New Tour

South India Heritage by Bicycle

Day 1 Cochin - Thodupuzha

Arrive in Kochi. Your cycling tour leader and support team will pick you up from Kochi International Airport or your hotel, and transfer you out of the bustling city to the lush and serene countryside of Southern India, in a small town called Thodupuzha. We’ll have the late morning to unwind and explore the surroundings of the first stop on our South India Heritage journey, a charming farmstay where our hosts have maintained a homestead for generations. Then meet your tour leader for a trip briefing and bike fitting followed by a flavorful lunch of traditional farm-to-table dishes. While we digest, we’ll take a guided stroll through the property, where Kerala’s characteristic lushness is on display in the sheer variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs are traditionally grown. In the late afternoon, we’ll make a short trek to Mundan Mala, a hilltop with views of the surrounding landscape. Along the way, we’ll walk through a small village and take tea in the local way, called “chai.” In the evening, we’ll enjoy another traditional meal at the house and see if we can recognize some of the flavors from our walk through the farm!

River Banks Madapparamabil
Lunch, Dinner

Day 2 Thodupuzha - Paniyeli Poru

Rise early to pay a visit to the local market and see how the many households of the village do their shopping for the day. The fruits of Kerala are on full display here, in a huge abundance and variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs. We’ll then fuel up for our first bike ride of the trip on a traditional breakfast at the house, before bidding goodbye to our lovely hosts and setting out on two wheels. Our ride takes us through green countryside, along waterways, and across small rivers, through rural villages where we’ll get a closer look at local life in Southern India. Along the way, we’ll pass through rubber tree plantations and visit a plantation house to learn more about the interesting process by which rubber is made. We’ll have an authentic lunch at a local restaurant, before checking into our resort, across the river from the Sholayar Forest Reserve, home to many of India’s most well-known and endangered wildlife, such as the tiger and elephant. If we’re lucky we’ll spot some of the forests’ colorful bird species along the edge of the water. Enjoy a free afternoon to escape the heat with a dip in the resort pool or the waters of the nearby Periyar River.

Whispering Waters
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Ride 45km
+519m
-536m

Day 3 Paniyeli - Poru - Chalakudy

We’ll rise early and have breakfast at the hotel before setting off on our bikes for another south India cycling adventure. It’s an easy ride for the first 20 kilometers, but we’ll have a few hills once we cross the river and ride into more forested terrain. Today’s scenery is more natural, as our route takes us along the edge of the Forest Reserve and along one of Kerala’s most important waterways, the Chalakudy River. We’ll stop to admire the view of the river from a suspension bridge en route to the main attraction- Athirapilly Waterfalls, the largest in Kerala. The falls stand over 20 metres tall, and carry water all the way from the Western Ghats mountain range. While best visited during the monsoon when water levels are at their peak, the falls are nonetheless scenic and have been featured in countless Bollywood movies over the years. After taking in the views of the falls, we’ll enjoy a local lunch before transferring by car to our accommodation for the evening, a vegetarian cooking school and wellness resort set among riverside spice groves. The afternoon is free to enjoy the hotel grounds and gardens, or enjoy traditional ayurvedic spa treatments. Dinner tonight is a one-of-a-kind culinary experience, savoring the work of master chefs specializing in the fast-fading art of traditional vegetarian Keralan cuisine.

Rasagurukal
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Ride 45km
+688m
-697m

Day 4 Chalakudy - Thrissur

Enjoy another fantastic meal at Rasagurukul before getting into the saddle for another day of our South India Heritage cycling tour. Today we’ll cross into the Thrissur district of Kerala province by bike. Though Kochi is the political capital, and most well-known city in Kerala to tourists, Thrissur is the cultural capital of Kerala province. Our ride is easier than yesterday, with gently undulating terrain as we ride though village backroads towards the town of Thrissur. After our ride, we’ll check into our hotel before the day gets too hot and prepare for another show-stopping culinary experience over lunch: traditional Sadhya. Meaning “banquet” in the local language, Sadhya is a cuisine from Kerala traditionally served on a large banana leaf, and featuring an impressive variety of well-spiced, vegetarian dishes, sometimes more than twenty! After having some time to digest our feast, we’ll grab the bikes and head out for a short ride to a local temple and learn more about the unique and important rituals, then take our time back to the resort- this time by canoe!

