Alleppey or Alappuzha, is one of the major tourist attractions in Kerala. It is believed that there are lot of amazing places to visit in Alleppey. Alleppey is known for its exotic beaches, and amazing natural scenarios. These absolutely gorgeous and incredibly scenic Alleppey tourist places made it a land of beauty and paradise on earth.
Starting from houseboats, Alleppey tourist places are famous for its scenic beauty and known as the Venice of the East. Houseboats are the best means to adore the natural beauty which Alleppey has to offer. It is gifted with the unique crisscrossing networks of canals that are spread throughout the town and gives you an incredible experience. The houseboat will always be manned by at least 3 people- a cook, a guide and an oarsman. Delicious meals are provided by in house cooks which are local favorites. The guide keeps you posted of all the important landmarks you pass and shares the amazing history of Alleppey. Let’s go through the best places to visit in Allepey.
Beaches to visit in Alleppey
1. Alappuzha Beach
This famous beach is also known as Alleppey Beach. Surrounded by tall palm beaches, this beach is one of the perfect picnic places to visit in Allepey . This exotic beach is a host to many festivals like the Sand Art Festival and Alappuzha Beach Festival. The Nehru Trophy Boat Race which is held in August every year is another reason for Alleppey to become the most famous tourist attraction. Let’s explore this beach a little more:
a) Water Activities: If you want to indulge in water sports activities, this beach can give you a thrilling and refreshing experience. You can enjoy surfing, parasailing, boat races, and motorboat riding. The beach is famous for Snake Boat Races which take place during Onam.
b) Relaxing Activities: If you want to enjoy the sand and cool breeze of the beach during sunrise or a sunset, this beach is an end to your search. Alleppey Beach not only provides you with a thrilling experience but also offers some activities which might help you to explore your inner self. This place has yoga and meditation centers, and sessions are held typically in the morning when you can enjoy sunset too. So, when you visit Alleppey, try to start your day with an amazing sunrise at this beach.
c) Shopping: For all the shopaholics out there, Mullakkal Street offers you different souvenirs and stuffs like bags, dresses, rugs, etc. So, once you’ve had your fill of the beach activities, you can go and explore some local stuff out there.
d ) Alappuzha Light House: The oldest lighthouse of Kerala is located 300 m from the beach. It was constructed 150 years back and still stands tall, and serves as one of the fascinating attractions for the visitors. Interestingly, the lighthouse is still a manned station. This place is also known for its stunning sunset view.
2. Marari Beach
One of the great delights of the Malabar coast, this beach is an idle place to visit in Allepey for a beach vacation. Known for its amazing appearance of the shore, this beach has clear turquoise water that meets the golden shimmering sand, surrounded with tall palm trees. It is a hotspot for fishing activities and a perfect destination for someone who just wants to soak up the sun and relax. Tourists can also indulge in activities like swimming, fishing, deep-sea fishing, cruising the divine backwater canals of Kerala, parasailing, water-skiing, and surfing. The beach is more on the peaceful side with few fun-activities and perfect for someone who is looking for solitude. Marari Beach has been enlisted among the top five hammock beaches of the world by National Geographic Survey. You can also buy the local seafood available there and fall in love with the regional cuisine.
3. Andhakaranazhi Beach
Andhakaranazhi Beach is an extension of the tiny village of Andhakaranazhi. This beach is non commercialized and unexploited from tourism. One of the cleanest among all and its distance from the city makes it the most peaceful place to spend time in. It is among the peaceful places to visit in Alleppey and relax with not so much crowd around.
4. Thottappally Beach
Famed through a celebrated novel and movie “Chemmeen”. Visited by locals almost every day as it is an active fish harbor. It separates the freshwater of the Thottappally Lake and the saline water at the mouth of the river that drains into the Arabian Sea. Known for its soul-soothing experience and amazing view.
5 .Thumpoly Beach
One of the hidden gem of Kerala, famous for its amazing environment and cleanliness. Several canals make their way through here into the Arabian Sea, making it a place must explore. It is a hub for fisher folks and home to many fishing villages. Best place for nature lovers because of its flora and fauna. It is home to many different species of birds. Beach is surrounded by tall palm trees and has a breathtaking backdrop of mighty hills. Explore the nearby fishing villages, St. Thomas Church and the Thirthassery Temple. Don’t forget to indulge in their mouth-watering food offered at the shacks. It’s a blessing to the soul and body because of its soothing environment. The beauty of this beach is at its peak during sunrise and sunsets, both are worth watching. One of the best places to visit in Kerala for some awesome photos.
