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| Kerala
& Maldives Holiday |
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About this holiday
This is a two-week tour that focuses
on a very special small chain of boutique, eco-themed hotels
run by CGH Earth, an innovative and mightily impressive hotel
development and management company with a local touch and
an eye for detail. Explore historic Kochi (long known as Cochin),
a colourful melting pot of foreign influences and architecture;
visit the beautiful Periyar National Park in the spice-growing
Cardamom Hills; cruise through Kerala’s serene backwaters,
a vast network of vegetation-clocked rivers, streams, lagoons,
canals and tanks; and relax on an unspoilt stretch of palm-fringed
coastline.
Holiday highlights
• Wander around historic Fort
Kochi
• Visit St. Francis Church, Mattancherry Palace &
medieval synagogue
• Watch a traditional Kathakali dance performance
• Explore Kerala’s serene backwaters and village
life
• Munnar’s tea-growing hills and Thekkady’s
spice plantations
• Two-night stay on exclusive Kettuvallam style houseboat
• Watch elephant herds bathing in Periyar National Park
• Relax on Kerala’s golden beaches
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Day
1 to 7:
Depart from London, flying direct to the Maldives, the Indian
Ocean’s most sought-after beach escape, an archipelago
of islands offering turquoise blue waters, fine sandy beaches
and, for snorkelers and divers, a kaleidoscope of underwater
life. Spend seven nights relaxing at Makunudu Island Resort,
a six-acre isle in the North Male Atol.
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Accommodation profile:
Makunudu Island resort is found in the North Malé Atoll
on its own six acre isle. It is reached easily from Malé
International Airport by a 55-minute speedboat trip. An all-inclusive
resort, Makunudu is perfect for a short break of sun worship,
especially for couples. With comparably few facilities Makunudu's
reputation relies upon its excellent dining and beautiful location
whilst providing a few quality excursions such as fishing trips.
The accommodation is in a traditional Maldivian cottage-style,
all leading onto the beach and have been tastefully decorated
by removing the sight of any modern appliances. Makunudu is
a value for money, good-quality resort perfect for those wanting
to relax rather than pursue an active holiday. |
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Day
8 & 9:
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Arrive
at Kochi Airport and be met by a Red Dot Tours representative
and transferred in one of our comfortable Ambassador cars to
For t Kochi, an ancient trading port since at least Roman times
that provided a safe port of call for sailors on the main trade
route from Europe to China. The journey from the airport will
take approximately one hour before you check-in to Malabar House.
After resting at the hotel, dipping into the cool courtyard
swimming pool and enjoying you first taste of Kerela’s
distinctive, spicy cuisine, we suggest you wander around the
fort in the late afternoon. Walk along the fort promontory and
see the unique Chinese Fishing Nets and generally soak up the
atmosphere of the town. During the evening you may wish to watch
a Kathakali dance performance – a noisy, colourful and
spellbinding 400-year dance-drama.The following day, hopefully
after a refreshing night’s sleep, we will show you around
the fort, the highlights of which include Mattancherry Palace,
a gift to the Raja of Kochi back in 1557, St. Francis Church,
first built in 1510 and the resting place of Vasco de Gama,
and a magnificent synagogue dating back to 1568.
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Accommodation profile:
The Malabar House is a fascinating and sophisticated boutique
hotel that has become, quite understandably, one of the most
sought-after properties in Fort Cochin. Formerly a Dutch col
onial mansion which has been lovingly restored, there are 17
individually designed suites that mix contemporary design with
vibrant colours and local antique furnishings. The atmosphere
is serene and peaceful. The staff are friendly, cheerful, attentive
and discreet. The fusion food is acclaimed. |
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Day 10 & 11:
Today you journey east to
Munnar, the major centre of Kerala’s tea-growing hills.
The spectacular drive will take four hours. The town itself
is not particularly charming, but the surrounding countryside
is beautiful with its soaring peaks in the distance and neatly-clipped
tea estates in the foreground. We have recommended staying at
Tall Trees, an unpretentious and natural hotel property with
friendly and caring staff. Rest during the afternoon after the
long drive. The following morning you have several options:
laze on your veranda with a good novel; go walking in the tea
estates or hiking at the Top Station, an idyllic spot 41km from
Munnar which offers fine views over Tamil Nadu, or in the Eraikulam
National Park, a 100 sq km park of moist evergreen forest and
grassy hilltops that is home to the Nilgiri Tahr, one of the
world’s rarest goats, and also the starting point for
a climb up Anaimudi, at 2,695m the highest peak in South India;
go off-road cycling; play golf; or visit a nearby tea factory.
