About Kerala
Kerala sits on India’s southwestern coast and is popularly known as “God’s Own Country.” Kerala Tourism’s statistics report describes it as a strip of land between the Arabian Sea and the steep Western Ghats, with an area of about 38,863 sq km and about 33.4 million people at the 2011 Census. Thiruvananthapuram is the capital and the state has 14 districts. Source: Kerala Tourism statistics.
The Kerala Tourism website groups its destinations under hills, waterfalls, backwaters and beaches, and has separate sections on the state’s religious heritage (temples, churches, mosques and the Theyyam and Padayani rituals), Malabar and Ayurvedic wellness. The temple guides below cover Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Palakkad and Thrissur districts.
Places to visit in Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram district
- Sri Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple — in the middle of the capital, with a seven-tiered Raja Gopuram; the deity is Vishnu reclining on the serpent Anantha.
- Pazhavangadi Ganapathy Temple — its guide traces the shrine to Padmanabhapuram, the earlier capital, and its move to Thiruvananthapuram with the capital in 1760 A.D.
- Vellayani Devi Temple — a Bhadrakali shrine near Vellayani lake, whose guide dates its origin to about 850 years ago.
- Trivandrum Zoological Park — a zoo of 36 acres in the city, home to about 82 species of animals according to its guide.
Pathanamthitta district
- Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple — a hilltop Ayyappa temple about 3,000 feet above sea level, open to people of all religions.
- Nilakkal Sri Mahadeva Temple — a Shiva temple on the eastern side of the district, a halting place for Sabarimala pilgrims.
- Pandalam Valiya Koyikkal Temple — the family temple of the Pandalam royal family, from where the Thiruvabharanam procession to Sabarimala starts before the Makara festival.
Alappuzha district
- Chengannur Mahadeva Temple — one of the oldest temples in the district, according to its guide, with a temple legend of a stone that bled.
- Sree Nagaraja Temple, Mannarasala — a snake-god temple at Haripad, whose guide links it to Parashurama’s penance to remove the salinity of the land.
Kottayam district
- Marmala waterfalls — near Teekoy, about 60 m high on the Meenachal River inside a private rubber estate; the guide says it is not safe for bathing.
Palakkad district
- Malampuzha — a landscaped garden below Malampuzha Dam, with fountains, the Yakshi sculpture by Kanayi Kunhiraman, a ropeway and boating.
Thrissur district (Guruvayur)
- Guruvayur Temple — dedicated to Lord Guruvayurappan; its guide lists the Guruvayur Devaswom website as the official source.
- Mammiyoor Mahadeva Temple — about 200 metres north-west of the Guruvayur temple, with Shiva as Uma Maheswara and mural paintings.
- Sri Parthasarathy Temple — a Krishna temple where an elephant procession goes on Guruvayur Ekadasi, according to Kerala Tourism.
Other regions
- Munnar — a hill station highlighted by Kerala Tourism.
- Periyar Tiger Reserve — a wildlife reserve in Idukki district.
- Kovalam and Varkala beaches — among the beaches highlighted by Kerala Tourism.
- Wayanad district — a hill and wildlife region in northern Kerala.
For the current list of attractions and travel information, see the official Kerala Tourism website.
