Introduction:

Alleppey, also known as Alappuzha is often called as "Venice of the East" because of its numerous waterways. Alleppey was amongst the busiest trade centers and it had an excellent port along Malabar Coast. Traders from across the world came searching for souvenirs and black gold. Numerous tourists come to Alleppey to enjoy the impressive natural beauty that can be seen there. It is a popular honeymoon destination, a perfect location to spot bird and animal life, and a place to soak in the many religious historic sites. The mirror like lagoons, palm fringed waterways, sandy beaches, houseboat holidays & the popular boat races are the reasons why tourists flock to this tranquil town on the backwaters.

Photo Credit: Amit Rawat

Destination Facts:

Location: Kerala, District Alappuzha
Altitude: 2695Meters
Temperature: (summer 20 to 36°C) & (winter 17 to 32°C)
Languages spoken: Malayalam, English, Hindi and Tamil.

Getting there:

Nearest Airports: Trivandrum International Airport and Cochin International Airport is the nearest airport.
Main Railway Station: Alleppey is well connected by train to Cochin and Trivandrum. 
Main Bus Station or Road: KSRTC buses are plenty which are connecting all the major cities in Kerala.

Distance of a few Major Towns from Alleppey
Mararikulam-15km, Kumarakom-38km, Cochin-53km, Ernakulam-59km.

Eating Around:
Aviyal, Puttu, Malabar Pratha, Karimeen Fry, Olan, Malabar Chicken Biryani, Thalassey Biryani are most of the famous dishes of Alleppey

Places of Tourist interest:

Bay Island Driftwood Museum:
The museum also has houses of various roots and tree trunk sculptured in unique forms and designs. The sculptures in the museum are the transformed driftwood pieces, comprising of twisted tree trunks, stumps, roots etc., which she had has been collected from the seashores during the professional tenure in Andaman and Nicober Islands. Many of the sculptures or pieces resemble birds, animals, reptiles, amphibians and fishes.

Karumadi:
This sculpture is known as the Karumadi Kuttan. This statue is a left over remnant. It is from the time when Buddha's religion was very popular in this region.

Krishnapuram Palace:
This particular palace is especially famous for its mural paintings as well as its architecture. One of the biggest mural paintings in all of Kerala is located here. This mural is called Gajendra Moksham, which when translated means "The redemption of the elephant". This magnificent piece of architecture has been converted to a museum, housing antique sculptures, paintings and bronzes is also found there at the palace.

Pandavan Rock:
Pandavan Para is also known as the Rock of the Pandavas. , t This is an ideal picnic spot. It takes One needs to walk to get to this location, but it is not a hard climb. There are several vintage points with magnificent views along the trail.

Alleppey Beach:
Alleppey Beach is one of the most popular beaches of the state of Kerala. One thing that draws people to this beach is the facilities at Vijaya Beach Park. With the Arabian Sea to the west as well as a large network of lakes, lagoons and several freshwater rivers nearby, the beach makes for a picture perfect postcard. The beautiful sand contrasts beautifully with the color of the water, to make for a truly picturesque location & relaxing atmosphere.

Backwaters:
These numerous water ways make up what is known as the Backwaters. Tourists love to rent a houseboat here. Each houseboat commonly contains a living room, one bedroom, a bathroom, and a deck too. A local oarsman will pole the houseboat for you as you explore the beautiful scenery in the region. Numerous types of flora and fauna can be seen against the mirror like lagoons as you sail across the picture perfect backwaters.

Houseboats:
A boat cruise along the backwaters of Alleppey is one popular way to experience the entire area, after all, Kerala's network of navigable backwaters covers an amazing 900 kilometers. Honeymooners especially are drawn to the peaceful atmosphere of the waterways. A backwater cruise on a houseboat allows one can to see the scenic manmade islands and beautiful sights of coconut fringed backwaters and paddy fields.

Pathiramannal:
Birdwatchers love to travel to this breathtaking location with hundreds of rare migratory birds that flock here every year. It is possible to see birds such as the golden-backed woodpeckers, night herons, kingfishers, paradise fly-catchers, egrets, bulbuls, shrikes, mourning doves, crow pheasants, and drongos. A visit to this remarkable location is an experience not to one should not miss.

Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary:
A large variety of different birds can be found at the sanctuary at any given time. Numerous migratory birds even from places like Siberia visit the sanctuary. It is common to see golden-backed woodpeckers, night herons, kingfishers, paradise fly-catchers and egrets. The entire area was established by the government of India in an effort to preserve the natural habitat of both native plants like mandrakes and coconut trees and various birds.

Amabalapuzha Temple Festival:
The celebration in commemoration of the bringing of this idol of Lord Krishna is the origin of the Amabalapuzha Temple Festival, also referred to as the Chambakulam Moolam water festival. This festival is conducted every year on the Moolam day of the Mithunam month of the Malayalam calendar.

St Andrew's Church:
This Scottish Presbyterian Church was originally built for the use of Scottish officers, their families and a few other laymen. The quality of the music that can be is played using this instruments is remarkable. In 1891, a clock tower was added to the church.

St.Andrews Church

Nehru Trophy Snake Boat Race:
Punnamada Lake near Alleppey is the host to of the spectacular snake boat races that are annually held on the second Saturday of August. This competition is named after India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The story goes that when Nehru saw his first boat race, he got so into the competition that he jumped right into the boat that won the race, so the event was named after him. Each and every 50-meter long wooden snake boat that is in the race is manned by over a hundred oarsmen.

                                   Nehru Trophy Boat Race

Getting around the destination:
The best way of transportation is Rickshaw or Private and Public Bus.

Shopping Areas & Entertainment:
Alleppey is famous for the pepper, coconut oil, areca nut, cardamom, sugar, coir matting and carpet.

Best time to visit:
October to March is the best time to visit this destination.
Adoor Gajamela: elephants are the star attracted in the month of January

Festival:
Chettikulangara Bhagavathy Temple Festival is celebrated in February
Theyyam Festival: The colorful ritual dance of Theyyam is one of Kerala's most revered art forms, blending dance, music and mime in a wonderful performance. During this festival, visitors can marvel at the stunning, colorful costumes used in the special tradition is celebrated in the month of February