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Acommodation profile: Windermere
Estate, a beautiful small planter's retreat in the hills, is
situated 1600m above sea-level in the upper reaches of the Western
Ghats, a short drive from Munnar, a tea-growing hill station
town built around the confluence of three mountain streams,
Mudrapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundala. The bungalow-style hotel
offers breathtaking views, spacious and comfortable rooms, attentive
service and accomplished food. It is a property for peaceful
contemplation, a natural hideaway for those wishing to escape
the modern world for a few days. The plantation grows cardamom,
pepper, tea and coffee. |
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Day 12 & 13:
Leave
the hills, travelling south across dramatic ridges and through
thick forests to the spice-growing foothills of the Western
Ghats, an area dubbed Cardamom Hills after its most important
crop. Your destination is destination is the picturesque Periyar
National Park, the leading wildlife park in South India, which
was designated as part of Project Tiger in 1972. The lakeside
sanctuary, best explored by boat or on foot with a trekking
guide, is home to a relatively small population of game but,
encouragingly, thanks to enlightened anti-poaching policies
of the Kerala Forest Department, the game numbers are increasing
fast. The forest department have successfully co-opted the support
of the indigenous Mannan community who now conserve the reserve
in exchange for money from eco-tourism. You are likely to see
elephant grazing by the lakeside and bison, sambar, wild boar
and barking deer are also commonly spotted. But the tigers are
shy and are usually heard not seen, especially during the nights
as they prowl the jungle for their prey. We recommend staying
in the middle of this national park, in a small six-bedroom
former Maharajah’s game lodge called Lake Palace. Spend
two nights here, relaxing on your island, cruising around the
lake and trekking through the jungle. We can also organise a
spice plantation tour, a night trek, elephant rides and even
a bullock cart ride (an innovative idea to prevent unsustainable
sandlewood logging) if you can tear yourself away from your
island home.
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Acommodation profile: Lake
Palace, a former Maharaja’s holiday home now managed by
the Kerela Tourism Development Corporation, is a very special
six-bedroom property because of its idyllic peninsula location
inside the heart of Periyar Wildlife Reserve, overlooking the
lake and surrounding jungle. Supplies and guests are ferri ed
in across the the lake, a tranquil a beautiful 20-minute journey.
Elephants stroll close-by and in the night tigers, leopards
and wild dogs can often be heard hunting their prey. A former
Maharaja’s palace that was handed over to the state government,
it also contains many old-world memories and has, thankfully,
been preserved as a heritage property. Very little has changed
since its royal past. |
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Day 14 & 15:
From Periyar you travel south to Kumarakom, an island on the
large Lake Vembanad that is blessed with an idyllic location.
The area has attracted several exotic hotels offering backwater
and Ayurveda holidays. There is also a wonderful bird sanctuary.
We head straight for Coconut Lagoon, one of Red Dot’s
favourite properties in Kerala for a relaxing two-night stay.
Accommodation profile:
Coconut Lagoon is an architectural triumph, a boutique hotel
that has been cleverly crafted from the fragments of ancient
village homes and palaces. In some cases whole houses, complete
with beautiful wood carvings and its original brass work, have
been painstakingly transplanted into the property piece-by-piece.
The result is the ultimate backwater resort, a property where
fine traditional craftsmanship and the stunningly beautiful
natural surroundings makes it utterly impossible not to relax,
unwind and dream. The Keralan cuisine is delicious and the staff
are friendly and attentive. Like the other Casino Hotels, there
is a special emphasis on caring for the environment. In fact,
they are so serious about the natural environment that there
is a fulltime director in charge of there environmental policies,
which include comprehensive waste management schemes and a breeding
programme to protect the endangered Vechoor cows. |
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Day 16 & 17:
Relax during the morning at Coconut Lagoon and wait for the
arrival of your traditional Kettuvallum houseboat (reconverted
rice barges) around noon for one of the highlights of your holiday
– a journey through Kuttanad country to Kollam, a land
of shimmering waterways, dense tropical greenery and age-old
village livelihoods so vividly described in Arundhati Roy’s
remarkable novel The God of Small Things. Your houseboat, fully
staffed with a friendly and attentive crew, will chug slowly
through canals and creeks allowing you to relax and unwind.
Hours slip by easily as you gaze ashore, soaking up a myriad
of views as you pass homes, farms, paddy fields, playful children,
fisherfolk in traditional dugouts and bathing buffaloes. See
fish eagles circling for prey and wise cormorants perched on
the riverbank. At 6pm the houseboat will moor up and the staff
will cook a sumptuous traditional feast. Sleep contentedly in
your cabin. Spend the following on the houseboat as well. |
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Day 18 to 21:
After breakfast depart for a four-night stay at the Marari Beach
Hotel.
Accommodation profile:The Marari
Beach Hotel has real character and personality: 52 thatched-roofed
cottages spread over a huge 25-acre plot, compiled of open parkland,
fruit-lade n orchards and winding pathways. The cottages are
styled on the old village houses with palm roofs swooping low
over raised verandas. The interiors are simple and attractive.
Like all the other CGH Earth properties, the quality of the
food is top-class with a heavy reliance on local produce and
its own organic garden. |
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| Day 22: Leave
in good time for your flight home. The drive to Trivandrum International
Airport will take one hour. |
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Cost:
TBC
Package price includes:
- Return flights with SriLankan Airlines
- 12 night’s BB hotel accommodation on twin-sharing
basis (FB at Lake Palace) in Kerala
- 2 night’s full-board accommodation on non-a/c houseboat
in Kerala
- 7 nights HB accommodation in Maldives (Deluxe Bungalow)
- Speedboat transfer from Male to Maldives Resort
- Airconditioned car and English-speaking driver for transfers
and tour
- Entrance fees: St. Francis Church, Mattancherry Palace,
Synagogue, Kathakali dance performance, spice
plantation tour, one guided trek in Periyar National
Park, unlimited boat rides in Periyar
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