Down to earth holidays

Description

Travellers wanting an adventure holiday in India often end up seeing the more 'usual' sides of Kerala. This holiday is different. It takes you on an adventure which is much less ordinary, far more interesting, and which is utterly immersed in the culture of the area.

This is an Indian holiday which gives you a varied and fascinating look at the state of Kerala, including Cochin, the backwaters, the beaches of Kannur and the wildlife and spice gardens of Wayanad.  But it also includes privileged insights into the culture and traditions of the local people - artists, musicians, dancers, and other craftsmen.

This is an excellently-priced holiday, especially when you consider the places you'll be staying, including eco-friendly cottages on a backwater island and in Wayanad, 4 nights homestay in heritage houses, and lovely beach cottages.

There are also some fascinating excursions and activities included which help bring the culture of the area alive for you, and give you your chance to really meet the local people.

Detailed Itinerary

1. DAY 1: Arrive in Cochin in the morning. Afternoon sightseeing of some of Cochin's important historic monuments such as the Dutch Palace and Jewish Synagogue. (B).
2. DAY 2: Transfer to Alleppey after breakfast. Day's cruise on a houseboat through the backwaters of Kuttanad (Kerala). This is the area's rice bowl and you will pass paddy fields, fishing nets, coconut groves and local villages. Enjoy watching the sun set over the waters. Overnight on houseboat. (FB).
3. DAY 3: You will have a short transfer this morning  to spend the day and night on a secluded island on the backwaters. There are six cottages here with gorgeous views. Cycling, village visits and canoe trips are available, and the island has great birdlife. Good relaxation spot! (FB).
4. DAY 4: Travel to River Nila (also known as the Ponanni) / Cheruthuruthy (about 4 hours). Check into our resort near River Nila. In the evening, we visit a nearby village where you will visit local handicraft and pottery makers, and meet folk artists inthe courtyard of a local household. A young team of local  performers will take you through the dance forms, music and percussion that gives the region such rich cultural traditions. (B).
5. DAY 5: This morning you visit a local school for classical music and dance. We then check out after lunch and drive to Kooderi (about 1 hour). Our next stop is a farm stay in a 400 yr old heritage house in an organic farm. This farm is part of the responsible tourism initiative of the area which is making positive changes to this region. (FB).
6. DAY 6: After breakfast we spend time with a family of musicians to showcase the percussion culture of the River Nila area.  A demonstration of all kinds of intrsuments will be concluded by an amazing perfmormance by this local group. At about 3.30pm we take a late afternoon boat cruise through the stunning landscape of Tirur. This is a relatively unknown area of small canals, rivers, backwaters and islands. Communities of toddy tappers (palm wine makers), coir rope makers and fishermen live here. (FB).
7. DAY 7: This morning we travel to Nilambur (about 2 hours).  Stay at heritage property reflecting the ancient tradition sof a Kerala Brahmin family. The farm also has a two acre sacred grove. (FB).
8. DAY 8: Either simply chill out at this majestic homestay today, or visit local bathing ghats and the farm. (FB).
9. DAY 9: Transfer to Wayanad (about 3 hours) in the Deccan plateau. It is an area rich in biodiversity and part of the Nilgiri Biosphere reserve. Afternoon spice tour to savour the aromas of cardamom, cinammon, pepper, ginger, vanilla and more. (B).
10. DAY 10: This morning we visit one of Wayanad's wildlife sanctuaries - either Tholpetty or Muthanga. Here there are elephants, tigers, panther, civets, langur, gaur, spotted deer, sambal, bears and a huge number of bird species. In the afternoon we visit a bamboo nursery. Local people grow bamboo here which they then create into marvellous works of art or practical objects. (B).
11. DAY 11: After breakfast, we transfer to the coast, to Kannur about 3 hours away. This is a region with some of the most idyllic beaches in Malabar, and you have the next few daysto relax and chill out. (FB)
12. DAYS 12-13: Relax on idyllic beach near Kannur. (FB).
13. DAY 14: Transfer to Calicut airport (about 2 hours) for your flight home.

Is it for you?

This is for everyone with a spirit of adventure who want a fabulous holiday in Kerala where you can meet the people as well as enjoy the beaches, landscape and wildlife. It is fine for all ages and levels of fitness.

Best times to go

Between October and March is the best time for this holiday.

Getting there

You need to fly into Cochin and out of Calicut. We can arrange the flights for you if you wish (we are ATOL-bonded) or you can get your own if you prefer.

Responsible Travel

How your holiday helps:
This holiday helps in a variety ways, mainly relating to helping back local people in terms of their traditions, cultures and livelihoods.

