Thiruvananthapuam is a city that seems to shy away from owning to its identity. There are no skyscrapers aiming for the clouds, no fast cars racing down glitzy lanes, no nightclubs where one can move to fast-paced, booming beats. Its name itself speaks of a rich slowness that some would say is rather unbecoming of a capital. Having a lolling moniker that visitors struggle to pronounce, however, is one of the many idiosyncrasies of Thiruvananthapuram, a capital city that is quite content to don a small town cloak. There is, of course, no mistaking the scent of power in its clean streets. As the capital of Kerala, this is the city where politicians rant at one another and deny having built private swimming pools with public funds, where secretive space research goes on behind closed doors, and where pretty palaces are often smaller than the bungalows built by Gulf money. At the same time, Thiruvananthapuram is also about lovely treelined avenues and crimson sunsets by the sea.
The city’s most defining feature is the Padmanabhaswamy Temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu, whose idol here is canopied by a depiction of the hooded serpent Anantha. It was at the altar of this temple that Marthanda Varma (1729–1758), the ruler who made Travancore a powerful political entity, dedicated his kingdom to the lord and ruled thereafter only as a dasa or slave. This tradition of the king paying homage to the deity continues to this day.
Orientation
The fort that encloses the Padmanabhaswamy Temple lies to the south of the city, a great reference point for exploring the rest of the city. The railway station and the central and Thampanoor bus stands, for buses to Varkala and Neyyatinkara, lie around 2km away, and the City Bus Stand, for buses to Kovalam, is just across the road from the fort. Autos are a reasonable and comfortable option for traveling through Thiruvananthapuram. Tourists can hire taxis outside the KTDC Tourism Reception Centre as well as on Manorama Road near the railway station.
Things to See & Do
Thiruvananthapuram, a city that honours its heritage, has earned the Pacific Asia Travel Association Gold Award for Heritage Conservation. To explore the city and to truly experience what it has to offer, it is a good idea to keep about five days in hand, three days for the temples and another two for the beaches, museums and art gallery.
For tourist packages, maps and other information about the city, visitors can get in touch with the KTDC Tourist Reception Centre (Tel: 0471-2330031; Email trctvm@ktdc.com) located near KTDC Hotel Chaithram, Thampanoor. It runs several conducted bus tours, including half-day and full-day city tours (from 8.30am onwards), and a Kanyakumari tour that also touches Padmanabhapuram. Rates for these range from ₹175–500 per person, not including food and entry fees. It is advisable to book in advance.
Padmanabhaswamy Temple
The myth about the origin of this temple involves the 9th-century sage Vilvamangala, who often features in the histories of temples in Kerala. Legend goes, he had a vision of Krishna playing around him when he was deep in meditation. Frustrated, he chastised the divine child for disturbing his prayers, and Krishna vanished in a huff, saying that the sage would have to find him in the Ananthan Forest. After a long search the sage found the forest, but as he entered it, a huge tree crashed in front of him and transformed itself into Mahavishnu, lying on the serpent Anantha, in an apparition stretching across 18 miles. The sage pleaded with the apparition to become smaller and so Mahavishnu shrank to his present size, thrice the length of the sage’s staff. In an alternative myth, Saint Divakar was the seeker of Krishna, and the temple was built on the 950th day of Kaliyuga.
Historically speaking, this temple is probably more than a 1,000 years old, finding mention in Sangam literature from the early first millennium CE. The earliest of the existing structures date back to the 11th century, though much of the original wooden structure was rebuilt in stone after being destroyed in fire. The temple is now instantly recognisable by the Dravidian-style gopuram at the east gate, a rare sight in Kerala. Construction of the gopuram began in 1565 and was completed under the rule of Marthanda Varma in the late 18th century. Its architectural style symbolically unites the Malayalam and Tamil people of Travancore. Marthanda Varma also oversaw the construction of the sivelipura, a pillared open corridor in the outer prakaram through which the deity is carried out during processions. The layout of the temple follows the pattern of most temples in Kerala, with an outer prakaram and an inner prakaram or nalambalam, but within the inner prakaram there is another enclosure called the cheruchuttu, which in turn contains the sreekovil.
