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4.19 (36 reviews)
16
Group Tours
8
Private Tours
4
City Explorer
When do you want to go?
2026
I'm flexible
Passengers
Adults (18+)
Children (0 - 17)
Kerala tours tend to start in Kochi, and the shorter loops finish there too. Centuries as a maritime trading hub left the sightseeing layered. A typical day takes in Fort Kochi and the Chinese fishing nets, St Francis Church, the Dutch Palace at Mattancherry and the Paradesi Synagogue of 1568. Many itineraries add a Kathakali performance in the evening.
Kerala tours climb from the coast to Munnar, which sits at around 1,600 metres and runs close to 9°C (16°F) cooler by day. This stop is for the tea estates, usually with a plantation walk and a tasting. The nearby Eravikulam National Park protects the endangered Nilgiri Tahr, though it closes during January and February.
Thekkady is the Kerala tour base for Periyar, the most visited wildlife sanctuary in South India, set around a lake in the spice hills. The boat ride on Periyar Lake brings elephants, bison, sambar deer and wild boar down to the shore, with tigers and leopards a rarer sighting. A guided spice plantation visit covers cardamom, pepper and cinnamon.
The backwaters are the last leg on most Kerala tours. Kumarakom is a village on the banks of Vembanad Lake, and its bird sanctuary draws cormorants and teals between October and February, then egrets and Siberian storks to July. Boarding is at Alleppey or Kumarakom for a night aboard a rice boat, with meals cooked on board.
Kerala tours divide by experience rather than by length. The highlights loop takes in Kochi, the tea hills and a night on the backwaters, a short break covers the water alone, and longer routes finish on the coast or head into Tamil Nadu. The table sets every Kerala holiday side by side.
| Tour | Duration | From price | Group size | Style | Hotel Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keralan Backwaters | 3 days | £396 | Private | City Explorer | Our rating: Deluxe | |
| Kochi, Kerala & Munnar | 5 days | £565 | Max 15 | Group | 3 - 4 star & heritage hotels | |
| Captivating Kerala | 8 days | £1,120 | Max 24 | Group | 3 - 4 star and heritage properties | |
| Kerala & Beach | 10 days | £1,026 | Private | Private | 4-star hotels | |
| Best of South India | 10 days | £1,100 | Max 15 | Group | 3 - 4 star hotels |
Kerala tours tend to fall into four groups. The highlights loop is the one most itineraries follow, a backwaters break covers the famous Kerala backwaters with a night on a houseboat often included, coastal routes add days relaxing by the Arabian Sea, and the longest trips travel across South India to give a flavour of what the country has to offer.
2 to 4 days
Short breaks
Kerala backwaters breaks run short rather than as full loops. Alleppey sits an hour and a half from Kochi, so three or four days covers a night aboard a kettuvallam.
A night aboard a traditional rice boat, with meals cooked and served on board by the crew.
The shorter break stays on the water, while the four-day route adds Thekkady and a boat ride on Periyar Lake.
Kochi to the Alleppey jetty is about 60 kilometres, or roughly an hour and a half by road.
5 to 9 days
The core loop
Kerala highlights tours trace the loop almost every itinerary follows. Kochi first, then the tea hills at Munnar, Periyar wildlife and a night on the backwaters.
Tea country, spice hills, wildlife and a night on the water covered in one loop out of Kochi.
The park at Eravikulam above Munnar shuts for January and February.
A round trip by road from Kochi, about 140 kilometres up to Munnar and 60 kilometres back from Alleppey at the end.
10 days
Tour then stay
Kerala tours with beach stays keep the hills and backwaters, then finish on the Arabian Sea at Kovalam, on the coast south of the water near Trivandrum.
Days on the coast at Kovalam once the loop through the hills is done.
Most of these routes end in the south near Trivandrum rather than returning to Kochi.
One way down the coast from Kochi, finishing at Kovalam near Trivandrum.
7 to 19 days
One-way routes
Kerala and South India tours treat the state as one leg of a longer route. Madurai, Tanjore, Pondicherry and Chennai sit east across the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu.
The temple towns of Tamil Nadu alongside the Kerala backwaters on a single route.
These itineraries often start or end outside Kerala, usually at Chennai.
East over the Western Ghats to Madurai, then on through Tamil Nadu by road.
4.19 (36 reviews)
The houseboat on the backwaters. The calm and peace of Kerala. The beautiful scenery. Guide didn't come with us (we were only 3). My travel agent checked when I booked and was told a guide would accompany us with just 3. Some of the hotels were too remote. They were lively but you couldn't leave the hotel to eat or explore. Particularly in Kochi, the hotel should be in old town.
AmberKerala boat trip. Taj Mahal and observatory on the north tour. Some hotels not quite up to standard. A tipping fee was collected from us in advance but our north India tour guide asked us to top again this not acceptable Kerala tour guide told us a price for each guide so there was no double dipping. Vinesh was very helpful and efficient
AlexAn excellent tour again. The organisation was very good as usual and staff were available at all times especially at arrival and departure.. the guide was excellent and explained the sites in detail. Some hotels were situated away from other facilities and therefore there was no choice but to eat in the hotel. Most hotels served very good food, Some hotels did not serve alcohol. Although not an issue, the odd gin and tonic before dinner would have been nice.( and wine with the meal)
PeterI thought the tour even though was quite short, gave people like us who had never previously been to the India a window to its culture, history, insight to daily life expressed through the guides, nature and other facets that make up the rich tapestry of this colourful, bustling and diverse land Found the time between finishing the first stage and commencing the southern section proper is too drawn out. Suggest those joining the south India tour are flown out of Jaipur to Kochi thus avoiding going back to Delhi and saving a day.
