South India is a “soft-landing’ for first time visitors to the subcontinent. For travellers who have visited the more hectic north, you will be seduced by her languorous sensuousness. The landscape you journey through is beautiful and varied. The food is an endlessly varying feast for the senses. The harmonious cultural mélange ranges from the Dravidian past, through various religious and political dynasties, the Chinese fishing and trade routes, the remnants of the Dutch, Portuguese and British colonial past to Syrian Christian and Jewish settlements and modern day advancements in health and education.
Enjoy diverse cultures as we cross three States: (Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Kerala), each with distinctive traditions, exquisite architectural jewels, and exceptional food. Hotels have been selected for their special charm, great comfort and lovely locations.
HIGHLIGHTS
• floating in your private kettuvalom houseboat on the backwaters with a sunset music recital
• cooking demonstrations with some of South India’s most renowned chefs and sampling a heady array of regional cuisines
• delightful boutique and heritage accommodations that exude a monastic luxury
• visiting exceptional UNESCO and significant temple sites
• travelling wondrously diverse landscapes from the Bay of Bengal through the verdant Western ghats to the exotic Malabar coast
AT A GLANCE
LENGTH: 15 Days
ACTIVITY LEVEL: Moderate
TYPE: Small Group Tour | AoL Escorted | Bespoke
STYLE: cultural | arts | architecture | heritage | cuisine
START/FINISH: Chennai/Kochi
TOUR DATES:
12 – 26 August 2018
11-25 August 2019
INCLUSIONS
All meals, tour leader, expert guide, all entry fees and permits, porterage
HOTEL STANDARD: Luxury & Deluxe
TRANSPORT: Luxury mini coach
TRAVEL DATES
11-25 August 2019
PRICING
from USD8800 twin | double share
Minimum 6 | maximum 12 guests
ITINERARY OVERVIEW
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DAY 1
CHENNAI (Madras) | MAMALLAPURAM
You will be met on arrival at Chennai Airport and transferred to Taj Vivanta Fisherman’s Cove Hotel, a seaside location an hour from the city.
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DAY 2
PONDICHERRY
Visit Mamallapuram’s cave temples and ancient bas-reliefs that celebrate the Pallava Kings. This Tamil dynasty was at its height from the 5th to 8th centuries as a temple and port town of great significance. After a delightful seafood lunch continue to Pondicherry.
This afternoon visit the thriving Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Ganesha in all his manifestations and take darshan with the many devotees. -
DAY 3
PONDICHERRY
Pondicherry is a delightful and unique corner of India that remains forever France, a final staging post for the retreating French during British rule with wide tree-lined boulevards, gorgeous colonial mansions and French street names. Though there is increasing pressure on its heritage, there are many eclectic restaurants, cafes, and stylish boutiques. Our intimate luxury hotel combines French colonial chic with Indian exotica with cool spacious rooms, lovely colonnaded balconies and a swimming pool.
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DAY 4
PONDICHERRY
Today ‘s excursion is to the fascinating intentional community of Auroville, the world’s largest spiritual experiment conceived and inaugurated in 1971 by ‘the Mother” as an international utopia free of government, free of money, ownership, religion and conflict. Whilst not all is as it may seem, there are some wonderful enterprises here and a visit to the astonishing Matramandir, the gold-clad meditation orb at its centre, an unforgettable experience as compelling as being in one of the grand cathedrals of Europe.
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DAY 5
THANJAVUR [Tanjore]
Drive south via the famous temple city of Chidambaram with its Nataraja (dancing Shiva) Dravidian temple to Thanjavur, the ancient capital of the Chola kings who go back to the beginning the Christian era. Your hotel is a boutique luxury property built around a quintessential Tamil heritage home, with a pool and delightful and inventive Sattvic cuisine and incomparable service.
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DAY 6
THANJAVUR
Visit Brihadeshvara temple built it in honour of Lord Shiva in about 1009 A.D. and one of the most outstanding monuments of the Chola Period.
At the hotel, the chef will be happy to invite you into his kitchens to demonstrate some of his special dishes. Learn about the ancient art of bronze using the cire perdue (lost wax technique) and in the evening enjoy a music recital. -
DAY 7
CHETTINAD
Today journey towards Karaikudi, the biggest city in Chettinad famous for its Ganesha temple, antiques, woven textiles, crafts, majestic mansions and a most distinctive cuisine. Seventy four other villages comprise Chettinad, the homeland of the Nattukottai Chettiars who were a prosperous banking community who ventured overseas to do business in South and Southeast Asia in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Their legacies are the fascinating houses they built with precious rosewood, teak and Japanese tiles. Your hotel is an outstanding example of one of these ancestral homes converted to a find boutique hotel.