Inside the temple, the idol of Mahavishnu sits upon the five-headed serpent, an image of divine power in repose. The majestic black idol was sculpted in 1733 to replace the original wooden one and is made of 12,008 salagramas, or sacred stones, bound together by a mortar that comprises ingredients such as jaggery.
There are three notable aspects of the idol, for each of which there is a separate darshan: the god’s feet, his navel with a lotus emerging from it and his face. Brahma is seated on the lotus and a shivalinga sheltered in his right hand. Visitors can buy an archana ticket (₹10) just inside the east gate or inside the cheruchuttu to get to the front of the ottakkal, or single-stone platform, for a closer viewing. Without the ticket, visitors can still climb to the back of the platform and view the idol from a little way off, without being rushed through. The sanctum is closed to the public when the members of the erstwhile royal family come for their private darshan as well as during festivals and naivedyam.
Outside the southern door of the cheruchuttu is a shrine for the small but fearsome Narasimha, so potent that some devotees claim to have heard the roar of a lion emanating from it. The western part of the outer prakaram houses a temple of Lord Krishna, with its own richly carved japamandapam and flagstaff. The granite idol of Lord Krishna was brought here from Gujarat by families of the Vrishni sect, who are believed to be direct descendants of Lord Krishna himself.
The corridors at the entrance of the temple, the sivelipura and the 1,000-pillared hall or kulasekhara mandapam, just left off the flagstaff, are all fashioned after the grand temples of the east, with high roofs supported by sculpted granite pillars. The 1,000-pillared hall houses a granite bell on a granite chain, with musical pillars at the four corners of the hall, and evocative sculptures. The abhishravana mandapam, inside the inner prakaram and in line with the sreekovil, has polished granite images of the five Pandavas along with exquisite bronze lamps.
Pillared Hall Entry ₹2
The evening deeparadhana at the temple is a sight to behold. The sanctum doors are closed at 6.30pm, and people gather at the abhishravana mandapam, murmuring in anticipation, praying or peering between the slats at the cheruchuttu as priests light the lamps around the sreekovil, until the flames reflecting off the pillars turn the air into liquid gold. For the best view of the deeparadhana, visitors are advised to get in line with the doors to the cheruchuttu which is open to devotees for darshan till 7.25pm. Another way to experience the temple, for those who do not mind bats, is to climb up into the gopuram for views of the city and the nearby palace.
Gopuram Entry ₹2 Timings 8.15am–12.00pm & 4.00–5.45pm
The temple hosts two major 10-day festivals, in the Malayalam months of Thulam (October– November) and Meenam (March– April), which end in a procession to the sea where the deity is immersed. Once in six years, the temple holds a murajapam, during which the Vedas are recited for 56 days. This concludes with the Lakshadeepam Mahotsava, when the temple is lit up with a 100,000 lamps.
Location 2km southwest of the railway station Timings 4.15– 11.15am & 5.15–7.30pm Darshan Timings 4.15–5.15am, 6.45–7.10am, 8.30–10.10am & 10.30–11.15am Tel 0471-2450233
Men must be bare-chested and wear mundus. Near the sreekovil, they have to tie an upper cloth, if any, around their waist. Women must wear saris or wear a mundu over their clothes. Non-Hindus are not permitted within the temple premises.
Please note that mundus can be rented at the cloakroom, at the east entrance. All large bags, umbrellas, clothes, cameras and mobiles must be left in the cloakroom. Visitors may carry small bags, however, they are checked at the entrance. The temple has authorised guides, who can be hired inside the eastern gate; there are no fixed fees, and visitors may need to bargain. The guides are usually fluent in Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi and English. Visitors are advised to buy tickets only from temple officials.
Kuthiramalika Palace
The Kuthiramalika Palace, located just outside the Padmanabhaswamy Temple, is in fact a complex consisting of palaces as well as other buildings.
At the entrance to the inner palace are slanting wooden beams in the upper galleries, carved in the form of grinning kuthiras (horses). The palace was built in the 19th century by Swathi Thirunal, the composer and king who, along with Thyagaraja and Muthuswamy Dikshitar, is a part of the ‘Carnatic Music Trinity’.
