You know that you are gonna rock when you go solo and this is my story, how I rocked it. I started my journey from Delhi, my flight was at 5 am which reached Cochin by 8AM. I deliberately booked it on such odd hours so that I could watch the sunrise and travel more precisely in the day time. it was my first time exploring southernmost part of India and also most awaited trip of my bucket list.
COCHIN TO MUNNAR
Day1: I took a local bus from Cochin airport to Aluva (16 INR) and it took me hardly 20-25 minutes to reach there . from Aluva I took another bus to Munnar (94 INR) around 10:45 am. you will find the information regarding buses on KSRCTC website. you can also go for ERNAKULAM TO MUNNAR route, it has more frequent bus channels as compared to Aluva.
note: all the ksrtc bus's boards are written in Malayalam so you will have to face quite a problem in navigating the buses but you can always ask help from localities.
MUNNAR
my experience in Munnar was not very pleasant at first. I booked a hostel(350 INR per night) in Ananchal which was 7km far from the main city. it took 30 mins to find it in the scorching sun and high humidity but fortunately I found it with the help of some locals. when i reached, they were out of gas and no food was available. I got frustrated but took shower and went ate something (150INR). the owner was quite rude too ( only towards north-Indians). so I managed to go through the first day.
Day 2: I woke up around 9am and had a delicious breakfast ( dosa and sambhar 50 INR) and went off to see THE TEA GARDENs, I booked a shared tuk-tuk (30 INR). you can take buses directly to Munnar(15-20 INR), it would be cheaper and affordable. local food is also cheap and tasty, you should definitely try the local cuisines. there are many places to visit it Munnar but tea gardens were my favorite. you can go to the tea museum(75 INR), eco point and many more. I came back and had delicious Hakka noodles at a hotel (140 INR) which was a little expensive but I had a satisfying dinner.
MUNNAR - ERNAKULAM- ALLEPY
Day 3: I thought of taking a bus from Munnar to Alleppey directly but being in Ananchal was a major drawback because there were no direct connecting buses frequently. I left from Munnar around 1pm and reached Ernakulam at 5:30 - 6:00pm (100 INR) and from there I took another bus to Alleppey (60 INR) which took around an hour or so to reach. I walked to my hostel and saved some more money( save money whenever you can ). You can easily book any hostel near to the beach, believe me, it’s amazing. the hostel I booked was Déjà vu (250 INR per night). I went to this fancy restaurant near beach with some new friends I met and spent an amazing evening “ hot weather + cold beer + good food”.(400INR) and then walked back to the hostel.
Day 4: I went to backwaters, a year or less I was actually watching the videos of backwaters on youtube and here I am, doing it. My hostel owner arranged the whole session of kayaking for 6hrs including breakfast and lunch(1000 INR + 150 INR for tuk-tuk). It was an amazing experience, and if you are there you gotta do it.
It drew me far away from the chaotic world and leaving me mesmerized through the immense beauty of backwaters. Those narrow water canals, under the shade of coconut trees and people doing there day to day work around it. Totally worth the money. They served ethnic Kerala food on banana leaves which enhanced my excitement.
After that, I wanted to go beach but I received a suggestion to go to the lighthouse and try MASALA CHAI from “the chai wala”(15 INR), and it was really amazing. After that, I saw the ocean dancing and flirting with the shore and sun going down and I wanted a quiet place so I walked towards the end of it.
For dinner, I explored the street food and towards the bus stand road I saw a food van with a sitting area, I ate it here and believe me it was just (80INR).
ALLEPY – COCHIN
Day 5: I bought banana chips and some other snacks because it’s cheaper in Alleppey than Kochi ( the price depends on how much you buy, I paid 300INR). I took a ksrtc bus around 12pm(60INR). I reached to Vytilla. After reaching there, I talked to some locals and got into another local bus for FORT KOCHI(20 INR) where my hostel was (Rampart homestay at 300INR per night). I took some rest and left for Chinese fishing net which was at the walking distance of 1.5km from my place. I spent some hours there, clicking pictures, buying souvenirs and sitting quietly observing things. In the evening I went to a café THE KASHI ART café and had a delicious dinner(400INR), the place is a little expensive but the food an ambiance is worth of your money.
Day 6; I woke up early in the morning and walked to this place I saw yesterday and had my breakfast + chai (50 INR). I don’t remember what I ate (not good with Malayalam) but it was really good. Later on, I had biryani for lunch at a local restaurant(200INR). Later I planned to visit the INDO-PORTUGUESE MUSEUM but it was closed because of some repairing work. In the evening I went to watch THE KATHAKALI SHOW at Kerala kathakali center(350 INR per person) it’s a beautiful dance form and I couldn’t take my eyes off from it. I will definitely suggest you watch it. If you are planning to eat dinner in Kerala, make sure you have it before 9:30pm, because after that everything starts closing. It took me an hour to search for a good restaurant but at last, I found a place(300INR).
Day 7: I ate my lunch ( local thali at 60 INR) and took a direct low floor AC bus from Fort Kochi to Cochin airport ( 90 INR). It took around 1.5 hrs to reach there but it was the most affordable way to travel.
And this is how I managed my budget and traveled through the 3 main cities of Kerala and did everything I thought of doing. so don't let your tight pocket restrain you from exploring. Go on and be lost in this beautiful world.