Kerala & India's Beautiful South
Kerala & India's Beautiful South
18 Days Starting in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India and ending in Chennai
Visiting: Bengaluru, Mysuru, Ooty, Nilgiri Mountain Railway Line, Kochi, Alappuzha, Periyar, Madurai, Puducherry, Mahabalipuram, Chennai, United Kingdom
Tour operator:
Tour code:
16704
Guide Type:
Fully Guided
Group size:
0 - 50
Physical rating:
Medium, Low
Age range:
0-99
Special diets catered:
Vegetarians
Tour operated in:
EnglishTrip Styles:
Interests:
Activities:
From:
$3684
$3305 (USD)
including Flights from the UK
Operator discount: -$379
Tour Overview
Explore an idyllic land of ancient ports, labyrinthine backwaters and forested uplands dotted with temples and tea-plantations.Discover the colours and scents of Kerala – known affectionately by its inhabitants as God’s Own Country – and temple-dotted Tamil Nadu, on this leisurely journey that also takes in the cool heights of the Western Ghat hill stations and the dusty Mysore Plateau, the iconic setting to EM Forster’s novel – A Passage to India. Bookended by stays in bustling Bangalore and an elegant Bay of Bengal seaside town, this is the perfect introduction to India’s spectacular south.
Highlights
Itinerary
Day 1 : Fly To India
Location: Bengaluru
Accommodation: Overnight flight to Bangalore
Meals Included: No Meals
Fly overnight to Bangalore.
Day 2 : Travel To Your Hotel In Bangalore
Location: Bengaluru
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Dinner
Your tour manager will meet you as you arrive in Bangalore, and Our coach will transfer to your welcoming hotel in this thriving city where modern developments surround the colonial remnants, parks and green spaces of the what was once known as the Garden City. Enjoy the chance to rest and relax before your first dinner at the hotel.
Day 3 : Included Bangalore Tour
Location: Bengaluru
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
After an early breakfast, you’ll head out for a sightseeing tour of Bangalore. Highlights will include the vast Vidhana Soudha state ‘capitol’ – India’s largest civic building – the 16th-century Bull Temple, with its massive, granite Nandi bull, and the Summer Palace of Tipu Sultan.Following the tour you’ll travel across the plain to historic, charming Mysore, pausing en route to take in the island of Srirangapatna. The island was once the stronghold of the Tiger of Mysore, Tipu Sultan, who was finally defeated by the future Duke of Wellington, here, in 1799. An important Hindu temple draws pilgrims from across the sub-continent.
Day 4 : Included Mysore City Tour
Location: Mysuru
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
This morning’s tour begins with a short journey to an ornate temple atop the Chamundi Hills before returning to take in Mysore’s spectacular, domed, Maharaja’s Palace. This fusion of architectural styles has a striking interior whose highlight is the magnificent royal wedding hall. You’ll also see the Jaganmohan Palace, with its collection of Indian paintings and carvings, and visit the Railway Museum.This afternoon, re-board the coach for another short journey, this time to Somnathpur, where the Keshava Vishnu temple is one of the finest examples of the intricate style favoured by the region’s 13th-century Hoysala rulers. Return to Mysore, to take in the extraordinary sight of the illuminated Maharaja’s Palace, this evening.
Day 5 : Travel To Ooty
Location: Ooty
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Board the coach for the memorably scenic journey into the foothills of the Western Ghat mountains. You’ll pass the forests of the Bandipur National Park and, by afternoon, you will have arrived in the Queen of Hill Stations, Udhagamandalam (or Ooty is it’s more often and briefly called). Spend the evening in this idyllic location, discovering the Kew-inspired Botanical Gardens, Gothic St Stephen’s Church and crumbling colonial splendour.
Day 6 : Ride On The Nilgiri Mountain Railway
Location: Nilgiri Mountain Railway Line
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch
Another memorable day awaits you as, early this morning, you board the historic, narrow-gauge Nilgiri Blue Mountain Railway. Ride the diesel-drawn Toy Train down through the spectacular hills to plantation town Coonoor, where you’ll break for lunch. Tour a tea-factory, enjoy a tasting and meet the friendly locals involved with the mountain railway, before an further, steam-hauled, journey brings you to the bottom station at Mettupalayam.From here, a coach will transfer you to your overnight hotel in nearby Coimbatore.
Day 7 : Rail Travel To Kochi
Location: Kochi
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
After a leisurely morning, perhaps making use of your hotel’s facilities, you’ll head to Coimbatore Station and board the early afternoon Ernakulam Express, which will speed you in air-conditioned comfort into Kerala. Spend the next two nights here, in Kochi, the ancient trading seaport once known as Cochin.