The palace displays the king’s collection of musical instruments as well as a variety of arms, whose beauty and artistry symbolise the Travancore kings’ preference for settling disputes by treaty rather than war.
Entry Indians ₹10; Children ₹3; Foreigners ₹20 Timings 8.30am–1.00pm & 3.00–5.30pm, Closed Monday Photography ₹15
TIP Photography is only permitted in the exterior of the complex; no photography is allowed inside. Visitors must remove their footwear and be accompanied by a guide who might assemble a group before beginning
Ganapathy Temple
The small idol Ganapathy Temple at Pazhavangadi was found in a river by a soldier of the Nair Infantry of Travancore and installed in its present location in the 18th century. The infantry, now known as the Madras Regiment, still runs the temple. The temple is known for the record number of coconuts – nearly 10,000 – broken here every day by devotees.
Location At the northeast corner of the fort Timings 4.30– 10.45am & 5.00–8.30pm
Tel 0471-2461929
TIP Men must be bare chested to enter the inner prakaram
This renovated shrine is best known for the Pongal festival in the months of March and April. During this festival, women gather along the road to the temple, and cook sweet pongal to offer to the Goddess. During this time, the roads are closed to traffic and men are not permitted to enter. It is usually 4.00pm by the time all the pongal is cooked. The Bhagavathy is said to be a divine form of Kannagi, the heroine of the Tamil epic Silappattikaram, who is said to have stopped here on her way from Madurai to Kodungalloor.
Location 2km south of fort Timings 5.00am–12.00pm & 5.00–8.30pm Tel 0471-2463130/ 2456456 Email attukal@vsnl.com W ttukal.org
Sri Lakshmi Varahamoorth Temple
This temple is dedicated to the Varaha form of Mahavishnu, who is said to have raised the earth on his tusks to save it from floodwaters. The idol depicts a man with the head of a tusked boar, and Goddess Lakshmi seated on his left leg. The temple has a magnificent pond and the solemnity of a forest shrine, with large trees and countless images of nagas.
Location Less than a kilometre to the west of fort Timings 5.00–11.15am & 5.00–8.30pm
Napier Museum
This museum, located north of the city, is named after Lord Charles Napier, who was the Governor of Madras from 1866–1872. Started in the 19th century, it houses an excellent collection of bronze and stone sculptures dating from the 11th to the 18th century. Also interesting are the exteriors which have multi-coloured bricks.
Entry Adults ₹12; Children ₹4 Timings 9.00am–5.00pm & Wednesday 1.00–5.00pm Videography ₹750
The zoological garden in the complex houses diverse floral specimens from South India.
Apart from this, the museum complex also houses the Sree Chitra Art Gallery, which has a fine collection of paintings by Raja Ravi Varma and his sister, Mangalabai Thamburatti, as well as works by Svyetoslav Roerich and other artists. Raja Ravi Varma’s portrayal of Maharani Lakshmi Bai is particularly powerful and his painting of Ravana abducting Sita is quite daring. It is also a good idea to drop in at the Natural History Museum nearby.
Zoo and Gallery Entry Adults ₹12; Children Rs. 8 Timings 10.00am–5.00pm, Closed Monday Photography ₹10
Royal Homes
Kanakakunnu Palace, across the road from the museum, is an elegant pastiche with tiled roof, apsidal wings, French windows and a portico with columns. Visitors may not be allowed within the premises, but can enjoy the view from the outside, which is quite beauitful. Apart from the Kanakakunnu Palace, there is the Kowdiar Palace, where the royal family lives, visible at a distance from Kowdiar Avenue. Pattom Palace accommodates another branch of the royal family, and Belle Haven, a diminutive, octagonal mansion opposite Raj Bhavan, now serves as an RBI guesthouse.
Shopping
A large number of shops located just outside east gate of the temple sell fascinating items, which are a considerable departure from standard tourist knick-knacks: books, conches, a varieties of mundus, gold jewellery, brass lamps, rosewood and sandalwood handicrafts, jiggling Kathakali dolls, monkey figurines made of coconut husks and irresistible little wooden toy buses and lorries. More sophisticated sandalwood figures are sold in a stall next to the cloakroom.
