Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
An autorickshaw from the jetty to the KSRTC bus stand is around ?40, and from the bus
stand to the train station about ?30. Most trips around town cost ?30.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Around Kottayam
Kumarakom
0481
Kumarakom, 16km west of Kottayam and on the shore of Vembanad Lake - Kerala's
largest lake - is an unhurried backwater town with a smattering of dazzling top-end sleep-
ing options and a renowned bird sanctuary. You can arrange houseboats through Ku-
marakom's less-crowded canals, but expect to pay considerably more than in Alleppey.
Arundhati Roy, author of the 1997 Booker Prize-winning
The God of Small Things,
was raised in the nearby Aymanam village.
Sights & Activities
Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary
(Indian/foreigner ?30/100, video ?1000; 6am-5pm)
This reserve on the five-hectare site of a former
rubber plantation is the haunt of a variety of domestic and migratory birds. October to
February is the time for travelling birds like the garganey teal, osprey, marsh harrier and
steppe eagle; May to July is the breeding season for local species such as the Indian shag,
pond herons, egrets and darters. Early morning is the best viewing time. A guide costs
?200 for a two-hour tour (?300 from 6am to 8am).
Buses between Kottayam's KSRTC stand and Kumarakom (?15, 30 minutes, every 15
minutes) stop at the entrance to the bird sanctuary.
NATURE RESERVE
Sleeping
Cruise 'N Lake
( 2525804;
www.homestaykumarakom.com
; Puthenpura Tourist Enclave, Cheepunkal; r ?1500, with AC ?2000;
)
Location, location. Surrounded by backwaters on one side and a lawn of rice paddies on
RESORT
$$