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DAY 8
CHETTINAD
The Chettiars are known for their family temples and ancestral mansions.
Today’s culinary highlight is a cooking demonstration illuminating the wonderful spicing of Chettinad cuisine that bristles with the fragrant aromas of freshly ground spices, especially pepper. You will be served an exceptional sadya banquet served on banana leaf in the home of one of Chettinad’s most famed cooks. -
DAY 9
PERIYAR
Today, traverse the beautiful scenery and tropical farmlands of the Western Ghats, rich with coffee, tea and spice plantations, to reach Thekaddy by late afternoon. anti anxiety. mens health. For the next two nights you are based near Periyar National Park, staying in the charming and very comfortable eco-friendly Spice Village which has its own extensive organic market garden, spice gardens all around and a marvellous Ayurvedic Centre for health treatments.
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10
PERIYAR
Today’s excursions include a rural ramble with elephants and a visit to a tea plantation. Marieke will introduce you to her all time favourite spice merchant so you carry home spices more fragrant and fresh than anything you’ll find at home.
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DAY 11
KERALA BACKWATERS
Travel through very lush, verdant tropical scenery to reach the Kerala backwaters. Lunch en-route will be enjoyed at a private coffee and rubber Estate with its lovingly restored art deco bungalow where our hostess is renowned as a custodian over wonderful family recipes
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DAY 12
KERALA BACKWATERS
Board your individual Kettuvalam houseboat. They are Kerala’s magical answer to the caravans of the West. Each houseboat comes with en-suite air-conditioned cabins and is a floating hotel space with its own staff. It is a spellbinding experience drifting in the canals and lagoons and absorbing the ancient way of life along the smaller canals and waterways. A traditional dinner will be served accompanied by a flute recital.
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DAY 13
FORT KOCHI
Take in the major historic and architectural sites of the Fort, the colourful antique bazaars and delightful boutiques.
Tonight’s special dinner is with the renowned Nimmy Paul in her culinary atelier. A master of Syrian Christian cooking, Nimmy will demonstrate some beautiful dishes that form part of the banquet she serves at her long table. -
DAY 14
FORT KOCHI
Fort Kochi is a wonderful melange of all those explorers and traders who came to her shores since long ago – the Chinese, Portuguese and Dutch, Jews and the British whose faded vestiges remain to be enjoyed in this charming town. This evening attend a Kathakali, a stylised classical Indian dance drama famous for its elaborate costumes and exaggerated gestures. It’s utterly mesmerising watching the performers prepare their make-up.
Farewell dinner at the hotel. -
DAY 15
FORT KOCHI | INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURE or ONWARD TRAVELS IN INDIA
This is a relaxed day for last minute sightseeing or shopping. This evening you will be transferred to Kochi airport for international departure or you may continue your travels in India arranged by Art of Living.
SUGGESTED TOUR EXTENSIONS
Mysore or Hampi via Bangalore
A Gastronomic Extension From Cochin To Tellicherry | Tranquil | Mysore
An Ayurveda Resort recommended by AoL
Sri Lanka
TESTIMONIALS
YOUR GUIDES

Tour Leader Marieke Brugman
Having travelled in the south many times, Marieke specially loves it for the sweetness of her people, lively living temples, colourful festivals and enticing cuisine. The south feels to have a certain 'softness' - maybe it's the constantly warm climate and verdant landscapes or the sense that so many explorers over so many centuries came, settled, exerted their influence that has left a sense of tolerance and acceptance of diversity. Pondicherry and Fort Kochi are particular favourites for their colonial architecture and languid manners. It is also the home of Ayurveda, the sister science to yoga which has long been her other vocation.

Your Tour Guide Durga Singh was first charmed by South India’s treasures and relaxed lifestyle when with Marieke they originally researched the region together in a gold Ambassador, over a decade ago. As a desert-dweller he is enamoured of so much water and such lush landscapes. Highly educated, Durga can converse deeply on almost any subject whether this be spiritual traditions, politics, architecture, farming, music or ancient philosophy. He is unfailingly solicitous of all our guests and brings both a depth of knowledge and a great sense of fun to all our Indian adventures.
BOOKINGS AND ENQUIRIES
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