It was the itinerary and destinations and the tour leader was very efficient and knowledgeable.we both enjoyed being in a small group and we got to know each other. The driver was also very good as also the helper. We were well looked after.
The destinations, but mostly the second part of the tour to Kerala was outstanding. It was also greatly enhanced by the tour guide in Kerala as well as having very nice fellow travelling companions
As always, an enjoyable experience but with one or two reservations. We felt that the Fern Hotel and Amberdale, while beautiful, were to far out from the city. There was very little for us to explore nearby and no alternative but to eat in the hotel.
We started the tour with a lack of itinerary as we had not been sent an update since we booked before COVID . It was rather confusing for us. We didn't realize that the initial tour group was to split after a few days. The work involved for the company would have been considerable but it all went s,
Kerala tours run as either group or private trips. Group tours either keep one leader throughout or use local guides at each stop, and private trips run for your party alone.
From £565 · 16 tours
Fully-guided or partially-guided departures
Kerala tours are either fully guided, with a leader alongside local guides throughout or are partially guided with local guides covering each stop.
Set departure dates
Group departures run to a published calendar with the group forming around you.
Travelling with others
Groups are capped, though the cap varies by trip, so check the specific tour if travelling with a crowd matters to you.
Not ideal for young children
Group departures set a minimum age, so families with younger children are better suited to a private trip.
From £625 · 8 tours
Your own guide and driver
A private Kerala tour runs for your party alone with your own guide and driver, rather than a shared coach and a group you have not met.
A private tour guide at each stop
Private trips tend to be partially guided, so a local private tour guide covers Kochi, Munnar and Periyar rather than one leader throughout.
Not tied to a group forming
Private departures do not depend on enough others booking the same dates, so they are always guaranteed.
No fellow travellers
Private trips run for your party alone, so solo travellers and those who want company on the road are better served by a group departure.
From £320 · 4 tours
Based in one place
Short breaks stay in a single spot rather than tracing the loop, whether the backwaters, the tea estates at Munnar or the coast.
Your party only
These run for your own party rather than a group departure, and all four are set at a slow pace.
Suits younger children
Minimum ages start at five on the tea estate and beach breaks, lower than on any other Kerala trip.
The beach breaks are self-guided
Marari and Kovalam come without a guide, so those trips leave the sightseeing and the days to you.
Kerala departures run through the year, but the main season is October through to April. That window carries the widest choice of group tours and the driest weather on the coast, with the fewest departures between June and August when the southwest monsoon crosses the state.
Temperature figures are overnight low to daytime high averages at Kochi airport, 2021 to 2025. Munnar runs close to 9°C (16°F) cooler by day and drops to about 12°C (54°F) on January nights.
Day 1
Day 2
Days 3-4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Eight or nine days covers the full Kerala loop, meaning Kochi, the tea hills at Munnar, the wildlife at Periyar and a night on the backwaters. Five to seven days works if the hill section is shortened or a stop is dropped. Two to four days is enough for the backwaters alone. Ten days and above usually adds the coast at Kovalam or Marari.
What a Kerala tour costs depends on its length, the hotel grade booked and whether it runs as a group departure or privately. Each tour page carries its own from-price alongside the dates it applies to, and the comparison table sets every trip side by side.
A Kerala houseboat is a kettuvallam, a converted rice barge crewed by a small team who cook on board. Boarding is at Alleppey or Kumarakom around the middle of the day, and meals from that point are Keralan and prepared on board. The loop covers around 20 kilometres before disembarking after breakfast.
Kerala is a common first trip to India and a gentler introduction than the north. The loop is compact, the drives between stops run from an hour and a half up to four hours, and it starts and ends in Kochi. Group departures put a tour leader or a local guide with you at each stop. Private trips carry the same route and accept younger travellers.
October through to April is the main season for Kerala tours, and that window carries the widest choice of group departures. February and March are the driest months on the coast at under 40mm of rain each, against more than 450mm in both June and July. Eravikulam National Park above Munnar closes during January and February.
Group Kerala tours run on set dates alongside other travellers, with some departures fully guided by a leader throughout and others handing each stop to a local guide. Private Kerala tours run for your party alone with your own guide and driver, and do not depend on a group forming. City explorers are a third option, staying in one place for two to five days rather than tracing the loop. Minimum ages are lowest on private trips and city explorers.
Transport within Kerala, accommodation and entrance fees where the itinerary includes them. Guiding is covered on routed days across the group and private tours, though the Marari and Kovalam beach breaks are self-guided. Breakfast is included on almost every day, along with the meals served on board during the houseboat night. Arrival transfers are included on most departures, though a departure transfer is sometimes a supplement. International flights are not included unless the itinerary states otherwise.
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