For an even more unusual selection of handicrafts and antiques, including vintage icons and pooja vessels, check out Soorya Kiran Handicrafts on MG Road, south of the Central Station Road Junction. Chandra Handicrafts, two doors down, and the Handicrafts Centre across the road have a predictable, but no less interesting, range of products. SMSM Handicraft Emporium on YMCA Road and Natesan’s Antiq Arts on MG Road have traditional handicrafts as well, such as bronze products and unusual souvenirs such as traditional old locks. Kairali Handicrafts, near Statue Junction, and Khadi Gramodyog Bhavan, closer to the Ayurveda College Junction, sell straw bags and mats.
Sai Arts, in Utsavamadom Building, on the north side of the temple, houses paintings made along the lines of traditional murals, by contemporary artists. Karalkada in Kaithamukku Junction is a great place to buy the traditional cream-and-gold Travancore saris and mundus. For a greater selection of traditional Kerala saris, visitors can head to Parthia’s on MG Road and Aiyappas near the Overbridge.
Near the Ayurveda College Junction are two good bookshops, DC Books and Current, where one can pick up some lesser-known titles on the history and geography of Kerala. It is possible to pick up everything from bangles to clothes to vegetables for day-to-day cooking in the 200-year-old Connemara Market in Palayam, more popularly known as the Palayam Market, and in Chalai Market in Chalai.
WHERE TO STAY
The capital has many luxury options. For those visiting the temples in and around the city, it is easiest to stay at any of the many reasonably priced hotels near the railway station and the Thampanoor Bus Stand. Among the high end hotels, Vivanta by Taj (Tel: 0471- 6612345; Tariff: ₹7,000–35,000) is the best here. Fortune Hotel’s The South Park (Tel: 2333333; Tariff: ₹5,500–9,500) is a convenient stay option on MG Road. The pub, fitness centre and book shop here are a bonus. Hilton Garden Inn (Tel: 6600000; Tariff: ₹5,500–13,000), earlier Muthoot Plaza, located on Punnen Road, has a multicuisine restaurant and bar, swimming pool and fitness centre and is one of the best hotels in town. Hotel Residency Tower (Tel: 2331661; Tariff: ₹6,500– 10,500) nearby has two restaurants, a café, bar and a rooftop swimming pool. If you want to stay near the Padhmanabhaswamy Temple, try Hotel Saj Lucia (Tel: 4122222; Tariff: ₹7,000–10,000) in Eastern Fort. Saj has a restaurant, a café, bar, recreation club and swimming pool. KTDC’s Hotel Mascot (Tel: 2318900; Tariff: ₹5,000–20,000) at PMG Junction has a renowned Ayurveda centre.
Among the upscale and midrange hotels is Hotel Chirag Inn (Tel: 2555556; Tariff: ₹2,200–3,500) on MG Road, earlier Comfort Inn Grand, with 43 rooms and a restaurant. Hotel Pankaj (Tel: 2464645/ 815; Tariff: ₹2,400–4,700) next door has 50 rooms, restaurants and a bar. Hotel Horizon (Tel: 2326888, 4055555, Cell: 08281182811; Tariff: ₹2,900–4,900) located on Arista Road, has a multi-cuisine restaurant and bar.
The cleanest and freshest at the mid-budget options is Hotel Highland Park (Tel: 2338800, Cell: 098472-06937; Tariff: ₹1,100–2,500) on Manjalikulam Road, which has 38 rooms and a vegetarian restaurant. Hotel Blue Nest (Tel: 3012800, 2324027, Cell: 09645108945; Tariff: ₹975–3,000) on the same road has 26 reasonably clean rooms and a restaurant, Arya Nivaas (Tel: 2330789-90; Tariff: ₹950–1,800). Look for Raja Ravi Varma’s reproductions and Kerala murals on its walls. There are two in-house restaurants in the hotel.