Day 8 : Included Tour Of Kochi
Location: Kochi
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Today, you’ll enjoy an included guided tour of historic Kochi. See the exquisite murals of "Dutch" Mattancherry Palace, the ancient Jewish synagogue and Fort Cochin – home to the famous Chinese fishing nets that have become one of India’s most-photographed sights. Elsewhere in the city, historic St Francis Church overlooks a village green straight from a genteel English scene.This evening, see for yourself the intricate choreography, glorious costumes and colourful make-up of a traditional Kathakali dance performance.
Day 9 : Cruise On A Traditional Houseboat
Location: Alappuzha
Accommodation: Keralan Houseboat
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Travel the short distance to Alleppey, and board a traditional, thatch-roofed Kettuvallam houseboat to lazily cruise a labyrinth of canals and waterways, lined with coconut groves, rice fields and dotted with temples. This landscape of tiny islands is home to fishermen, buffalo farmers, and coconut growers. This evening, enjoy a guided walk through a traditional Keralan village.
Day 10 : Travel To Periyar And Visit A Spice Plantation
Location: Periyar
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Bidding farewell to your floating home, you’ll journey up into a lush, rolling landscape dotted with tea- and spice-plantations, to Periyar. You’ll spend two nights here, close to the famous wildlife sanctuary. Check in to your hotel, then join your guide to explore a spice plantation and learn the mysteries and history of Indian tea and spices, which are grown in abundance on the slopes of the sanctuary. Enjoy dinner and a cooking demonstration at the hotel at the end of a fascinating day. This evening, you can also choose to go on an optional tour to Kalaripayattu in Periyar. Here, in a small venue with stadium seating, you'll be able to watch a traditional Indian martial arts performance.
Day 11 : Optional Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary Excursion
Location: Periyar
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Rest and relax in the cool surroundings of your hotel, this morning, or join our optional guided excursion into the Wildlife Sanctuary, in search of the endangered mammals (elephants, palm civets, giant squirrels and – for the lucky few – tigers and leopards) and 250-plus bird species that make it their home.This afternoon, complete your visit to Periyar with a boat ride on serene Periyar Lake. Sightings of elephants and colourful birds are possible here, too; though glimpses of the elusive tigers and leopards are the preserve of the very fortunate few.
Day 12 : Travel To Madurai
Location: Madurai
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Journey east into Tamil Nadu, heading down onto the southern plains to spend the next two nights in Madurai. One of Asia’s oldest cities, Madurai stands on the banks of the River Vaigai and is famed for its extraordinary temples. Soak up the atmosphere of this unforgettable metropolis, which is dominated by the vast, colourful Meenakshi temple.
Day 13 : Included Madurai City Tour
Location: Madurai
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Today’s guided sightseeing tour introduces Madurai’s Old City, where the ornately carved façade, colonnades, shrines and quartet of towering gopurams of the Meenakshi temple are the breath-taking highlight. Marvel at the continual ceremonies and devotions, take in the bustle of the temple markets and stroll the labyrinth of corridors and walkways. This evening, head back out of the hotel to discover the city’s narrow, bustling streets and colourful market by cycle-rickshaw.
Day 14 : Travel To Pondicherry
Location: Puducherry
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
A scenic journey through a landscape of rice-paddies and irrigated fields takes you to Pondicherry, a town of decidedly Gallic leanings that boasts an authentic Hôtel de Ville, where French is still widely spoken and where the "gendarmes" patrolling the beachfront promenade still wear kepi berets.Enjoy an overnight stay here, in a town that forms one of the backdrops to Yann Martel’s enchanting novel, Life of Pi.
Day 15 : Explore Pondicherry And Travel To Mahabalipuram
Location: Puducherry, Mahabalipuram
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
This morning, pay a visit to the Pondicherry Museum, and take in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, which draws its members from across the globe. Re-boarding the coach, you’ll then journey north to the elegant coastal resort of Mahabalipuram to enjoy a relaxed evening in your final hotel, and perhaps take a stroll on the nearby beach.
Day 16 : Sightseeing Tour Of Mahabalipuram
Location: Mahabalipuram
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner
A morning sightseeing tour of this once thriving trading port and stone-carving centre includes a visit to the extraordinary, 8th-century Shore Temple, one of India’s most photographed, with its much eroded, Pallava dynasty-era towers. Other highlights will include the monoliths of the Pancha Pandava rathas, and the vast cave-cut Krishna Mandapam temple.This afternoon, rest and relax on the beach before enjoying a farewell dinner at your hotel.
Day 17 : Explore Chennai Before Flying Home
Location: Chennai
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast
Bid farewell to your hosts and transfer to Chennai, where you’ll enjoy a guided tour of India’s fourth-largest city, once better known as Madras, where Clive of India once worked as a humble clerk for the East India Company at historic Fort St George. Highlights include the Fort Museum and its relics of the Raj, Marina Beach (the world’s longest urban stretch of sand), San Thome Cathedral, the famous Chepauk Cricket Stadium and St Mary’s Church - the Westminster Abbey of Asia.
