Eco Trails Kerala

Eco Trails Kerala

Eco Trails Kerala
4.5
About
The Backwaters of Kerala is unique and is found nowhere else in the world. Backwaters are a network of lakes, canals and estuaries and deltas of forty-four rivers that drain into the Arabian Sea. The backwaters of Kerala are a self supporting eco-system teeming with life. The most exciting aspect of Kuttanadu is the Kettuvallam (traditional Houseboat) which has become the most popular tourism product in India today. We do operate Houseboats from Kumarakom & Alleppey, which were the popular backwater destinations in Kerala.
Kottayam, India

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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles271 reviews
Excellent
214
Very good
43
Average
8
Poor
3
Terrible
3

pawan kumar ind k
Hyderabad, India2 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2024 • Family
I am a repeat customer of Eco Trails Kerala and had very good experiences with them. Kence (owner) is very knowledgeable and always customized our tours to suit our requirements! He is also easy to communicate with and was available at time time during our stay.

We loved the houseboat experience very much (especially our kids who were riding for the first time!). An added bonus for us was the mansoons, which made it even more special. I must also mention the houseboat captain Rajesh who at times went out of his way to ensure we had a comfortable stay. - like arranging for food at 10 PM for our little one or getting us umbrellas to stroll through the island rest stop in the evening. It's these little gestures that can go a long way in creating wonderful memories...
Written 30 June 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Emily S
Walton-On-Thames, UK41 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2022 • Couples
We loved our stay on the houseboat. Kence welcomed us and gave us a nice introduction. We were then left in the very capable hands of an excellent chef and driver. The boat was very comfortable and spacious for the two of us. It’s a very tranquil experience with plenty of birds and wildlife to see. Thank you for a great stay!
Written 7 December 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Polo_Battuta
Arlington, VA27 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2011
My wife and I spent a week in Kerala with our two girls, 5 & 8, and had an unforgettable experience. We rode elephants—twice—saw tea plantations, spice gardens, cultural pageants and the penultimate resting place of Vasco da Gama.

Satheesh, our driver, is The Man. We arrived at Kochi at 0330 and it took another 75 minutes to collect our bags. Satheesh had been waiting for us since 0130. He drove us through winding mountain passes from one end of Kerala to the other, and while I squirmed in the shotgun seat, Satheesh had everything under control. All throughout our trip he was always ready to go whenever we needed, yet gave us plenty of room to do our own thing. One couldn’t ask for a better guide.

We spent a night at the Fort Inn, a night at the Hornbill Camp, one at the mountaintop at Arrengalaranal (sp?), one at the Cardamom Club and two nights on the houseboat. The houseboat was an adventure in itself, but every place had something to offer.

The food was phenomenal. Everywhere we went, at least one thing on the menu ended up being the best on the trip. If it wasn’t the chai, it was the nan; if it wasn’t the curry, it was the coconut rice. It wasn’t good, it was fantastic.

The houseboat was the highlight of an A+ trip. The boat itself is gorgeous, with teak paneling inside and comfortable chairs and sofa in the lounge. The windows open up and with the ceiling fan and breeze from the moving boat, it was really nice inside. Just playing cards, having a beer, watching the birds and the palms and the other boats on the bayous was just terrific. At night, the a/c kept the cabins nice & cool. Again, as with everywhere on the trip, the food was unbelievable. Prawns the size of housecats.

(For Americans, plan ahead on ice. If I had one thing to do over again, it would be to make sure I picked up a bag or two of ice before leaving town for each camp. You can only drink so much lukewarm soda, and being American, beer needs to be cold.)

It was an unforgettable trip. We took hundreds of pictures and have memories our girls will never forget.
Written 29 April 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alice H
3 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
We read all the great reviews and chose this company for an overnight trip - when we got to the boat the atmosphere was very strange and I was uncomfortable to the point of really not wanting to be on the boat overnight, so we left. We're not precious people at all and everywhere else we stayed in Kerala - mostly homestays - was great. We found another houseboat that was great - not particularly luxurious but with nice people who I felt safe with.
Written 11 March 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Wolas
40 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2016 • Friends
Kence's backwater tours company has a lot of very good reviews, and a few bad ones. Unfortunately, our experience was one of the bad ones. We travelled for a single night in Feb 2016.

The problem was the boat that we were allocated. We opted for a double bedroom AC deluxe, 4 beds (cost EUR 200). After I had booked it, Kence did offer a premium category boat for EUR 250 and looking back at the pictures he sent, I wish I'd taken it!

The deluxe category boat is nothing like what is displayed on the website. The boat was old and worn, and worst of all, dirty. There were no shoes worn during our stay (this seemed to be the correct etiquette), and our feet ended up black. Kence has since said that all of his boats were booked up on the day we travelled and that the one we used was contracted out from another company, so make of that what you will.

My suggestion to anyone using this company is to ask, in advance, for pictures of the boat you will be getting. This is because the website is not necessarily accurate - what follows are quotes from Kence's website, followed by what we actually found during our stay:

"Contains well furnished & bath attached bed rooms"
- there were no furnishings other than bedside tables

"Sun bath-deck"
- there was an open area (with a roof covering), but no mosquito nets, so it became impossible to use in the evening. My friends were eaten alive

"Lounge cum dining room and a hygienic kitchen"
- the 'dining room' was a table situated in the middle of the boat

"In the royal kitchen, we prepare delicious Kerala food. Two boats-men and an expert cook will retinue your trip"
- not true...we had one navigator and one chef (the chef was very friendly though)

"For making your trip more comfortable, we have provided modern facilities like electric lights, fans, €pean style bathroom and showers etc in the boat"
- in actual fact, there was no toilet roll, no soap, one dirty towel between two, and one shower which wasn't working!