Oasis Hotel (Tel: 2333223; Tariff: ₹770–2,600) on Vaniya Street, Palayam is a fine budget hotel with great food to boot. The YWCA Interntional Guesthouse (Tel: 2477308. 2463690; Tariff: ₹950– 1,500), near the town hall on MG Road, is another cheap option, with nine rooms. Jas Hotel (Tel: 2324163; Tariff: ₹995–3,750) at Thycaud, Aristo Junction, has 44 rooms, and a restaurant. Hotel Regency (Tel: 2330377; Tariff: ₹950–1,550) has 32 rooms and a roof-top restaurant.
KTDC’s Hotel Chaithram (Tel: 2330977; Tariff: ₹1,600–4,000) on Central Station Road is a good middle-budget option and rooms are better than the exterior would suggest. It has reasonably good service, has an Internet centre, and is conveniently located next to the tourism office, station and bus stand.
Hotel Thamburu International (Tel: 2321974/ 87; Tariff: ₹1,800– 2,400) located at Aristo Junction has a good service and 34 rooms. Thiruvananthapuram has a crop of new homestays, which offer reasonably priced rooms in the heart of the city. Among these are Graceful Homestay (Tel: 2444429; Tariff: ₹1,650–2,750), set in a very elegant villa in Philip’s Hill, Kumarapuram, with four rooms, home-cooked meals, Internet and airport transfers. Nandanam Homestay (Tel: 2474213, Cell: 09072289393; Tariff: ₹800–1,500) has five rooms and a self-catering kitchen. Somasree (Tel: 2465490; Tariff: ₹1,900–2,200) is located right next to Pettah Station and has two rooms.
Varikkat Heritage Home (Tel: 2336057, Cell: 09895239055; Tariff: ₹4,000–6,000) is a charming heritage villa on Punnen Road. There are three rooms and a suite, a badminton court as well as hammocks.
The temple has a very simple lodge (Cell: 09847900261), located left of the east gate, with toilets and bathrooms, however, the rooms do not have beds.
Where to Eat
The city of Thiruvananthapuram has a wide range of restaurants, most of which offer vegetarian food from a variety of cuisines. There are also a few nonvegetarian restaurants for those who like spicy traditionally prepared meat dishes.
For a quick bite, the Indian Coffee House next to Thampanoor Bus Stand has hot vegetarian and non vegetarian food, as well as the reassuring presence of waiters who stoically climb the spiral ramp to top up the sambhar and chutney on the patrons’ plates. For a vegetarian menu that has some variety, head to Hotel Aryaas on Central Station Road, a clean, well-lit restaurant with a large vegetarian menu. Mamma Mia, right next door, is good for some ice-cream, chaat and cold coffee.
There are a number of simple, but very clean eateries, around the temple, including the Sree Padmanabha Hotel, to the east of the temple tank, which serves snacks and milk shakes. Diagonally across the road from the Pazhavangadi Ganapathy Temple are four competent vegetarian eateries, the best of which is Hotel Annapoorna.
It is advisable to stop by at Arya Nivaas, located near the station on Manorama Road, at about 4.00pm, when the crisp onion vadas are hot and fresh. This is also good spot for grabbing some dosas, idlis and idiappams, and tasty Keralite thali. Swagath Vegetarian Restaurant at Hotel Chirag Inn on MG Road, just south of Statue Junction, has tasty thalis made with rice-based preparations.
Malabar Paradise, in the same hotel, offers a wide range of multicuisine food. Don’t miss out on Villa Maya, a fine-dining restaurant in a 100-year-old mansion. It has great ambience and some amazing food.
For excellent vegetarian and nonvegetarian Chinese food, head to Dragon Court in Jas Hotel, Thycaud, which is also notable for its courteous service.
Zam Zam in Palayam is packed most of the time. It is quite popular for its Arabic food and exotic desserts. For authentic Thalassery biryani, Ajwa is the place. For more traditional Kerala nonvegetarian cuisine, travellers can head to the Regency in South Park, which serves an array of specialities including meen pollichathu as well as kappa meen curry.
Saj Luciya has a restaurant called Zodiac that serves a good Keralite breakfast comprising appams and stew, apart from the regular fare. Their karimeen varathathu and karimeen curry, served with rice, is also a very popular food item.