2023 and 2024 dates: After the tour, you'll be transferred to your hotel near Chennai Airport for a relaxed evening before your early morning check-out.
2025 dates: After the tour, you'll be transferred to Chennai Airport for the return overnight flight home.
Day 18 : Flight Back To The Uk And Arrival Home
Location: United Kingdom
Meals Included: No Meals
2023 and 2024 dates: You'll leave your hotel in the early hours of the morning for your quick transfer to the airport and day flight back home.
2025 dates: You'll arrive home today after an overnight flight from Chennai.
What's Included
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Accommodation
15 nights' hotel half-board accommodation at hotels in Bangalore (1 night), Mysore (2), Ooty (1), Coimbatore (1), Kochi (2), Periyar (2), Madurai (2), Pondicherry (1), Mahabalipuram (2) and Chennai (1). 2025 dates are one night shorter and do not include the last night in Chennai, One night’s full-board accommodation on a traditional Keralan houseboat
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Fully Guided
Fully escorted by a friendly, experienced tour manager
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International Travel
Return flights to India via Dubai
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Additional Services
Free wifi and bottled water is available every day on board the coach journeys
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Transport
Comfortable, air-conditioned, coach travel and transfers throughout
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Tipping
Tipping is included for airport and hotel porters, restaurant and monument staff, naturalists and rickshaw drivers. Tipping is at your discretion for your tour manager, driver and driver’s assistant
What's Not Included
Passports and visas
British citizens require machine-readable passports when travelling overseas. Your passport must contain two blank pages and be valid for 180 days after your return date from India.
British CITIZENS and most other European nationals satisfying certain conditions may use the online e-Tourist Visa application process at a cost of $10 (US) per person for entry to India for arrivals in the months of April, May and June or $25 (US) per person for arrivals in other months. Fees are subject to change. Other passport holders must apply for a full visa.
Note that all travellers of Pakistani descent, regardless of citizenship, will generally be subject to more detailed processing by the Indian authorities, which can take up to four months from application.
Foreign Office Travel Advice
Visit www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice to find out the latest Foreign And Commonwealth Office travel advice for your holiday destination, as well as information about passports and visas.
Hotel transfer times
The transfer time from the airport to your hotel is approximately one hour.
Luggage allowance
You are permitted to take one suitcase per person on the aircraft, which should not exceed 23kg.
Special requirements
If you have notified us of any special requirements, please check that they have been noted and acknowledged. This is especially important with any dietary needs you may have.
Disabled access
The majority of our tours involve a certain amount of walking, including a short walk from the coach stop to the town, attraction or venue you're visiting. If you are bringing a wheelchair, please let us know at the time of booking so that appropriate arrangements can be made. In many developing countries access is sometimes not as easy as at home. Should you have walking difficulties, getting around monuments and attractions may be harder and, in some cases, impossible. Should you have any concerns whatsoever please do contact us prior to travel.
Changes to your hotels
Should circumstances require, we reserve the right to accommodate you in alternative hotels, of a similar standard, nearby. Full details of your hotels will be sent with your Final Travel Documents.
Itinerary changes
Occasionally, for operational reasons, we may have to change the order of the excursions on your holiday. The final day-by-day itinerary will be confirmed on your Final Travel Documents, which you will receive approximately three weeks prior to your departure.
Road Conditions
In developing countries road networks are continually being improved and expanded, which can mean that, from time to time, roadworks and rough road surfaces can extend journey times. Some journeys are made on winding mountain roads and passes, which may also make for slow travelling - although the scenery is usually worth it! Many roads do not have separate pavements or safety barriers, and great care should be taken when crossing or walking alongside roads.
2025 departures
Tour departures in 2025 will not stay overnight in Chennai on day 17. You'll depart from Chennai in the evening of day 17, flying overnight and landing in the morning of day 18.
Passports and visas
British citizens require machine-readable passports when travelling overseas. Your passport must contain two blank pages and be valid for 180 days after your return date from India.
British CITIZENS and most other European nationals satisfying certain conditions may use the online e-Tourist Visa application process at a cost of $10 (US) per person for entry to India for arrivals in the months of April, May and June or $25 (US) per person for arrivals in other months. Fees are subject to change. Other passport holders must apply for a full visa.
Note that all travellers of Pakistani descent, regardless of citizenship, will generally be subject to more detailed processing by the Indian authorities, which can take up to four months from application.
Foreign Office Travel Advice
Visit www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice to find out the latest Foreign And Commonwealth Office travel advice for your holiday destination, as well as information about passports and visas.
Hotel transfer times
The transfer time from the airport to your hotel is approximately one hour.
