Splendour on the Kerala waters

Houseboats lining the coasts of Kerala is a common sight. It’s one of the most opted tourist attraction, here. There are hundreds of houseboats operating from Cochin, Kottayam, Kumarakom and Allepey.

A newly built 32-seater-boat will operate from Kumarakom, near Kottayam, and have tours linking Pathiramanal, R Block and Allepey. The government also plans to erect new boat jetties and snack houses near the existing ones and in new places.

Though there are more than 250 house boats operating from Kumarakom, it does not have a common boat jetty in the public sector so far. A new jetty, 40m long will come up at Kavanattinkara soon.

The council also plans to start a Lake Tourism project at Chanaganassery in a nearby district. There’s also a plan for a park, eatery and an open air theatre at Nattassery on the Meenachil riverfront.

Along with the government-sponsored houseboat packages, there are many operated by private agencies and tour operators.