6. Punnapra Beach
One of the isolated beaches of Kerala and perfect for the people looking for some relief from their chaotic city life. This alleppey tourist place offers Ayurvedic massages which makes it a good place to refresh one’s mood.
You can visit these beautiful beaches at any time of the day, and choose your time according to the activities you want to indulge in.
Religious places to visit in Alleppey
7. Ambalappuzha Sri Krishna Temple
This temple is dedicated to Lord Krishna and is built in traditional Kerala style architectural pattern. Also known as ‘Dwarka of the South’. It is believed that the main idol was brought here from the Guruvayur temple during the raids of Tipu Sultan in 1789 for safekeeping, and it stayed here ever since. Temple has a collection of paintings depicting the ten avatars of Lord Vishnu, which adds to the cultural ambiance of the place. A musical instrument called ‘Mizhavu’ is displayed at the entrance of the temple and the temple has a small pond nearby, which is a place to spend some time and admire the rich heritage of this beautiful temple of Alleppey. It is one of the most beautiful places to visit in Alleppey.
8. Chettikulangara Devi Temple
This 1200 years old place is one of the most renowned Hindu temples of Kerala and the goddess here is worshipped in three different forms: Maha Saraswati in Morning, Maha Lakshmi in the noon and Maha Kali or Durga in the evening. The temple is host to many different festivals and a lamp with 1001 lighting points is lit on the first day of every month as an offering to Maha Bhadrakali. This is one of the best religious places to visit in Allepey with magnificent sculptures.
9. Mannarasala Sree Nagaraja Temple
As the name suggests, this temple is dedicated to the snake god- Nagaraja, which is considered to be a form of Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. It has over thirty thousand paintings of snakes and you can find snakes crawling all over the places, which makes this temple unique. This Alleppey tourist place is also known for the cure to many problems as believed by people visiting there. Mannarsala Ayilyam is the main festival of the temple, celebrated in September and October. You can visit this place anywhere between 5 a.m to 12 p.m.
10. Mullakal Rajeshwari Temple
This temple is situated on the main street of ‘Mullakkal Theruvu’ in the Alappuzha district of Kerala. It has a traditional Kerala style architecture. The charming places to visit in Alleppey have a little pond and well-maintained premises. The shrine has an open roof structure and is called ‘sanctum sanctorum’.Mullakkal Chirappu Festival is the most prominent festival celebrated in the temple to mark the devotion to the Maa Durga and Navaratri is another main festival celebrated there.
11. Edathua Church
This church is also famous by the name St. George Forane Church and is believed to possess miraculous healing powers. It is constructed in the style of medieval European brilliant architecture, with majestic arches and gigantic pillars. The annual feast celebrated around the end of April and early May is the most popular attraction of the church. This is one the pleasant places to visit in Allepey.
Other Attractive places to visit in Alleppey
12. Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary
Apart from this, you can explore the rare species of birds at Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary. Popularly known as ‘Vembanad Bird Sanctuary’ is one of the ideal places to visit in Allepey for nature lovers and bird watchers. Vembanad Lake is the longest lake in India, and the largest lake in the state of Kerala and a favorite destination for many native as well as migratory birds. Houseboats and motorboats are available on rent to make your experience more memorable. Spread over the area of 14 acres and managed by Kerala Tourism Development Corporation. Many different birds are spotted here in the migratory season and watching such a vast variety of birds is a complete delight to eyes. You can visit this place between 6:30 am–5 pm along.
13. Krishnapuram Palace
The Krishnapuram Palace is a palace and museum that is located in Kayamkulam, known for its traditional paintings and architecture. One can witness the traditional architecture of Kerala and is maintained by the Archaeological Department of Kerala. It houses one of the biggest mural paintings known as the ‘Gajendra Moksha’, and it covers an area of around 53 square feet and has a rich historical value attached to it and is among the best places to visit in Alleppey for history lovers. Located at the top of a small hill, which makes it a perfect place to witness the breathtaking view of the surroundings. You can visit this place from 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM, and it is closed on Mondays.
