For me – a Cochin-ite, Alleppey (Alappuzha) is really my backyard – I had never considered it as a place I would want to sight-see. So even when this whole houseboat tourism was picking up steam, I was wondering what the fuss was all about. Well, one recent trip to Alleppey, and I realized that Lord Curzon (Viceroy of the Indian Empire, early first decade of the 20th Century), didn’t exclaim ‘Alleppey, the Venice of the East for nothing – the backwaters experience is magical, to say the least!
I was looking for a place close to Cochin to take my family (distended and extended) on a day-long outing. My search ended at Punnamada Resorts – a beautiful hotel overlooking the Punnamada Lake in Alleppey – which offered me a day package that consisted of the use of their resort facilities, lunch, tea and a boat trip.
A cruise through the backwaters of Alleppey in one of those magnificent houseboats of Kerala (Kettuvallom in Malayalam) is a must-do once you land up in this part of the world. Kettuvallom means ”stitched boat’ – so named because it is constructed by stitching wooden planks with coconut ropes. Once used to transport cargo through the backwaters, these boats come in various shapes and sizes. Various packages that fit one’s budget and duration are available, but we picked a short 2 hour one.
Here are some snaps from our day out. Lemme know what you think.
Here are a few bird’s eye view snaps of the magnificent backwaters from Kerala Tourism:
So have you been to Alleppey backwaters? What was your experience?
First I want to say thank you for the information about Alleppey Backwaters.We plan a trip to there soon.,your post and photos are inspired me to visit Alleppey.
This is great…love to read.
Great post showcasing the beauty of Alleppey backwaters. The pictures looks very nice. I would love to stay in Punnamad resort, Alleppey during my next visit.