[inder]

I know this is not the right thread to ask for advice on Kerala holiday.
But, I am going to Thrissur for a family function and needed advice on what to see in 5-6 days. People have suggested Munnar,Thekkady and Alleppy in that order. My inward and outbound flight will most probably from Kochi. Its in the month of December.

[sachinpk]

Originally Posted by inder

People have suggested Munnar,Thekkady and Alleppy in that order.

If you are Thrissur based, you can also spend some time in Cochin (Fort Cochin) et.al) etc. It is a harbour city, have some sea fronts etc. They have the Chinese Fishing nets out there. I am not sure, but earlier there used to be public transport boats opearting between Alleppey and Cochin.

Then you have the Punnathur fort near Guruvayur temple, where all the caprisoned elephants of Guruvayur temple undergo their "training". If you are of a religious type, the Guruvayur temple itself is worth a visit. Athirapally water falls may also be a very short trip from Thrissur. Beyond the falls, there is a road through some good forests taking you through a reservoir to a small hill station in TN - Vaalparai.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by inder

I know this is not the right thread to ask for advice on Kerala holiday.
But, I am going to Thrissur for a family function and needed advice on what to see in 5-6 days. People have suggested Munnar,Thekkady and Alleppy in that order. My inward and outbound flight will most probably from Kochi. Its in the month of December.

You can try to visit Kochi and Guruvayur as sachin pointed out. You have the Chavakkad beach and Punathur kota apart from the famous Sri Krishna temple. Kochi is about 90 kms from Guruvayur and Thrissur is about 30 kms from Guruvayur. Near kochi we have a place called kalady that happens to be the birth place of Adi Shankaracharya.

[sandeep3in]

Originally Posted by rejeen

Traveled yesterday from Bangalore to Cherthala.

How is the stretch between Alwaye and Edapally by pass ? My guess is that you would have traveled in peak time.Hearsay is that, it is pretty difficult to cross Cochin due to the metro work.I need to travel to Changanacherry and would like to evaluate the route (Muvatupuzha V/s Cochin).

Thanks

[sunil8089]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Had a question. Any family friendly places to stop for lunch in the section between Avinashi and Palakkad? Looking for something on the highway, with parking and good restrooms.

Am aware of the A2B's and the other restaurants on the Salem-CBE section, but don't recall seeing any decent places post the Chegampalli toll booth. Don't recall reading about any recently in this thread also.

There used to be a 'Chanakya' (or similar name) just before the Chandranagar Jn at Palakkad, Does that still exist?

If you are a non-vegetarian, you may try Hotel Malabar, which is after Walayar, near to Kanjikode, left side (towards Palakkad). It got AC and Non AC halls, family friendly and descent rest rooms (not excellent). What I like is the tasty Kerala dishes at nominal rates and ample parking.

The coordinates are as follows.
https://www.google.co.in/maps/place/...1c39d6aacaa89f

Contrary, if you are are a fast-food lover, you may try McDonald's or KFC near Palakkad, which got nice rest rooms and parking.

Good News, Malayalam Newspaper reports that tunnel boring process at Kuthiran (NH47) had begun. As a first step, the rocks at both entrances of the tunnel are being breaking. It's a dual tunnel (one for each direction) and the details of each tunnel is as follows:
Length - 915m
Width - 14m (3 lane)
Height - 10m
Distance between tunnels - 20m

Once the 150 m of stone at both entrances are removed, the rest of the boring will be done by tunnel boring machines.

It's estimated to get approximately 2 Lalk tonnes of rock from this work, which is proposed to be used in the widening of Mannuthy - Vadakkancherry stretch (6 lane). The company is optimistic that the rock breaking will be completed in 2 months.

This tunnel reduce the distance - 3 km with lots of bends and ups and downs to 915m of starlight road.

Source : http://digitalpaper.mathrubhumi.com/c/5545762

[inder]

I heard Munnar is a typical comercialised hill station. Is it true?? Can Munnar be skipped and instead cover places of interest around Thrissur

[sachinpk]

Originally Posted by inder

I heard Munnar is a typical comercialised hill station. Is it true?? Can Munnar be skipped and instead cover places of interest around Thrissur

Munnar is indeed being commercialised. People generally go there to enjoy the cool weather at the hill station. What you could do is to search for any home stays which are closer to Munnar town, but not in the town proper. In that way, you may be able to enjoy the weather in a serene and a peaceful surrounding. There is a kind of a deer park, and a couple of lakes (created by reservoirs) out there.

I don't know from where you are coming in, or whether you would get another long vacation to spend in Kerala. So perhaps you can still try to be at Munnar (for a night?).

And Thrissur is a town, with nothing much to see in the town proper. The biggest round-about in Asia is supposed to be at Thrissur "Round". Guruvayur & Punnathur Kota is near by, Athirapally is also near and Cochin is also around 64kms away.

[rejeen]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Had a question. Any family friendly places to stop for lunch in the section between Avinashi and Palakkad? Looking for something on the highway, with parking and good restrooms?

We have tried the Hotel Malabar (Not sure if the name has Palace in it) after Walayar and before Palakkad. Don't remember if it was after the toll or before the toll. The place is clean, good food & service and an AC restaurant available too with lot of parking.

[B103]

Originally Posted by Accent Martin

I need to travel from changanacherry to Bangalore next month and was thinking to take the Theni route. However I haven't yet taken this route, so unaware.
Requesting your inputs on driving directions and a good restaurant to halt for breakfast.

