The Spice Route  

You arrive at Cochin Airport today, where you are met and escorted to your hotel.

Cochin, one of the most picturesque places in Kerala.  Its past is so rich that it could lay a valid claim to being a museum city.  Cochin is a beautiful all weather harbor and a grand seascape, one of India’s largest ports and a major naval base. At dusk you can see the dim silhouettes of huge merchant ships patiently awaiting their turn for a berth in the docks. The influence of Chinese, Jews, Arabs and Europeans is evident in Cochin and its people.  The older parts of Fort Cochin and Mattanchery are an unlikely blend of medieval Portugal, Holland and an English country village grafted onto the tropical Malabar Coast.   Despite this, Cochin is an attractive city with serene backwaters, lagoons overhung with feathery coconut palms and picturesque islands.

This evening you visit the Bolgatty Palace to watch the famous colorfully costumed Kathakali dance drama. You will arrive earlier at the show venue, so that you can get a backstage view of the performers preparing for the show. 

Kathakali is a ritualized dance form, native to Kerala; elaborate costumes and makeup, are the norm. Male dancers portray both male and female roles.

Overnight at Hotel.

After breakfast at hotel, proceed for a full day city tour of Cochin.

Visit the Portuguese St. Francis Church, considered the first European Church in India, built in 1562 by St. Francis; this is India’s oldest European-built church.  The original structure was wood, but was rebuilt in stone in the mid-16th century.  Continue on to Mattancherry Dutch Palace, a double-storied palace built in the classic Kerala nallukettu style, denoted an interesting blend of European and indigenous forms of architecture.  The most important feature of Mattancherry Palace is the murals in the bedchambers and other rooms, which depict scenes from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Puranic legends connected with Shiva, Vishnu & Krishna,  These murals are some of the most beautiful and extensive, one of the wonders of India. 

You now proceed to the Jewish Synagogue, which was constructed in 1568 and is the oldest in the Commonwealth.  A stone slab from the Kochangadi synagogue (built in 1344, and has disappeared), inscribed in Hebrew, can be found on the inner surface of the wall.  The copper plates on which have inscribed grants of privileges made by the ruler are also to be found here. At the Cochin Harbor, you can watch the fishermen using strange Chinese fishing nets to catch fishes from a tiny waterfront area strewn with natural rocks.

Overnight at Hotel.

 After breakfast at hotel, drive to Kumarakom (50 miles/2hours approximately).  Upon arrival check-in at our hotel.

Later in the afternoon, you enjoy a boat ride through the series of canals and lagoons snaking their way through several tiny villages and tropical vegetation. 

Not only do the backwaters of Kerala link the state together, they are an integral element in maintaining ecological balance and creating harmony with nature.  You may want to experience an Ayurvedic therapeutic massage, which is both relaxing and healing and is indigenous to this region.  

Overnight at Hotel.

After breakfast at hotel, you take a cruise this morning on Vembanad Lake, site of a bird sanctuary. 

Water fowl, cormorants, egrets and teals are seen in abundance.

Afternoon at your leisure.  Overnight at Hotel.

After breakfast, you drive today to Thekkady (81 miles/5 hours),

This unique wildlife sanctuary is about 300 square miles and centered around an artificial lake fed by this Periyar River. 

Upon arrival check in at the hotel. 

This afternoon, our naturalist will accompany you to the jetty where you will board the specially deseigned boats for game viewing.

You sail along the convoluted waterways and afford sightings of elephant, bison, deer and occasionally tiger. Like a placid river, the lake winds around capes and hills and is the heart of the 300 sq. mile sanctuary

Return to your hotel for overnight stay.

 After breakfast at the hotel, you leave Thekkady in the morning and drive to Tiruchirapalli (95 miles/3 hours).  Upon arrival check in at the our hotel 

Afternoon embark on a city tour.

Visit the spectacular Rock Fort temple, a boulder of giant proportions perched on top of a hill with images carved into it.  Climb the 400-odd steps from the entrance to the summit.  On the way is a tunnel said to lead to Thanjavur, now sealed.  Sri Rangam temple is sprawled over a large area, on an island as the Cauvery flows on both sides.  It houses the image of the sleeping Vishnu along the mortal remains of Sri Ramanuja Achraya.

