Kerala India Tours

Coconut Lagoon, Kumarakom

Coconut Lagoon, Kumarakoml
Coconut Lagoon, Kumarakoml
Rated as one of the top 15 beautiful spots in the world by the National Geographic, the coconut lagoon resort is hidden amongst the palm trees on the eastern shores of Lake Vembanad in Kerala. The resort can only be reached by Boat- a ferry leaves from one of the several mainland embarkation points at scheduled times throughout the day- and its accommodation consists of individual cottages called tharawads, the traditional wooden houses of Kerala. Though some of these cottage are of recent vintage, many are well over a century old and a few actually date back to the early 1700s. We also suggest that you take a look at the newly built villas with private plunge pools.

Location :

90 kms from Cochin Airport, 14 kms from Kottayam Railway Station, Accessible only by boat, 85 kms from Periyar Tiger Reserve, 20 kms from Marari Beach, 130 kms from Kovalam Beach, 150 kms from Munnar, 120 kms from Madurai Airport.

Accommodation :

Though all cottages vary in configuration, and some of the air-conditioned units are newly built replicas incorporating only fragments of old tharawads that could not be saved in their entirely, Coconut Lagoon offers three basic types of accommodation: Heritage Mansions, Heritage Bungalows and Private pool villas. The former have two stories, the upstairs bedroom gallery offering particularly magnificent views of Lake Vembanad.

The latter are more compact, single-level cottages. Both are furnished in aiyny and jack woods, and retain all the charm of original family homes, with thick, solid doors, intricate window carvings, and terra cotta tile floors. Structurally necessary alternations have been carried out with consummate discretion, i.e., in keeping with the style and decor of the era, and great attention has been paid to every detail. The lampstands in each tharawad, for example, having been carved from old wooden hinges. Traditionally, of course, Keralites bathed in the rivers - in rural areas many people still do - but Coconut Lagoon's cottages feature ultramodern bathrooms, each located, in an inner courtyard boasting its own banana (or coconut) tree, so you can shower al fresco under a starlit sky in complete and utter privacy!

28 Heritage Bungalows, 14 Heritage Mansions, 8 private pool villas


 

Dining :

Cited in Arundhati Roy's Booker Prize-winning best-seller, "The God of Small Things," the restaurant at Coconut Lagoon is renowned as much for its superb Keralian cuisine (vegetarian and non-vegetarian alike) as for its authentic setting, and is housed in one of the resort's most impressive tharawads.

Known as an ettukettu, the building incorporates two atrium like courtyards under an expansive tile roof supported by dozens of slim columns, a design that enables the space within to benefit from the slightest breeze. The restaurant is the oldest structure at Coconut Lagoon, and it, too, formerly belonged to a prominent Malayali family living in a nearby village.

Services and Facilities :

Room Service, H/C Running Water, Telephone, Fax, TV in Lounge, Shopping Arcade, Health Club, Swimming Pool, Water Sports, Ayurveda Treatment Center, Country Canoe Expeditions, Bird Watching, Fishing Expeditions, Sunset Cruise, Cultural Programme, Village Excursions, Doctor on Call, Laundry, Money Changer, Safe Deposit, Baby Sitting, Travel Desk Service.



Places of Interest :

As you can imagine the choice is endless but here are just a few suggestions:

Farm Visit, Village Walks, Visit to Bird Sanctuary, Overnight Backwater Cruises, Water Sports Activities.