| Day | Place | Premiere Inns | Duration | ~ Cycling Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kochi to Kumarakom | Coconut Lagoon | 1 | 40km / 24mi* |
| 2 | Alleppey | Purity | 1 | 40km / 24mi* |
| 3 | Kochi | 40km / 24mi* |
Arrival note:
Cochin(Kochi, COK) has direct connecting flights via Middle East & few destinations in Southeast Asia. Domestic flights can be connected to Cochin either from Mumbai or Bangalore.
Meeting time and Location:
On day 1, meet your trip leader, 08:30am at your hotel. We recommend to do bike fit at least a day before departure. If you plan to arrive early, please contact your trip consultant for a list of suggested hotels at Kochi, if required. It is good to pick a hotel in Fort Kochi area.
Day 1: Kochi to Kumarakom
Caught between the backwaters and Arabian sea, this is simply the best rural biking trail combined with village life experiences around Kochi. It’s a day-cycle ride that lets you feel the charm of simple Keralan backwater villages. We ride through vast paddy fields, fish farms, coconut tree canopies to reach one of the backwater edges. Learn about fish farming, traditional boat making and other local traditions. What you take back from this beautiful ride is a true village experience spiced up with few untold local stories.
Meals: Lunch, Dinner
Distance cycled: ~ 40km/24mi*
Day 2: Alleppey
A beautiful ride today takes us near to spectacular Vembanad Lake. Enjoy stunning vistas in all directions. Small canals, country canoes, fisherman throwing nets into the water, a coconut climber climbing up the coconut tree, women working in the rice fields, all come into scene one after the other.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Distance cycled : ~ 40km / 24mi*
Day 3: Kochi
Soon you will be biking from the backwaters to the coastal side. See the life in fishing villages in action and hear the stories from our local guide. Get the best picture imprinted to your memory on this last day of the Kerala adventure. Our tour ends as we reach Fort Kochi by afternoon.
Meals: Breakfast
Distance cycled: ~ 40km/24mi*
Extend your holiday: You can extend your holiday in the backwaters of Kerala by opting for a stay in houseboat, floating in Vembanadu lake.
insightful details
The tour covers only the lowlands of Kerala. The lowlands stretches are flat and are very close to the coastal line and backwaters. .
Altitude range: 0 to 11 m
Fauna:
Egrets(little, moderate, large), Cattle Egrets, Cormorants, Brahminy kites, Pond Heron, Kingfisher, Mynah, Ducks, House crow, Goats, Cows.
Flora:
Plantations – Coconut, Banana
Farms – Paddy farms, Fish farms
Food: Keralan spicy fish curry or rice with curry on banana leaf, variety of spiced-up local side dishes and curries.
Drink: Chaaya(milk tea), Sulaimani (a black tea)
Culture: Hinduism, profuse influence of Christianity along the coast, backwater village life.
from our friends
My wife and I had a wonderful time on our tour of the Kerala backwaters with Art of Bicycle. Especially as the tailored our trip to include some of the less travelled minor tracks. Among many highlights was a short canoe ferry across one of the canals.
Our trip included a four hour kayak through the backwaters along canals inaccessible to house boats. This was very special.
I'm also pleased to say that we met no other tourists while cycling.
The accommodation and food were all extremely good, and had character.
All in all a great adventure.