South India Family Adventure

Namaste and Welcome to India! Upon arrival at Kochi Mumbai International Airport, you will be greeted by a Global Family Travels representative and transferred to your hotel for your first overnight stay.

Believed to be the finest natural harbor in the world, Cochin (also known as Kochi) is the oldest European settlement in India, a spice trading hub that earned its nickname as the “Queen of the Arabian Sea.” You can cruise around man-made islands and admire homes with lawns that slope down to the water’s edge. A true melting pot, Kochi revels in its cosmopolitan heritage brimming with Chinese, Arab, Jewish, British, French and Portuguese influences.

In the evening, witness a Kathakali dance drama. You’ll get an insider’s view of the performers getting ready for the show and watch them apply their heavy and colorful make-up, while our guide explains the significance of the Kathakali tradition. The highlight of the evening is the entrancing dance performance itself.

Accommodation: Fragrant Nature

Transfer: 50 mins from Cochin Airport to hotel

After breakfast, we’ll explore the city on a morning cycle tour of Kochi. We’ll visit the Dutch Palace, Jewish Synagogue, St. Francis Church and admire the architecture of Dutch and Portuguese buildings. As we ride along the coastline and the mouth of the harbor, we’ll see the famous Chinese fishing nets, unique to Kochi and still very much in use.

In the afternoon, you will be welcomed by hosts Nimmi and Paul at their residence. The couple will give a cooking demonstration and provide you with recipes and a primer on Indian spices. This is a hands-on workshop, so feel free to help them in the kitchen. Our hosts will serve a typical Kerala lunch and we’ll get a chance to discuss Kochi’s local life and culture.

Accommodation: Fragrant Nature

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Activity: 2 hrs cycle tour

Thrissur is known for its scenic beauty, sacred sites, colorful festivals and vibrant culture. We’ll enjoy a scenic canoe ride through the tranquil backwaters of fishing villages and get glimpses of normal daily activities. We’ll take a walk into a quaint little village in the outskirts of Thrissur. Karuvannur Puzha, a beautiful river, meanders through much of the village as it heads west into the Arabian Sea.

The name Arattupuzha is derived from the ritual bath that takes place in the river at the end of the annual temple festival. Vast expanses of paddy fields surround the village and add to the verdant landscape. We’ll visit Arattupuzha Sastha Temple, strategically positioned by the river at the foot of a small hill. Late afternoon, we’ll go for a river cruise in the traditional canoe. Later, we’ll take a walking or cycling excursion to the vast paddy fields to savor the sunset.

Accommodation: Neelambari Resort Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Transfer: 2 hrs / 90 kms
Activity: 2 hrs village visit, 1 hr canoe ride, 1 hr sunset paddy tour

Start your day with a refreshing yoga session by the river (weather permitting) or in Neelambari’s picturesque yoga hall. Following breakfast, we’ll learn about yoga and Ayurveda traditions with an emphasis on the philosophies of this holistic healing system. Afterward, we’ll visit an Ayurveda museum to learn more about the history and evolution of this system. After an early lunch, we’ll proceed to Wayanad.

Wayanad is the perfect setting for a hundred great adventures, as it is home to exotic legends, ancient ruins, mysterious mountain caves, aborigine tribes, hidden treasures, treehouses, jungle trails and exotic wildlife. On arrival, we’ll check in to our hotel.

Accommodation: Wayanad Wild Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Transfer: 190 kms / 4 hrs
Activity: 1 hr yoga session, 40 mins presentation and 1 hr Ayurveda museum visit

We’ll depart the hotel at 6 am to visit the Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary, which offers a rare chance to see herds of elephants, deer, gaurs and more. Muthanga is adjacent to the protected network of Nagarhole National Park and Bandipur Tiger Reserve. This area spread over 345 square kilometers is rich in fauna and flora and comes under Project Elephant.

Lunch at local restaurant will be followed by visit to Uravu bamboo cottage industries, a non-profit organization supporting women and indigenous traditional artisans. These artisans create different bamboo wares. Since bamboo is a plant, not a tree, it grows back very quickly and does not result in deforestation. Uravu supports more than 250 local families.

Return back to hotel for overnight stay.

Accommodation: Wayanad Wild
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Activity: 3 hrs game drive, 2 hrs bamboo cottage industry visit

After breakfast, we’ll drive to Pollachi. Enroute we’ll lunch at Ooty, one of the most famous hill stations of South India, and have a short visit at Ooty’s botanical garden.

