Kerala moves at a pace that is entirely its own. This 8-day journey traces a diagonal across the state from Cochin in the north to Trivandrum in the south, passing through some of the most visually and culturally distinct landscapes in India. The route begins at sea level, climbs into the tea-covered hills of Munnar, descends into the spice forests around Thekkady, opens out onto the backwaters of Alleppey and Kumarakom, and ends at the coast in Kovalam and Poovar.
Each destination on this itinerary has a character that is genuinely different from the last. Munnar is cool and green, with mornings that carry the smell of tea and mist. Thekkady sits at the edge of the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, where the evenings belong to spice markets and forest sounds. The backwaters of Alleppey and Kumarakom are unlike anything else in India: a network of canals, lakes, and paddy fields where life unfolds on the water. Kovalam and Poovar close the trip with the Arabian Sea, long beaches, and the particular unhurried quality that comes at the end of a journey well made.
