Please read my earlier posts of Kerala Guide series Here & Here.
Sorry for the delay. I got busy with quarter ending business activities and there was no time to write anything.
Anyway some feedback asked me to give guidance on specific things as to where to stay and what to do? But Ithink I should not deviate from goals, which is to inform about the spirit of this land rather than the physical infrastructure, which is known to all travel agents and available in all guidebooks.
But still I should just give some hints to those backpackers, who do not travel without any plans and are frequently stuck on the street without any clue.
As far as Hotels and accommodation is concerned, Kerala is well endowed. You can find a relatively comfortable Hotel (By comfortable I mean a relatively clean room with an AC) in any mofussil level town in Kerala. The tarrifs at these hotels is also reasonable, by which I mean that it is within Rs. 1200.00. Hotels near major tourist locations such as Alleppy, Kumarakom and Thekkady command very high rates. It is better to stay at these moffusil level places and explore the touristy spots from there if you want to save money. But if you have money to burn then there is nothing like a lake side cottage at Kumarakom and Middle of the forest KTDC Aranya Niwas. You can google these terms and get the results, since I don’t want to do any free publicity for these locations.
As far as service is concerned Kerala hotels are not very reputed and anything less than the very best such as the Taj and Le Meridien, the service ranges from bad to indifferent. Only saving grace at most of these hotels is the food. These Hotels are generally not meant to attract any tourists and cater to the vast NRI population, who support the economy of this state and need some place to stay and unwind.
Most of these small Hotels don’t need any advance reservation. Star accommodation requires advance reservation like everywhere else.
The profusion of these small but OK hotels means that you can have an unplanned back packing trip to Kerala, without worrying about getting lost or stuck. Most of these Hotels are respectable establishments if not very well run, which are suitable to take your family to.
As such this is a very peaceful land, with very little violent and petty crime. Most women go around with Kilos of gold around there necks and limbs, without anybody molesting them. This does not mean that streets are safe late in the night. There is always a risk of being harassed by heavily inebriated men. If you are caught on the street late in the night, the best thing is to make a beeline for your hotel. Don’t try to get off your vehicle and mingle with the crowd. Men who in daytime are peaceful and harmless beings, become demons after downing a few shots.
If there is any trouble approach the nearest police post. Police in Kerala is generally very polite and helpful, especially if you are an outsider. This probably is because lot of policemen and women are highly educated but have joined the force because of dearth of opportunities. Though the police are not very well known for their crime solving prowess they are sincere in traffic direction, helping old people, women, children and lost tourists, which is very important to us.
More Later