Accommodation: Great Mount Resort
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Activity: 1 hr botanical garden visit Transfer: 230 kms / 8 hrs

Today you will meet someone who has spent his life not only championing a noble cause for a good but becoming an iconic influence for an entire generation. Fifteen years ago, Mr. Madhu Ram Krishnan introduced the concept of nature farming to the agricultural community. Nature farming is a mindset based on the belief that man is not above nature, despite his advanced technologies. We will walk with Krishnan as he helps us understand the nuances of natural farming and then visit his small soapmaking enterprise, where he uses all the natural colors and scents from the farm to infuse his fragrant soaps.
In the evening, we’ll learn from a famous local artisan how use palm fronds to create a beautiful work of art in a jiffy. His stamp is found on colorful parrots, fish, flowers and more. You will also learn about the process of drying, moistening and dyeing the harvested palm leaves, which precedes crafting these wondrous creations.

Accommodation: Great Mount Resort
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Activity: 2-3 hrs of farm visit, 2 hrs of art & craft tour

After breakfast, we’ll drive to Madurai, which has been a center of learning and pilgrimage for centuries and now is a modern city with a vast business center and university campus as well as a weaving and dyeing industry. The city is chockablock with humanity, from pilgrims and beggars to businesspeople, bullock cart drivers and rickshaw pullers.

In the afternoon, we’ll visit the Meenakshi Temple, one of the oldest and most important Hindu temples in India; a labyrinthine market of aromatic herbs and flowers; and Tirumalai Nayak Palace, famous for its rectangular dance courtyard. In the evening, we’ll attend the aarti (prayer) ceremony at the Meenkashi Temple.

Accommodation: Heritage Madurai
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Transfer: 5 hrs/ 190 kms Activity: 2 Hrs Temple visit

This morning, we’ll take the Potters Trail walking tour in Madurai to learn the entire process of how raw mud is transformed into ceramic wares. During the walk, we’ll hear interesting stories about Madurai and you’ll have time to create your own piece of pottery.
This evening will be devoted to a very special cultural and culinary experience with a local family. You’ll walk into a typical Indian kitchen, savor the fragrance of a myriad spices, and work harmoniously alongside your host in the kitchen to create a memorable meal. You’ll listen to stories of how the ingredients came to the table—of the handpicked local vegetables and the local farmers who grew them.

Accommodation: Heritage Madurai
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Activity: 3 hrs potter village excursion / 2-3 hrs with a local family with dinner

After breakfast, we’ll drive to Periyar, where elephants and tigers live on a protected reserve in one of India's most fascinating natural wildlife sanctuaries.
Later, we’ll visit Mayanath Heritage, a homestay on a cardamom plantation. We’ll take a tour of the plantation and learn about the spices and later enjoy lunch. The Syrian Christian cuisine relies heavily on fish and chicken dishes, farm-fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as rice and rice-based local breads such as appam and string hoppers. Some specialties include smashed tapioca with Kerala-style fish curry and nellikka arishtam, vine prepared with gooseberry in honey or a sugarcane sweetener called jaggery.

In the evening, we’ll join a cooking demonstration led by the hotel’s master chef where we will learn the secrets of traditional Kerala seafood cooking.

Accommodation: Spice Village
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Transfer: 145 kms / 4 hrs
Activity: 2 hr spice plantation visit followed by lunch / 40 min cooking demo

Today we’ll celebrate the simple pleasures of rustic life with a daytrip to the village that won the National Award for Best Rural Responsible Tourism in India. Kumarakom is acclaimed for its scenic backwaters and delicious cuisine. A country boat will take us through the narrow canals that run between local homes and lush paddy fields. We’ll stay cool with refreshing and sweet coconut water and sample tender coconut meat in a grove nearby. Next, we’ll watch how locals climb coconut palms to pluck coconuts and learn how to tap the sap from coconut trees.

This morning we’ll visit several locals in their homes. One of our hosts will demonstrate the art of weaving coconut leaves, and another will show us how coir rope is made from coconut husks and fibers. A fisherman will share fishing tips and demonstrate how to fish the traditional way using a bow and arrow.

For lunch, we’ll take a short tuk-tuk ride to a local food court run by Kudumbshree, a social project leading the empowerment of women through co-op societies.
In the evening, we return back to our hotel for our farewell dinner and last night in India.

Accommodation: Coconut Lagoon or Kumarakom Lake Resort

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, Dinner

Activity: 6 hrs of day activity full of local interaction and participation

You’ll receive an on-time pick up from the hotel and transfer to Kochi airport to connect to your international flight.

Meals: Breakfast
Transfer: 60 kms / 1.5 hrs