Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The sedate
bus stand
(Kovalam Rd)
is a 10-minute walk west of the centre and there's a handy
SETC booking office
MAP
(cnr Main Rd & New St; 7am-9pm)
in town. Ordinary buses go about
hourly to both Madurai (?140 to ?150) and Trivandrum (?65, 2½ hours). The most com-
fortable buses are the so-called Ultra Deluxe (UD), which includes the following:
Chennai
?520, 12 to 15 hours, seven daily
Kodaikanal
?300, 10 hours, 8.15pm
Madurai
?210, four hours, seven daily
TAXI
Drivers ask ?1500 for a ride to Kovalam.
TRAIN
The train station is a walkable distance north of the centre. The one daily northbound
train, the Kanyakumari Express, departs at 5.20pm for Chennai (sleeper/3AC/2AC/1AC
?305/831/1245/2125, 13½ hours) via Madurai (?157/398/640/1080, 4½ hours) and Trichy
(?204/538/790/1345, 7¼ hours). Two daily express trains depart in the morning for
Trivandrum (2nd-class/sleeper/3AC/2AC ?31/120/218/610, 2¼ hours), both continuing to
Kollam and Ernakulam. Several more trains go from Nagercoil Junction, 15km northwest
of Kanyakumari.
For real long-haulers or train buffs, the Vivek Express runs all the way to Dibrugarh in
Assam, 4241km and 85 hours away - the longest single train ride in India. It departs from
Kanyakumari at 2.45pm Saturday (sleeper/3AC/2AC ?673/1948/3340).
