All Kochi Tours & Excursions in 2026

The day began with a private transfer to join the boat, at a very reasonable 08:30. The boat was clean and comfortable and powered by two boat men using the traditional bamboo poles. We went to a 74 year old ladies home who showed us how to make rope from coconut fibres and how to weave ‘roof-tiles’ from coconut leaves. We then sent in a smaller canoe to go into even narrower channels, ducking for low branches. Meers, our guide, was knowledgeable and friendly. The tour concluded with a traditional Kerala meal served on a banana leaf. A truly magical day and way to spend 6 hours on the backwaters.

I knew almost nothing about this tour except for the fact that one of my colleagues recommended it, and I’m very happy I took his recommendation! You’ll take winding roads up into the mountain towns of Kerala, seeing how the locals live while learning a bit of history about the area. I think it’s important to point out that you’re in a fairly remote area, so while the resort offers many amenities, you are not staying in a big-city hotel, so be prepared to “rough it” a bit — for example, showers may have low water pressure and not get warm/hot if other guests happen to be using water at the same time. That being said, the payoff is amazing views of the mountainsides and many, many, MANY tea plantations. The houseboat was an incredibly relaxing day of roaming around Vembanad Lake, with meals hand-prepared on the boat. My wife and I are both “foodies” and delighted in picking out the flavors in the dishes. Be aware that the boat will only be air-conditioned while it’s docked for the night. Showers are also rustic on the boat. Our driver Afsal was wonderful; he knew loads about the area and graciously and knowledgeably answered our incessant questions about the area, the food, the local customs, history, government, etc. He also came through for us in a big way: we found ourselves stuck in heavy traffic on our way to the airport because of a wreck on the main highway, and were in danger of missing our flight. Thanks to his knowledge of the local streets, Afsal was able to pivot and jump onto local streets to bypass the delay, getting us to the airport with time to spare!

The process of the booking was obviously smooth. I got contacted by the agency a day prior. Mr babu reached 15min early than the scheduled time for our pickup. He doubled down not just as an awesome driver, but a knowledgeable guy who in our 12 hours of the trip tried to show us and explain most of the things that he could. We asked for a peaceful day trip to Munnar and we got that. Would 100% recommend fellow travellers to book through here.