has a good mix of places of historical importance, beautiful scenery and for relaxation. A typical tourist package would cover the below.
- Backwaters of Veli tourist village.
- Kovalam beach, hot favourite among tourists. This beach is one of the busiest during tourist season. It has some amazing beach shacks, resorts, traditional ayurvedic massage centres, local shopping centres etc.
- Shanghumukham beach - As the name suggest, the coast line is shaped in the shape of a conch.
- Varkala Beach.
- The Padmanabha swamy temple. There are some traditional rules followed here. Read up on some do's and don'ts before your visit to temple. For e.g: dress code. Apart from temple, there are lot more things to see and do at East Fort. Ramanayar Palace and KuthiraMalika palace museums have a good collection of antiques from the royal times.
- The city's zoo is a good picnic spot if you are travelling with kids. But do mind a little stenchy smell here and there.
-Sri Chitra art gallery. This is haven for the art lovers. They have a lovely collection of Raja Ravivarma paintings that are famous around the world.
- Kanakakunnu palace is the place where all the cultural festivities happen. It is the place to be during the harvest festival season. There are exhibitions, food stalls, traditional dance performances and a kids fair.
 |
| the lovely Kovalam beach. |
What to Shop: Most tourists come for the traditional ayurvedic experience which is getting more and more popular. They come and get a full ayurvedic treatment, buy oils and consumables for a year before they head back. The next best thing that people buy is gold. Almost every street has a jewellery shop, but look for ISI mark 22 carat pure gold. It makes sense to buy it from leading jewellery shops such as Bhima, Malabar gold, Joyalukkas, Kalyan etc. The traditional off white costume with pure gold zari work , a cotton hand weave of kerala also appeal to the west. Banana chips made from raw banana fried in coconut oil is another must buy. The local shops at East Fort , Chalai bazar and Palayam market are good places to buy all of these. Brass antiques and khadi weave from SMSM behind the old secretariat building is quite famous.
Food lovers paradise: When in the capital, a must have is the traditional tapioca and fish curry meal. A wide variety of local seafood flavours are available at most of the restaurants here. Mubarak, a non vegetarian paradise is located in the busy streets of chalai bazar. There are specific hotels for pure vegetarians. One should look for chains of "Aryaas, ananda bhavan, arya bhavan around the city. You can also get a decent North Indian, Chinese , Italian, Maldivian food around the city quite easily. One should also definitely not miss the late night food stalls, popularly known as "thattukada". The hot dosas served with sambar and spicy chutney is sure to leave your taste buds wanting more. While at it, do not miss the double omelet and end it with a piping hot cup of "chaya" (tea).
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