Thekkady

After breakfast check out from the hotel and drive to Thekkady (also known as Periyar).Sightseeing of Thekkady includes Periyar Tiger Reserve, Periyar lake, Periyar lake boating and jungle safari. Overnight stay at hotel.Periyar National Park : It is spread across an area of 300 square miles, Periyar National Park is covered by lush evergreen and deciduous forests serving as home to various animals such as deer, elephants, sambar, Nilgiri Langurs, etc.Elephant Programs Feeding and Photo session–Rs.550/personHalf an hour ride ,Photo session- Rs.400/personElephant Shower–900/personOne hour ride and photo session–Rs.1500/personone hour with elephant ride, elephant bath, Photo session, Commands and communication–Rs.1500/personHalf Day with elephant and –elephant bath, commands and communication timber Dragging, Feeding, elephant shower——-Rs.4000/person.* Jungle safari/Boating at Periyar National ParkWildlife Safari TimingsBoat cruise stretches for 30 minutes. Timings for boat cruise are 7:25 am, 9:15 am, 11:15 am, 1:30 pm and 4:00 pm.There are two types of jeep safari. Full day safari starts by early morning and the last trip starts by three in the evening. The night safari starts by 11:00 pm and ends by 3:00 am.Elephant safari stretches for 30 minutes. The tour starts by early morning 6:00am and the last trip starts by five in the evening.Boating in Periyar Lake The best way to enjoy Periyar is from the edge of your seat on a boat. If you are a little more adventurous, then you can take a bamboo raft and row while the wild watches you. The Bamboo Rafting at Periyar is available in two slots – Full day and Half day.Many activities are available at Periyar National Park for more details please visithttps://www.periyarfoundation.online/

Thekkady/ Kumili- Kerala is also famous for its home made Chocolate and Kumili one of the place to grab some white-brown sweet-meat. Then how to forget cultural shows like Kathakali dance performance or Kalaraipattu martial art. A cruise to lake Periyar in the morning is also must.

Day 4: Munnar to ThekkadyMunnar to Thekkady is a 90 km journey through Tea and spice plantations. One can stop by an outlet and buy natural and fresh spices such as Black pepper, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Clove, etc.Major attraction of Thekkady is the Periyar wild life sanctuary located along the Periyar river, which is the major source of water for Kerala and is of utmost significance to its economy. Thekkady is situated at the border with the Tamilnadu state. A significant population of from the neighboring state travel to Thekkady town for earning their daily bread and butter.The boat travel through Periyar wildlife sanctuary is another exciting experience. One can hope to see the wild life along side the river travelling through dense forest. The boat travel takes around 1 to 1.5 hours.

We woke up with the knock on the door and it was our caretaker with a broad smile and tray of bed tea. The boat began to sail again while we got ready. Our breakfast was served on the upper deck of the boat for us to enjoy the morning view.We checked out at 9 am. Our driver picked us up from the entry point for our 3 hour long journey to Thekkady.On our way to Thekkady we visited a very beautiful tea estate owned by Goenka. After posing for few photos in the tea plantation we had a tea factory tour where they showed us how different types of teas are produced. We bought some tea packets for back home.Cost of the trip : Rs.100 per person including guide charges.We reached Thekkady at around 2 pm. We found a restaurant called Sandra in the city centre to have our lunch. We had Kerala parotta , veg kadhai, egg masala, egg fried rice and icecream just in Rs.650. Good value for money with some awesome food.We checked into our hotel Grand Thekkady which is again in the heart of the town. Thekkady is a small town surrounded by the jungle. Its a complete tourist place and apt to visit with families. The weather is pleasant.We had lot of activities planned for the evening and all of them take place at single spot so no hassle of finding places.Detailed activity plan:Periyar Tiger Reserve - 2 to 6 hours jeep safari starts from Rs.2200 onward depending on duration of the safari. I skipped this.Periyar boat ride : This is a 1.5 hour boat safari in Periyar lake which passes through jungle and is operated by Forest department and KTDC. Morning rides are always better.Timings : 7:30 Am - 3:30 Pm ( you need to wait in long queue for the ticket)Cost : Rs. 225 per Adult; Rs. 50 for child below 11 years.Kathakali Show: Must watch as they show you everything from getting the dancers ready to a very beautiful story narration.Cost: Rs. 200 per person for 1 hour show.Magic show: Good for family with kids.Cost: Rs. 200 per person for 1 hour show.Kalaripayattu show: This is a worth watching as you see famous marshal art from Kerala.Cost: Rs. 200 per person for 1 hour show.Elephant ride: Again good for kids. They take for a ride in jungle. You can spot various birds and white monkeys.Cost : Rs. 350 per person for 25 minutes ride with photography.Elephant bathing: I skipped this one too.We ended our day by treating ourselves with a relaxing massage at Mayura Ayurvedic Centre. We indulged in Deep tissue full body massage with steam bath.Duration: 60 -90 MinsCost: Starts from Rs.1200 depending on the massage you choose.

our choice of stay at thekaddy was thomas homestay ,it was one of the best experience in our kerala tour .Thomas and his wife and even their two kids were extremely polite . Excellent breakfast was served and we enjoyed every bit of our stay at thomas Inn . we get up early next morning and went to get the entry ticket for periyar tiger reserve thekaddy . Periyar tiger reserve is unique as it offers boat safari. But around all the hype ,periyar tiger has not much to offer. You will only spot birds and if lucky may be Bison . If you can Plan well ahead and get the forest permit ,go for gavi forest on jeep safari . Spent your bucks on jeep safari , iddukki have lot of places to offer jeep safari,choose wisely . There are lot of other scenic beauty in idukki district , ramakalmeedu, vagamon ,gavi forest .After visiting periyar i felt that we could have avoided thekaddy and better have went for vagamon and gavi. Any way let me put some pics of thekkady to show you exactly what it has to offer you.