"Welcome drink, fruit basket on dining table"
- there were no fruits in sight during our entire excursion

"Lunch: Rice, Seven types of vegetable dish and Fish fry"
- lunch was not bad, although there are definitely not seven types of vegetable dish

"Evening Tea: Tea / Coffee, snacks"
- never offered

"Dinner: Chapatti, Chicken curry / Dal curry, White rise and four types of vegetable dish"
- what we actually got was Chinese sweet and sour chicken (?!) with some potatoes. I didn't eat the chicken but was informed by my friends that it was pretty inedible (it had parts of bones in it)

"Breakfast: Bread toast-omelet, steamed banana Or Appam / Idiappam / Poori, Egg Curry / Vegetable Curry, Steamed Banana"
- disappointing. Had some potato and poori, which we had to request after being offered just toast and eggs

We provide home grown organic vegetables & fruits for the guests on cruise.
- I've already mentioned the lack of fruit

In summary, the backwaters are absolutely stunning, and it is a real shame that our boat wasn't up to scratch.
Written 27 February 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

donnalryan
London40 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Stayed on the 7th feb 2012.
Couple from uk.
The trip started off well and the scenery was amazing but the chairs were uncomfortable so found it hard to relax.
The crew were very nice but food was always cold.
We tried to have dinner outside and watch the sunset but we ended up in our room, the table and food were covered in bugs and mosquitos, it was quite a horrible experience.

We ended up going to bed at 7pm but couldn't sleep because the a/c was very noisy but very needed. Also we were eaten alive by ants in the bed and Mosquitos, they should have a net around the bed. We have 40 bites between us, no amount of repellent could keep them away.
The bed was like sleeping on a concrete slab, the bathroom was clean enough but tired with cracked tiles.
I would only reccommend doing a day tour with these guys.
Overall nice day but evening was uncomfortable, we only managed 3 hours sleep.
Also we were supposed to start at Kumarakom and finish at Alleppey (all confirmed in writing) but it finished at Kumarakom which added another 2 hours to our journey and cost us more money.
Written 8 February 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Joanna B
San Diego, CA1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2015 • Friends
We were not able to do an overnight Houseboat due to work schedules, but we still wanted the Houseboat experience. They accomodated us, and we were able to do a five hour cruise in the Houseboat to experience the beautiful Kerala backwaters. The food was fresh and delicious. I don't eat fish at all, and they accomodated me with chicken. My friend had the fish fry, and he said it was delicious. Fresh fruit, coconut water, chilled mineral water, friendly crew all made for a memorable experience, and I definitely recommend it to the next traveller.
Written 22 February 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

B77_38
Singapore, Singapore13 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2012 • Couples
We stayed one night on the houseboat. The state of the room was a little disappointing, the mattresses were thin, the blanket was just a thin sheet of cloth and the pillows were small and flat. However, the room and the bathroom were generally clean.

On the upside, the food was good (except for breakfast which was only a tiny omelette and some toasts). We bought prawns and crabs for dinner during one of the stopovers, and the chef did an amazing job with them!

We 'docked' near one of the backwater villages for the night and that made it a little noisy when we tried getting to sleep, as we could hear dogs barking and loud music from passing boats.

The one highlight of the whole experience is that we actually managed to see some fireflies during the night!
Written 29 January 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alan L
Basingstoke, UK23 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2017 • Couples
As part of my Wife's 50th Birthday present we were spending 5 days in Kerala and I contacted Eco Trails to ensure we got the best from our trip. Kence was very helpful and contact with him throughout was easy. We decided to spend 2 nights on a Houseboat and the remaining time in Munnar. Kence arranged a driver for both airport transfers and for our time in Munnar.

The two nights on the Houseboat were exceptional. We had two crew look after us throughout and the food we enjoyed was amongst the best we had during our 15 day holiday. It is a very relaxing experience where you will lose all concept of time and I didn't think once about the modern day desires of wifi access or television. The scenery and wildlife around the backwaters is truly stunning and to see how the locals who rely on the backwaters to support all aspects of life.

We left the back waters and headed to Munnar which was about a 4 hour drive. Our driver was very helpful and stopped on several occasions to show us local sights. We stayed at a small complex just outside Munnar called Aranyaka which was excellent. The views across the valley of the waterfall and the tea plantations made for a great base. We had a busy two days with trips to various locations but the highlight was a tour of a tea plantation. I need to also mention the food at Aranyaka, which was excellent.

Our 5 days in Kerala wasn't anywhere near enough to fully appreciate this stunning part of the world but as a taster it was perfect and anybody doing something similar would not be disappointed and Kence and his team played a significant part in our enjoyment of this trip. Thank You.
Written 23 April 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

fvrussell
Sydney, Australia3 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2015 • Couples
We stayed 2 nights on the houseboat. The crew were very helpful and friendly, the food was wonderful and the rivers and lakes lovely. The air conditioned bedroom was a life saver at night, but with plenty of air movement including fans, we were quite comfortable through the day as well. On the downside: I would have liked the opportunity to get off the boat more often, and in hindsight 1 night would have been enough. The bathroom was was clean but very basic and a bit smelly.
Written 13 April 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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