Interesting honeymoon ideas in Kochi
Kochi is the commercial hub of Kerala. Kochi has almost everything you could ask in a metro city though it is much smaller than any Indian metro city. There are shopping malls, amusement parks, heritage spots, beaches and resorts within or nearby the city area. Kochi and the suburbs are always bustling with activities. Kakkanad is an upcoming IT hub in India. There are top-notch educational institutions, hospitals and recreational centers in the city. Many Kerala tour packages make Kochi the base camp since travelling to the top tourist destinations gets much easier from Kochi. Kochi is situated in the central Kerala which makes it easily accessible to most of the central and southern Kerala’s tourist locations. The kind of facilities you get in Kochi, you cannot expect anywhere else in Kerala.
Here you have the best hotels and restaurants and at the same time, there are many options for the budget travellers also. Kochi is a very small city when compared to Trivandrum which is the capital city of Kerala. But it beats all the other cities and towns in Kerala when it comes to the conveniences it provides to the locals and the tourists. Be it holiday sightseeing or shopping, be it a job or business, be it medical treatments or beauty treatments — anything you seek in Kerala will be available in Kochi. There are many heritage spots near Kochi city which are a popular part of Kerala tourism packages like Tripunithura, Mattancherry, Fort Kochi, Muziris etc.
You can plan a 4 day trip to Kochi in your Kerala packages to experience this once princely region. Kochi city tour will include a tour of the suburbs also as they are closely connected with the development of the city. In fact, a major part of the people working in the malls and offices come from the suburbs. People say the neighbouring Vypin island rises up a little in the morning as more than half the population come to Kochi for their living and education and by evening it sinks a bit when they get back home!
Kochi City
Visiting Kochi during your Kerala holiday packages can be quite an amusing experience. There’s a lot of shopping you can do here and many star hotels where you can indulge in luxury. There are around 5 shopping malls in Kochi city and you will see much more under construction. It is believed that in Kochi city itself around 15 more malls are coming up. Can’t say it is good for the retailers as the competition increases too much more than such a small city can handle. But for the tourists, the options increase multi-fold. Each mall is different though many brands are available in most of the malls. There’s a lot of entertainment for the children and youngsters in these malls. The malls here are so popular that many of them have become a part of the Kerala tour packages offered by tour managers. Weekends can be very crowded in these malls.
Weekdays you can roam around freely and enjoy the different cuisine available in the food court. Some malls even have fine dining restaurants which people find exquisite. All the malls have multiplexes which have 3 to 11 screens. So you can spend an entire day in the malls which opens by 10 am and stay open till the last movie show gets over by around 2 am. They are impeccably maintained and offer a great experience for the visitors. The convenience of shopping everything under one roof without having to bother about the climate and parking is the main factor that attracts most of the people to these malls. There are the regular shops also in all popular junctions where you can shop in a conventional way. Bargaining is a big no in Kochi.
There are temples and churches in Kochi which are also popular among the tourists. Kochi has some great restaurants where you can get typical South Indian, North Indian, Chinese and continental food. With the booming IT industry expanding here, people from many metro cities have relocated to Kerala and they find it quite pleasing because of the facilities available in this small city. Though like all cities, Kochi too has its share of traffic blocks and pollution, every region has their own set of shopping arcades which makes it convenient for the people living nearby to get their basic shopping done. Online shopping is also very popular with the techies here which are not available in any other cities or towns in Kerala.
The Marine Drive in Kochi is a popular attraction for the tourists. The area has some popular antique and handicraft shops which are frequented by foreign tourists. Marine Drive offers a beautiful sunset by the backwaters. It is adjacent to the boat jetty which takes people to the nearby Vypin and Bolgatty islands and on leisure boat tours through the backwaters. The Cochin Shipyard, which is a busy port in Kerala, can also be seen from here. The Bolgatty Islands is a popular picnic spot which has a lot of greenery and a palace to relax. The Wonderla amusement park in Kakkanad is a popular amusement park which is a part of most of the Kerala tour packages from Mumbai and attracts lakhs of tourists from all around India.
Tripunithura
Tripunithura is just a few kilometres from Kochi city and is the cultural abode of central Kerala. Despite being so close to the city, this small town has retained its heritage and charming palaces and temples which are untouched by the trending patterns of the city. Tripunithura used to be the headquarters of central Kerala during the monarchy rule and the beautiful palace has been converted into a museum by the authorities. The temples in Tripunithura have retained their old charm and look very elegant and divine. The temples and palaces in Tripunithura will only take half a day of your Kerala trip. Tripunithura still has the majestic cultural charm as it hosts the famous RLV music and Arts College and the government Ayurvedic College and hospital.
Fort Kochi & Mattancherry
Fort Kochi is famous for the beach and the Chinese fishing nets which are still being used. Fort Kochi used to be a busy port many centuries back when the Chinese, French, Portuguese, British, Arabs and the Dutch used to come to Kerala for trading in spices. Many of them stayed back and their influences can be seen in the constructions and developments in this area. Fort Kochi is still a major trading centre for spices and tea produced in Kerala. The museums, churches and shopping streets are popular tourist locations, especially for the foreigners and other tourists on honeymoon packages. Mattancherry is a nearby locality and has India’s oldest running synagogue. The Dutch Palace, Jain Temple, Jewish Synagogue and the backwaters are very popular among the locals and the tourists. These are the most visited places in Kochi by the foreign tourists and are regular locations visited during Kerala tour packages from Delhi.
North Paravoor & Chendamangalam
These were part of the Kochi kingdom, especially during the Muziris era. With the recent archaeological excavations happening in the area, Paravoor town and Chendamangalam village are attracting many tourists as a part of the Muziris heritage tour. It is believed that Tippu Sultan used to visit this place frequently and he had built a secret underground tunnel in the nearby locality. Muziris used to be the richest port in India during the 1st century BC. Many Romans, Jews, Arabs, Chinese, Greeks and Egyptians used to come here to trade for spices and other then precious items for money and precious metals. The excavations at Pattanam have revealed many stunning collections ranging from the period of 100 BCE to 2000 CE. The local authorities have taken over some very old palaces in the Chendamangalam region which used to be royal property and converted them to museums which are being included in Kerala tours. Some of the artefacts unearthed from Pattanam excavations are kept on display here. The Muziris heritage tour can be a soothing experience and you can get to know a lot about the rich culture and heritage of Central Kerala.
Cherai Beach and Backwaters
The Cherai beach is a beautiful beach which extends till the busy Munambam fishing harbour. The beach has been developed recently by the local authorities to include many conveniences and security for the tourists who visit here during their Kerala travel. There are some beautiful resorts in the area where tourists on Kerala honeymoon packages can stay and enjoy the coastal nature closely. The beach and the locality are not usually very crowded except during holidays and weekends. Special events are conducted on the beach are during holidays to attract more crowd.
The backwaters and paddy fields on the way to Cherai are a beautiful sight to see with rows of Chinese fishing nets on the water channels. These are many centuries old and are lighted in the evenings. Though North Paravoor is developing fast, Chendamangalam is a serene village which has retained its old charm. The backwaters of Cherai and Paravoor have some exotic resorts best for honeymoon packages in Kerala.