Neelambari
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Ride 40km
+388m
-396m

Day 5 Thrissur - Vellinezhi

After breakfast, we’ll transfer to Cheruthuruthy, a small village about 45 kilometres north of Thrissur town, on the banks of the Chalakudy river. Our destination is the Kerala Kalamandalam, the premier educational center for traditional Keralan art forms, especially dance. We’ll visit the school where many of the art forms are taught and watch a performance of traditional temple theater, a truly unique experience, and one seldom seen outside of the South India. We’ll take lunch near the school and then begin our ride to our accommodation for the evening- a traditional Hindu homestay, over 300 years old! Though the rooms and facilities are more basic than others along our trip, the cultural significance of our stay is worth it. In the evening, we’ll witness another unique and sacred art form, found only in Kerala- Kalamezuthupattu. In characteristically colorful and intricate Keralan style, Hindu deities are drawn on the temple floor with colorful powders derived from natural materials like charcoal, turmeric and lime leaves. While the artist carefully deposits the powder onto the temple floor, the priest recites a specific prayer to imbue the drawing with spiritual significance, and ritual songs are performed once the work is completed. After the full ritual is complete, the drawing is erased in stages and the powders are distributed to temple-goers as a talisman.

Kalappura Farm House
Breakfast, Dinner
Ride 15km
+500m
-481m

Day 6 Kuthampully - Chendamangalam

After witnessing the previous evening's spiritual art forms, we’ll switch gears again for today’s ride: an exploration of local life. The ride begins in the nearby village of Kuthampully as it wakes up to the day. We’ll cycle alongside local milkmen making their morning deliveries on ancient Russian-made bicycles laden with canisters of fresh milk. Exchange greetings with children on their way to school, some ecstatic to see foreigners on a bike, others too shy to exchange more than a grin. Take in the colors of local life, made more vibrant by the beautiful sarees of women about town. Many of these beautiful sarees are manufactured in the village itself, and we'll make several stops on our exploration to learn more about the complicated design and weaving process, mastered by many of the local artisans. From there, we’ll enjoy a local lunch in Kuthampully, before heading out to another quintessential Indian experience: a train ride. It’s a different perspective than being on two-wheels, as we take a seat and watch the countryside go by and the goings-on of the many passengers and hawkers at each stop. Once at our destination, we’ll transfer to our hotel for our final night of the trip and a South Indian farewell feast in the perfect setting: a beautiful riverside hotel showcasing Kerala’s history and culture.

Sea Lagoon Resort
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Ride 20km
+553m
-563m

Day 7 Chendamangalam - Departure

Today’s final breakfast comes with a beautiful view of the morning mist wafting over the river. Once our bags are packed, we’ll have a final ride through the nearby town of Chedamangalam, a historic spice port of Kerala. Once a lively port brimming with business on the historic spice trade, today it’s a sleepy town on the edges of some of the backwaters. Chendamangalam is unique for the historic synagogue, church, mosque, and Hindu temple all within close proximity of one another, as well as the remnants of Dutch and Portugese architecture during the time when the town was part of the old Cochin State. We’ll ride out of the northern edge of the town and across the causeway, visiting historic sites along the way. Then we’ll have our final meal at a local restaurant, before transferring to nearby Kochi to your hotel, or to the airport for onward departure.

Breakfast, Lunch
Ride 15km
+104m
-98m

Disclaimer: The adventure cycling tours we operate often go beyond the beaten track, and the countries where we ride are not always predictable. Due to these reasons, it is occasionally necessary to reroute or update itineraries. Our guarantee is that we will not change a trip unless for safety or to improve it. Our listed hotels are always accurate at the time of writing, but should we have to change any hotel, it will always be for a similar or better one.