Once practiced in several places in Kerala and especially on the banks of River Nila, featured art forms and rituals are no longer financially viable for people who practice it as there are less and less people who are showing interest in these rituals (change in life tyle and attitude). This has affected the way of life of these ritualistic performers and they have been looking for other jobs based on daily wages. The Responsible tourism initiative has helped some of our community members to continue their lifestyle and earn from what they know for many generations; instead of having to look for a lifestyle they aren’t comfortable with. This initiative has brought together 25 plus youngsters ( girls and boys ) to document folk traditions of the local region and even to maintain and digital archive in our village.

Due to many social restrictions, some of the gifted musicians have no access to perform in temples and courtyards which are otherwise restricted only to musicians of upper caste communities. These members from the poor families make a living out of traditional launderettes and daily-wage jobs which are very seasonal. Now the program has shown them an alternative source of income and more than everything, sense of pride and social recognition. The initiative is now raising funds to build the memorial for a renowned musician from our region through the musical trail.

The boats we travel were traditionally used for transporting fine sand and coconut husks to different locations. (In River Nila, most of the boats are used for illegal sand mining). A slump in the local economy and falling market prices along with the ban in sand mining has hit the boat owners and workers. We believe that by hiring these boats from them instead of owning our own boats, for ferrying tourists, we could give them an alternative source of income. This in turn gives them a dignified job and decent income to live with. Part of this holiday supports those people who live on the fringes of the forest as trackers, guides and interpreters. Due to several "social re-engineering" and political decisions, many of the tribal people have been forced to leave the forest and are no longer associated with its day to day activities. This particular trip focuses on their role as care takers of forest, its resources and wildlife and by doing so also assures them a decent livelihood with dignity. Sustainable income through responsible tourism ensures increasing interest amongst local community members, which in turn supports conservation of wildlife and forest resources.

Pottery and Bell metal workshops gives insight into the resilience of the artisans and how our holidays help them to make supplementary source of income. Promotion of such initatives have created new found interest amongst locals and new orders are regularly recieved by workers. The traditional home stays that are part of the holiday accommodations were introduced as part of heritage revival and is providing a source of income for locals to maintain their age-old architectural marvels. Well maintained with high standard facilities, these home stays give insights into the day-to-day sustainable life-style of the destination. Most of the food materials are sourced within their own farms and are organically grown. Energy generated for lighting and irrigation purposes are from the bio-waste from the farm and house-hold.

On behalf of every single traveller who visits our region, we plant sapling(s) to promote traveller's forest, which is a community owned eco-restoration project. Post monsoons, travellers themselves can involve in planting activities. The focus of planting in Wayanad is on livelihood generation and environmental support through bamboo, where as the focus of planting along Nila region is eco restoration.

Carbon Offsetting:
For every client we take on holiday we plant 10 indigenous tree saplings. This is used as a poverty alleviation and biodiversity scheme as well as helping with carbon offsetting. Click for more details…

Giving to grassroots projects:
Our registered charity, The Tribes Foundation, is currently raising funds for a project in Tanzania. The kindness of strangers can make a big difference, so if you’re a travel philanthropist considering donating to a worthwhile charity, please consider backing this excellent community project.

The Nila Foundation was set up to help revive and regenerate a dying river called Bharathapuzha ( river Nila) in central Kerala. This also involves preserving and reviving traditional art-forms and knowledge that once made the river valley civilisation so unique. Currently the foundation is involved in documenting the status of five major rivers of Kerala ( including Nila), and is developing a study module for schools on the importance of river ecology. Traveller's Forest is another initiative that is supporting the eco-restoration of the region.

We will shortly have a page with photos of the project on http://www.the-tribes-foundation.org/.

Shop ethically:
If you support buying fair trade, ethical and organic goods, please take a look at our online ethical shop for books, maps, travel gadgets, first aid kits etc before you travel. This is also a great place to find organic goodies and handmade crafts, many made in the countries and areas that we visit. Shop at Tribes Trading.

FOR MORE GENERAL DETAILS ABOUT OUR RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL POLICIES, CLICK HERE.

Comments

Trip Code: IN4

Validity: Until 30th Sept 09

Individual Trip Dates & Prices

2+ people can take this holiday on most days of the year, subject to availability. Please call us to check availability.

From 1^st March to September 2009 :        £1125 pp.

• Prices are based on twin share, excluding flights.
• Please ask about child rates (if available) and single supplements.
• Exchange rate fluctuations may affect these prices (see our Booking Conditions).

Price: £1125

Duration: 14 days

Included
Accommodation based on twin share (9 nights full board, 5 nights breakfast only), transfers (in aircon vehicle), guided tour in Fort Cochin (inc entrance fees), houseboat trip, folk artists trips on days 4 and 6, music trip on day 5, cruise on day 6, safari on day 10, bamboo visit.

Not Included
Flights, visa, insurance, some meals, drinks, tips, items of a personal nature (eg laundry).