Luggage allowance
You are permitted to take one suitcase per person on the aircraft, which should not exceed 23kg.
Special requirements
If you have notified us of any special requirements, please check that they have been noted and acknowledged. This is especially important with any dietary needs you may have.
Disabled access
The majority of our tours involve a certain amount of walking, including a short walk from the coach stop to the town, attraction or venue you're visiting. If you are bringing a wheelchair, please let us know at the time of booking so that appropriate arrangements can be made. In many developing countries access is sometimes not as easy as at home. Should you have walking difficulties, getting around monuments and attractions may be harder and, in some cases, impossible. Should you have any concerns whatsoever please do contact us prior to travel.
Itinerary changes
Occasionally, for operational reasons, we may have to change the order of the excursions on your holiday. The final day-by-day itinerary will be confirmed on your Final Travel Documents, which you will receive approximately three weeks prior to your departure.
Changes to your hotels
Should circumstances require, we reserve the right to accommodate you in alternative hotels, of a similar standard, nearby. Full details of your hotels will be sent with your Final Travel Documents.
Road Conditions
In developing countries road networks are continually being improved and expanded, which can mean that, from time to time, roadworks and rough road surfaces can extend journey times. Some journeys are made on winding mountain roads and passes, which may also make for slow travelling - although the scenery is usually worth it! Many roads do not have separate pavements or safety barriers, and great care should be taken when crossing or walking alongside roads.
2025 departures
Tour departures in 2025 will not stay overnight in Chennai on day 17. You'll depart from Chennai in the evening of day 17, flying overnight and landing in the morning of day 18.
Check out our Q&As
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What is the maximum group size?
Generally no more than 50
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Is there any free time to explore places during the tour?
As detailed in the itinerary
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What is the standard of the hotels on this tour?
As detailed in the itinerary
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Is there a limit to luggage that can be brought on the tour?
Your luggage allowance is stated on your Confirmation Invoice. You will also receive details of your baggage allowance with your final travel documents, which we will send approximately one week prior to your departure date. We do not include any hold luggage on our Christmas Markets or Lapland breaks.
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Are airport transfers included in this tour?
Yes
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Will there be an escort accompanying this tour?
Yes
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Will I know the names and details of all the accommodation before I depart?
Yes
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Are all the relevant entry visa’s included in the price of the tour?
No
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Are the local guides on the tour English speaking?
Yes
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How long has the tour company been trading?
Since 1983
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Vaccination Requirements
Your health and safety are pivotal to our operations, and every customer travelling on a tour with us must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Fully vaccinated means that you have had the full course of an approved vaccine a minimum of 14 days prior to your holiday. We also recommend that you travel with proof that you’ve been fully vaccinated.
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What Ethical Travel credentials does the tour company have?
Our company’s mission is to enrich lives and improve wellbeing through travel. A big part of that is ‘Travel for Good’. Our ‘Travel for Good’ hub is our first step in a long journey to reduce carbon, offset anything we produce as a company and travel without harming the planet or the people of the destinations we go to.
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What policies are in place for Covid-19?
Please contact us for latest Covid-19 policies
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Fitness to Travel
We strive to give all our customers full care and attention, but we do need to know at the time of booking if there are any special needs or requirements. It is particularly important that we are advised of any disabilities and also if you intend to bring any specialist equipment such as a wheelchair with you. Please make sure that you make us aware of any requirements.
Reviews of this Operator
Dates & Availability
Thursday - Sunday
Oct 24, 2024 - Nov 10, 2024Thursday - Sunday
Jan 23, 2025 - Feb 09, 2025Thursday - Sunday
Mar 06, 2025 - Mar 23, 2025Thursday - Sunday
Apr 24, 2025 - May 11, 2025Thursday - Sunday
Sep 11, 2025 - Sep 28, 2025Thursday - Sunday
Oct 09, 2025 - Oct 26, 2025Thursday - Sunday
Nov 06, 2025 - Nov 23, 2025Book with Confidence
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Low Deposit
Newmarket Holidays requires a minimum deposit of 35% or the full booking value, whichever is less, with the final balance not due until 60 days before departure.
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Cancellation Policy
We don't charge a cancellation fee, here is a summary of newmarket holidays charges.
Up to 56 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of deposit.
At 55 days before tour starts: Forfeit 50% of booking price.
At 48 days before tour starts: Forfeit 75% of booking price.
At 34 days before tour starts: Forfeit 90% of booking price.
At 15 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of booking price.
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Vaccination Requirements
Your health and safety are pivotal to our operations, and every customer travelling on a tour with us must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Fully vaccinated means that you have had the full course of an approved vaccine a minimum of 14 days prior to your holiday. You can find the travel restrictions for different countries on www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice. We also recommend that you travel with proof that you’ve been fully vaccinated.