14. Pathiramanal
Alleppey also has a small island, namely Pathiramanal. This small island of Alleppey has an interesting meaning attached to it which means ‘Sands of the night’, and is home to many rare varieties of migratory birds from different parts of the world. The island is a birdwatcher’s paradise.
15. Bay Island Driftwood Museum
There are also record breaking places to visit in Alleppey and one such place is Bay Island Driftwood Museum Founded by a school teacher in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and it is famous for its innovative modern art techniques deployed to design various kinds of root and tree-trunk sculptures. This place has a collection shaped in the form of birds, animals, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes. The interesting and innovative techniques of curation have made its way to Limca Book of records.
16. Kuttanad
Coming to the rice bowl of Kerala – Kuttanad. It covers a large part of Allepey and has lush green rice fields. If you want to experience the traditional countryside life of Kerala, this place is your destination for sure. It lies around 2 meters below the main sea level, making it the lowest altitude place in the country and it is also known for its geography. It is one those places to visit in Alleppey which has heavenly backwaters that break and merge into a hundred channels, thus making agriculture and tourism easy. The best way to enjoy the calmness and experience the life of people there is to hop on a houseboat cruiser. Punnamada Lake is an eastern extension of Lake Vembanad, along the shore of this lake is located a good part of the Kuttanad region and known for the famous Nehru Boat Race, which makes it a must-visit.
17. Revi Karunakaran Museum
If you want to explore Alleppey a little more, then this museum is the place to go – Revi Karunakaran Museum. This museum was built by Betty Karunakaran in the memory of her husband and initially the museum was for personal use but later it was opened for public displays. This museum is spread over three floors and has various sections depicting the four major religions- Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity, represented with the help of paintings, murals, ivory exhibits, and other displays. The museum has a special ‘Kerala Room’ which represents the growth and evolution of Kerala with the help of over 3800 distinctive exhibits. This is among the most religious Alleppey tourist places.
18. Punnamada Lake
It is famous for its boat race called Nehru Trophy boat race which is held during the Onam festival and attracts a lot of tourists from worldwide.
19. Krumadikuttan Statue
This place is devoted to one of our Indian religion – Buddhism. You can find 10th century Buddha statue at Karumadi. The best time to visit this place is during sunrise and it will give the most calming view in the green fields of Alleppey.
One of the most amazing things to do in Alleppey is to indulge in their local cuisine and their traditional Kerala sea food. All the dishes have a strong coconut flavor. It can also be your shopping destination. You can shop for their most amazing authentic spices, handicrafts, coir products, South Indian jewellery, textiles, carpets, and trinkets. Since Alleppey is known for its soothing and peaceful environment you can also treat yourself with the very relaxing spa and massage facilities available there.
These were some of the best places to visit in Alleppey. Make sure that you visit all these exciting places when you plan your trip to Alleppey. And also you can find some exciting Kerala Tour packages here.
Please make you also checkout out blog on Tourist places in Kerala.
Frequently Asked Questions on Places To Visit in Alleppey
1. How far is Alleppey from Bangalore ?
Alleppey is around 586 km from Bangalore and takes 12 hours if you travel by road.
2. What is the best time to visit Alleppey ?
It is an all weather destination , so you can choose what fits you the most :
a) November to February : Winters are the best time to visit Alleppey and temperature stays between 17 and 32 degrees most of the time . You can enjoy houseboat ride and explore the backwaters as well.
b) March to May : Temperature goes around 37 degrees and this is not so pleasant time to visit this place,but you can surely enjoy the great deals on hotel rooms.
c) June to September : June marks the beginning of monsoons in Alleppey,though the house boat rides are not available at that time , you can sit and enjoy the natural beauty of Alleppey .
3. How many days are good to stay in Alleppey ?
You can explore this place in 2 – 3days.
4.Houseboat or day cruise- which is the better option ?
Opt for a day tour and don’t forget to enjoy the beautiful sunrise trip, which is short but magical.
5. Which beach is the best place to enjoy sunrise in Alleppey ?
Marari Beach is the lesser known beach of Alleppey and also the least crowded one, so it is the perfect place to enjoy the sunrise and sunset peacefully.
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