The positive side is that the road is very scenic. If you start from Chry around 5:30 am you will hit the ghats at the time of sunrise.

Now, my advice is to use this road only if you have time and patience. Average speed that you get till the ghats end (after Kerala border in Bangalore's direction) is around 40 -- 45 kms only. Roads are single laned and you will hit a turn every 3-4 mins. I remember that the first 190 kms took ~ 5 hrs to cover.

What I have seen is that this route is best avoided in the monsoons or rainy seasons because potential landslides can halt the vehicular traffic completely. From Theni the road will start becoming flat. Chry -> Ponkunnam -> Kumily -> Theni ->Dindigul -> Salem -> Bangalore is a viable route. Be careful not to go to Madurai from Theni for that is a circuitous route to Bangalore.

There may not be many good hotel options and petrol pumps (like usual Palghat route) for your liking and so it is better to stock sufficient food and fuel in the car before starting.

[rejeen]

Originally Posted by sandeep3in

How is the stretch between Alwaye and Edapally by pass ?

If I had any option to avoid the above stretch, I would go for that unless yhe travel is between 10:00pm and 7:00 am.

The traffic is slow moving and there is mad rush by buses, 2 wheelers and 3 wheelers to find that little space. We need to be careful for their safety (2-wheeler riders ) while protecting the beauty of our rides from potential scratches/dents.

[sandeep3in]

Originally Posted by rejeen

If I had any option to avoid the above stretch,.

Thanks for the info.

Any suggestion of the route to be taken between Muvatupuzha to Kottayam. I have heard that there are road works going on in Kurvilagad and there is some alternate options shown by google . What is the best route that can be taken to cover from Muvatupuzha to Kottayam .

[rejeen]

Originally Posted by sandeep3in

What is the best route that can be taken to cover from Muvatupuzha to Kottayam .

Google map shows one of the routes passing thru Kidangoor. I had driven from Kidangoor to Changanacherry via Ayarkunnam, Manarcaud, Puthuppally (not going to Kottayam) couple of months back and the roads were good. Not sure if Muvattupuzha to Kidangoor is in good shape or if that is overall a good choice.

On a seperate note I think MC road is not in great shape in the route you plan to take, though not really bad either.

[binand]

Originally Posted by sachinpk

And Thrissur is a town, with nothing much to see in the town proper.

Hmm. A town considered the cultural capital of Kerala has nothing to interest the tourist?

To the OP: You are too late for the Pooram and Onam, but December should be OK for Christmas. Similar to Mysore, Thrissur also boasts of a zoo, a palace, several museums and a famous temple and festival. Thrissur I consider to be the HQ of the ayurvedic spa/tourism business in Kerala. Then there is Kerala Kalamandalam where various performing arts are taught (not sure if you can catch a performance, though). Guruvayur (don't miss Punnathur Kotta), Peechi Dam, Wonderla etc. can complete the circuit.

[sachinpk]

Originally Posted by binand

Hmm. A town considered the cultural capital of Kerala has nothing to interest the tourist?

I am from this town ( ), and to be frank I have not seen much a tourist crowd in the town. Thrissur Pooram and Onam time are seasonal events. The museum and zoo, there are better stuff in other parts of India - and hence I did not mention it. Temples are aplenty, but it may not be of interest to every one. Most of the temples don't allow non-Hindus. Temples like Guruvayur also has a strict dress code. Kalamandalam may be of interest to tourists if they like dance drama etc. And I guess, they need some prior approvals to visit the place.

Hence gave out a few places which is generally more easily accessible to tourists, and can be reached without much planning and taking special permission etc.

[kala]

Originally Posted by sandeep3in

Thanks for the info.

Any suggestion of the route to be taken between Muvatupuzha to Kottayam. I have heard that there are road works going on in Kurvilagad and there is some alternate options shown by google . What is the best route that can be taken to cover from Muvatupuzha to Kottayam .

Originally Posted by rejeen

Google map shows one of the routes passing thru Kidangoor. I had driven from Kidangoor to Changanacherry via Ayarkunnam, Manarcaud, Puthuppally (not going to Kottayam) couple of months back and the roads were good. Not sure if Muvattupuzha to Kidangoor is in good shape or if that is overall a good choice.

On a seperate note I think MC road is not in great shape in the route you plan to take, though not really bad either.

The Koothattukulam-Uzhavoor-Marangattupally-Kidangoor-Manarcaud route is a very good option - the roads are generally well maintained and the traffic is far less than what you'll encounter on MC Road. This is the route I normally use when travelling between Angamaly and Kottayam.

If your destination is Kottayam town, this route loses some of its charm because Manarcaud-Kanjikuzhy-Kottayam town is quite a messy stretch to drive in terms of traffic, almost as bad as the Ettumanur-Kottayam section of MC road. But if you are travelling towards Changanacherry or further south, taking the Manarcaud option and then going via Puthuppally-Vakathanam-Thengana makes a lot of sense, it avoids Kottayam altogether and the roads are in decent condition as well.

For the Muvattupuzha-Koothattukulam stretch you have the option of avoiding MC road (which is quite curvy) and going on the parallel road via Arakuzha-Pandappilly-Palakuzha. However the last time I travelled that way (a year or so back), that road wasn't in the best of condition. But there was some road work in progress there in those days, so current conditions could perhaps be better, someone who has been on that route recently can clarify.