ROYAL WORLD TRAVEL
––» Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters
howcasing a unique heritage
The Kettuvalloms (Houseboats) of Kerala are
giant country crafts, measuring up to 80 feet in length. It took great skill
and meticulousness to construct these giants by tying huge planks of jack wood
together, without the use of a single nail.
Today, these goods carriers have been adapted to make the most exciting tourism
product in India, the luxurious furnished houseboat.
A kettuvallom usually has one or two bath attached bedrooms, an open lounge,
deck, kitchenette and a crew comprising oarsmen, a cook and guide.
It's an intricate network of innumerable lagoons, lakes, canals, estuaries and
the deltas of forty-four rivers that drain into the Arabian Sea.
Over 900 km of this labyrinthine waterworld is navigable. The largest backwater
stretch in Kerala is the
Vembanad lake which flows through three districts
and opens out into the sea at the Kochi port.
The Ashtamudi Lake (literally, having eight arms), which covers a major portion
of Kollam district in the south, is the second largest and is considered the
gateway to the backwaters.
