Kerala & the Tropical South

As a first time visitor to India I was not disappointed. This is a full on trip with lots of time spent travelling between locations but this means you get the full flavour of both Kerala and Tamil Nadu from the stunning tea plantations in the North to the Southern Tip of India where three oceans meet.

Every single day was a new exciting experience. A fantastic insight to the culture and history of the region, made easy by an excellent well planned itinery.

This was an absolutely brilliant trip with varied itinerary seeing a mixture of busy cities and daily life within, walking barefoot in beautiful temples, watching traditional Kathakali dance show, trekking in stunning mountainous tea plantations and also in jungle in the Periyar National Park, cruising on a houseboat on the beautiful backwaters, staying in an amazing home stay being looked after by the lovely owner Grace and finishing with relaxing time on beautiful beaches. The scenery as you drive around is simply stunning with some incredible views. We had such a really lovely fun group of people and the locals were so warm, gentle and smiley and hotel staff went out of their way to look after us, in particular Ripon at the Peppervine, best kindest service ever! We had the most incredible knowledgeable guide Biju, who gave us so many interesting insights into his wonderful country and was the warmest, kindest most thoughtful person, looking after us all so incredibly well, he helped make this holiday a best ever . Vinod our driver was excellent, so friendly and smiley and he kept the bus immaculate and drove us so safely . A wonderful trip and no wonder it’s known as Gods own country, it’s simply stunning, with an exceptional guide Biju and such lovely locals who really touched me, I left a piece of my heart there!

My Exodus trip to Kerala and Tamil Nadu was truly amazing in so many ways. The beautiful scenery, lush green and full of fascinating wild life, the range and style of vegetarian food, and the overwhelming gentleness and warmth of the local people were all way beyond my expectations. Our outstanding guide Biju was at the heart of it all with his supreme organizational skills, endless information on every topic imaginable and, above all, his patience and kindness towards everyone in the group. The itinerary was perfect as it exposed us to so many very different aspects of the region: rural and urban settings, magnificent Hindu temples as well as Christian churches, historically important public buildings but also the homes of ordinary people going about their daily lives. A solo trip to India could never have offered such an enlightening and wide ranging experience as we gained from this trip. I would highly recommend it to others especially for a first trip to India and if they are as lucky as we were they may even have Biju as a guide too.

If I could give this trip 10 stars I would! It was perfectly paced and covers a fascinating range of locations. Our tour guide, Biju, was quite simply the best tour guide ever. So patient, knowledgeable and helpful. Normally the time spent on the bus between locations would be unwelcome but he made it something to look forward to as it was the perfect opportunity to learn more about the politics, religion and history of this amazing place. Highlights for me included the tea plantation trek, the houseboat on the backwaters, and the snake temple.

Excellent

Southern India is less well known than the golden triangle - but that's why this trip is so special. It shows you a new side to this amazing country. The Keralan backwaters showed us wonderful wildlife and opened our eyes to the culture and life of the local people. An excellent blend of nature and culture, we made new discoveries every day.

Very varied experiences from city life, to tea plantations, to a Homestay and Houseboat overnight trips. Good optional excursions which majority took. Visits to Hindu temples with explanations of the culture and way of life, as well as other churches. Don’t hesitate book it. It was brilliant.

I’d always wanted to visit Kerala. This trip exceeded my expectations. The sheer variety and planning that went into this trip is mind boggling. I loved the people, the food, the countryside, the wildlife, the culture…I loved it all!

For us the highlights of the trip were very clear - the Western Ghats (Munnar, Thekkady, Periyar), the Backwaters of Alleppey, the beaches of Kovalam at the end of the trip and, of course, Biju and Vinod looking after us! The “areas for improvement” were also clearcut - a) the choice of hotel in Kochi - while the Abad Atrium is ok, it’s in completely the wrong place! We all wanted to be located actually in Fort Kochi, to avoid the several hours in the bus and the heavy traffic, getting to and from Fort Kochi b) we felt that the Homestay in Erattupetta was a wasted night - the welcome felt begrudging and the rooms are tatty; we would have much preferred an extra night up in the hills (Munnar or Thekkady) or on the Houseboat in Alleppey (SO relaxing!) c) the conclusion to a tiring fortnight turned out to be staying up until half-past midnight, for a transfer to the airport and then a flight at 04.30 - ghastly; this ensured we had an exhausting day of travel home. We would have liked to at least been offered the option of the Etihad flight out the next morning (at about 10.00 am)

A wonderfully varied and well paced two weeks in beautiful, vibrant Kerala and Madurai. Something for everyone: hustle and bustle in Kochi and Madurai; temples and palaces; local cuisine; boat trips; tea plantations; bird life; walk in national park; beaches; and insight into Indian culture, religion, history and day to day life. Plenty of optional excursions to enjoy, but no pressure to take part if in need of some r&r. The people of Kerala are amazingly friendly and engaging. Would wholeheartedly recommend this trip - you will not regret a minute.

Southern Indian trip. Tea Plantations, Temples, Backwaters cruise.

This was a really great trip. I had no specific expectations and so it was all a wonderful surprise. The trip is quite full on and covers a wide variety of places and activities, from mad hectic cities, tea plantations, temples, backwater cruising to beaches and everything in between. We had a great bunch of very friendly people in our group , which was full at 16. This wasn't a problem as the bus was spacious and with AC .. a must... if sometimes a bit too ferocious! Our guide Sathish was an absolute star , very knowledgeable, very helpful and seemed genuinely happy to be with the group .He went out of his way to arrange alternatives when we couldn't do the original plan... it was festival season so pretty busy in places. The only downside was some of the hotels were really a bit shabby and in some cases needed a good clean. I did not expect luxury but I think Exodus need to review their choice of hotels .

Great trip. Decent hotels except the last one in Kovalam- short of disaster. In a 20 year old guide book was already described as outdated, no words how it is now. Excellent guide. Out of my 7 trips with Exodus I think he was the best one. Impeccable English, as opposed to some other guides on my other trips. Makes a difference when you understand what the guide is saying.

A very different experience from the trips to northern India I had taken over the years. Made extra special as it was over Christmas and New Year. A great variety of landscapes, experiences and people.

Fantastic holiday. Varied as covered mountains, tea plantations, jungle, backwaters and temples.

This was an excellent holiday. The trips to the tea plantation, rubber plantation and spice farm were interesting, but the highlight was the night spent on the houseboat on the backwaters of Kerala. But what really made the difference was the professionalism of our tour guide Biju Kumar. Not only did he provide lots of information about the life and culture of Southern India, but he was ever present in ensuring our trip ran smoothly. Indeed one night he had to accompany two of our party to A&E – fortunately they were OK.

An excellent way to see southern India. There a real difference between Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

This was a very varied trip with cities and temples, mountains with tea plantations and wildlife walks, a very relaxing time on the Kerela Backwaters and the beach.

We really enjoyed our tour of the Tropical South of India. It was a fairly relaxing tour but with plenty to do and see.