Amritha Hotel has a multicuisine restaurant where one can choose from a variety of typically Keralite dishes, such as naimeen (seer fish) fry.
Sindhoor in Vazhuthacaud has a vast variety of Continental and Indian fare, served within smart décor and is also coupled with amiable service.
AROUND THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Thiruvananthapuram is connected by NH47 to Kanyakumari (2hrs) and Padmanabhapuram (1hr 30 min). KTDC offers a day-long guided tour to the Padmanabhapuram Palace and Kanyakumari (Fee: ₹350 per person). Keep in mind that the tour stops for a very short time at Padmanabhapuram but for hours at Kanyakumari.Buses independent of the tour leave from here regularly for Padmanabhapuram Palace and Kanyakumari from the Thampanoor Bus Stand. Taxis to the same will cost approximately ₹1,600 (non-AC).
Neyyatinkara (20km)
The Sri Krishna Temple at Neyyatinkara was built in 1757 by Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma as an expression of his gratitude for divine intervention in a crisis. It is said that once, when the king was fleeing his enemies, he met a boy who suggested he hide in the hollow of a jackfruit tree. The trick worked, but when the king later looked for the boy he could not find him.
Believing that he had been saved by Krishna himself, the king built a temple on the banks of the Neyyar River. Just to the left of the western entrance is what remains of the ammachi plavu or ‘Mother’ jackfruit tree that saved the king.
Walking to the north side of the temple, where the ground drops dramatically, offers a view of the green river winding below. Legend says the Neyyar was once a river of ghee, flowing from the sacrificial fires of Agasthya. His hermitage, said to be located on a peak in the Western Ghats, is still called Agasthyakootam. During a terrible drought, the ghee turned to water in answer to the prayers of a devotee of Lord Krishna.
Timings 4.00–11.15am & 5.00–8.00pm
Aruvikara (16km)
This serene temple commemorating Vaishnav Devi is perched on the rocks near the Aruvikara Dam. Local legend has it that an Adivasi woman, reeling from the agony of labour, cried out to the goddess, who came down to earth to help, moved by compassion.
An indentation in the rocks beneath the water is believed to be the goddess’ footprint. The idol of Vaishnav Devi is peaceful and reassuring, holding a lotus in one hand and a conch in the other. In the same shrine are the saptamatruka, or seven emanations of Shakti, accompanied by Ganapathy and the goddess’ celestial attendant Veerabhadra, visible between the slats in the sreekovil walls.
Devotees traditionally buy puffed rice to feed the fish in the river, which foams over the rocks here and is also clean enough to bathe in.
DTPC has a coffee shop and rest stop just round the bend.
Timings Monday, Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday 5.00–10.30am; Tuesday, Friday & Sunday 5.00– 11.00am & 5.00–7.30pm
Kanyakumari (87km)
The Amman Temple at Kanyakumari, located to the south of the town, was built in the 8th century CE. The idol of Goddess Parvati is depicted holding prayer beads, with a dazzling diamond on her nose.
There are a number of stories about the diamond. Some believe that the original diamond was cut by Parashurama himself. So brightly did it shine that it was mistaken for a lighthouse by pirates, who stole it. It is believed that the original diamond landed up in Europe as the Orloff diamond. It is advisable to watch out for touts posing as guides, who do little more than point out the main deity.
Temple timings 4.30–11.45am & 4.00–8.00pm
In December 1892, Swami Vivekananda swam out to the rocks off Kanyakumari, where the three great oceans the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean meet, to meditate on the teachings of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.
The Vivekananda Rock Memorial was built here in 1970 to commemorate this expedition. However, the memorial is now dwarfed by a 133-ft-tall statue of Saint Thiruvalluvar, the Tamil poet who wrote about virtue, wealth and love.
Ferries (₹20) head out to all these places or you can also view them from the shore.