Overnight at hotel.

 After breakfast drive to Pondicherry (157 miles/7 hours) en route sight seeing tour of Kubakonam, Darasuram, Gagaikondachaolapuram, Chikdambaram temples.

Between two rivers in a 40 acre temple-complex, lies the temples of Chidambaram, one of the oldest, most venerated and magnificent temples of South India.  Shiva Nataraja or the dancing Shiva stands in his cosmic dance pose in the golden rooted sanctum sanctorum.  Flanking the temple are 108 sculptured illustrations of Bharat Natya Shashtra.

Upon arrival in Pondicherry, check in at your hotel for overnight.

 After breakfast at the hotel, tour the town of Pondicherry.

The city is the capital of the Union Territory of Pondicherry, a seaport on the Coromandel Coast. Besides shipping, the chief industry of the city is the manufacture of cotton textiles. It was the capital of former French India.

You later in the day proceed to Mahabalipuram (69 miles/3 hours) and upon arrival, you check in at your hotel. 

The shore temple, the only surviving one of seven, is a unique example of a temple built of rock quarried elsewhere and carried to shore.  The best-known of the rock carvings is the immense bas-relief which is sculpted in fascinating detail on a huge whaleback-shaped rock, depicts the descent of the Ganges to the earth, the penance of Arjuna and myriad characters from the Mahabharata.

Overnight is at the hotel.

After breakfast you visit the temples.

This ancient Pallawan port of Mamallapuram, the seventh century rock hewn monuments.  You leave your car here and visit the shore temple, the only surviving one of seven, is a unique example of a temple built of rock quarried elsewhere and carried to shore.  The best-known of the rock carvings is the immense bas-relief which is sculpted in fascinating detail on a huge whaleback-shaped rock, depicts the descent of the Ganges to the earth, the penance of Arjuna and myriad characters from the Mahabharata. 

Afternoon is at leisure.  Overnight is at the hotel.

 After breakfast at the hotel you drive to Chennai and en route visiting one of India’s seven great Hindu cities, Kanchipuram.

Kanchipuram is one of India’s seven great Hindu cities, Kanchipuram is believed to help confer eternal happiness on its visitors.  One of South India’s ancient cities, Kanchipuram’s history dates back to the 2nd century when it was the capital of the Cholas.

Continue to Chennai. 

Chennai was the site of the first settlement of the East India Company. It was founded in 1639, on a piece of land given by the Raja of Chandragiri, the last representative of the Vijayanagar rulers of Hampi.  Chennai is a vibrant city that has managed to strike a beautiful balance between the modern and the traditional, a metropolis with a distinct old – world charm

Upon arrival in Chennai late this afternoon, check in at your hotel.

Overnight is at the hotel.

After breakfast you go on a short sight seeing tour of the city.

Victoria Art Gallery, which houses a rare collection of sculptures depicting the story of the life of Buddha and Visit Fort St. George, 350 year-old-fort with wide battlements considered as a reminder of the British Empire and now houses the Secretariat and the Legislative Assembly.  St. Mary’s Church, the oldest Anglican church consecrated in 1680 located within the Fort; and the Fort St George Museum which contains some fascinating items belonging to the early days of the East India Company and the colonial period.  

Drive along Marina Beach, visiting San Thome Cathedral Church, name after the Apostle, St. Thomas by the Portuguese who call it San Thome.  It was believed that his remains were enshrined in the church. 

Your last stop is Kapaleeswarar, an ancient Shiva temple, which is the biggest temple in Madras and dedicated to Lord Shiva. 

This afternoon an excursion to Dakshinachitra.

Reconstructing the timeless setting of the 19th century, it offers you an unforgettable and euphoric glimpse of the diverse lifestyles of four Southern States of India Tamil Nadu, Andra Pradesh, Kerala & Karnatka..

Dakshinachitra, a serene and calm retreat for the esthetic conscious, transports you into a fantasy world of make believe.

Overnight at hotel.

 After breakfast our representative will meet you to escort you to the aiport for your onward flight.