Padmanabhapuram: The Old Capital
The Padmanabhapuram Palace is a unique marvel in wood, full of grace and simplicity. Situated about 55km southeast of Thiruvananthapuram, the Palace embodies vintage Kerala architecture. Construction was begun around 1601 by Iravi Varma Kulasekhara Perumal and completed in 1744. Originally called Kalkulam, it was the seat of the rulers of Travancore in from the 16th to the late 18th century. Once completed, the Palace was dedicated to Lord Padmanabha, an incarnation of Vishnu, by Maharaja Anizham Tirunal Marthanda Varma, leading to its name: the Sri Padmanabha Perumal Palace. It is the largest wooden palace in India. Although Padmanabhapuram became part of Tamil Nadu in 1956, the Palace is preserved by the Kerala government’s Department of Archaeology. The palace was made famous in recent times by the film Manichitrathazhu (1993), shot here, for which actress Sobhana received the National Best Actress Award.
Situated at the heart of the Padmanabhapuram Fort, the palace was constructed with teak and granite, with sloping roofs, carved ceilings, exquisite murals, sculpted décor and gleaming floors, which are polished with a compound of crushed coconut shells, egg white and plant juices. A tour of the palace takes visitors through the poomukham, or the entrance hall, an audience hall, the upparikka malik or the four-storeyed kings’ quarters, the manthrasala or the council chamber and the mattuppavu, a lovely balcony. Two thousand Brahmins are fed here everyday at the huge oottupura, or dining hall. The thaikottaram, the Queen Mother’s Palace, is one of the oldest buildings in the complex, and the navarathri mandapam is the granite dance hall. The complex also has a few temples.
A must-see is the unique bed made of 64 different types of medicinal wood in the king’s private chambers. The large earthen urns, the brass lamp shaped like a horse and rider, the pooja room with a pillar carved from a single jackfruit tree, musical bows in mahogany, the ornate Chinese throne and the Belgian mirrors are among the other things to check out in the 108 rooms of the palace. An interesting, if somewhat disturbing, contrast to all this piety and grace is found in metal straitjacket used on condemned prisoners. Unfortunately, the king’s prayer room, which contains priceless murals, was closed to the public in 1990. The palace complex is located just off Thuckalay Junction. Buses leave regularly for Padmanabhapuram and Kanyakumari from Thampanoor Bus Stand.
Entry ₹10 Timings 9.00am–5.00pm Closed Monday
Visitors must remove their footwear and be accompanied by a guide.
FAST FACTS |
When to go October to February |
Tourist Offices |
Directorate of Tourism |
KTDC Central Reservations |
District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) District Thiruvananthapuram Location On the western coast of southern Kerala, 60km N of the earlier capital of Travancore, Padmanabhapuram, and 87km N of Kanyakumari Distance 218km S of Kochi |
GETTING THERE |
Air Nearest Airport: Trivandrum International Airport is connected to Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai and Kochi. Taxis go to all destinations in Kerala. Taxi to town costs ₹350–400 |
Rail Nearest Railhead: Trivandrum Central is connected daily to Delhi by the Kerala Express, to Delhi and Mumbai by the Trivandrum Rajdhani (thrice a week) and Kerala Sampark Kranti (twice a week), to Mumbai also by Netravati Express and Kanyakumari Express and to Chennai as well as Kozikode and Ernakulam by several trains |
Road Thiruvananthapuram is located close to the southern end of NH47 that links Salem to Kanyakumari via Palakkad (356km), Thrissur (289km), Ernakulam (210km), Alleppey (147km) and Kollam (63km). Kerala’s SH1 (Main Central Road) links Thiruvananthapuram to the Cochin International Airport near Angamaly in Ernakulam District, via Kilimannur, Kottarakkara, Adoor, Thiruvalla (125km), Changanassery, Kottayam (153km), Muvattupuzha, Perumbavoor and Kalady. Kanyakumari is 87km south of Thiruvananthapuram via Nagercoil and Padmanabhapuram |
Bus Thiruvananthapuram’s KSRTC Bus Stand (Enquiry Tel: 0471-2323886, 2325332) in East Fort connects it with most towns in Kerala. Frequent services for Kollam, Alleppey, Kottayam, Kochi, Thrissur, Palakkad and Kozikode are available |