I just finished a short (6 day) stint in Kerala, and I didn’t enjoy much of it at all. Mistake number 1 was I just booked a place in Kochi, my usual plan is to just book a place and figure it all out when I’m there, but I didn’t think Kochi was nice at all, and afterwards I realised people normally only go for 1-2 days then go somewhere else in the region.
I heard how amazing some of the other towns were, namely Allepey and Munnar, but again when I got there the towns themselves seemed awful, it was just the surrounding areas the required a tour to visit that was enjoyable. I love just picking a random direction and walking, but I couldn’t do this in India, the best way to sum up my trip was the only parts I enjoyed was the tours (which were amazing). The food was also great, though to be honest none of it was better than the Indian food I can get back home, albeit for a much higher price. I love a chaotic city but it all felt chaotic in a bad way.
Day 1 I explored Fort Kochi and did a Tuk Tuk tour. I wasn’t really impressed by much of it, I did like the marine drive though
Day 2 I took the train to Allepey. The beach was right next to a highway being constructed and was pretty bad, I got a taxi to the town center and thought it was quite horrible, but then I took a boat tour on the backwaters which I really enjoyed
Day 3 I did another backwater tour that started from my hotel and drove me, I really enjoyed this but it ended at 2pm and there was pretty much nothing to do at night
Days 4 and 5 I did a night stay tour to Munnar which was incredible, I loved the tea plantation and the scenery, yet part of the tour was exploring the market in the town which I hated. It was just dirty and not interesting at all, most of it was just animal carcasses and knock off plastic crap. On day 5 after I got back I tried to explore Fort Kochi again to see if I missed anything, and almost got assaulted by 2 men who thought I was a police officer?
Day 6 I wanted to explore Cherai Beach before my evening flight. Again, I thought the town was pretty horrible and the beach was nice enough but it was barely walkable, it ended so quickly. Just when I started having a nice enough time just walking along the road I was attacked by 2 stray dogs. Luckily I wasn’t injured as a couple of men drove up to help.
I really do want to go back, as I would love to see the Taj Mahal, but I genuinely can’t see myself enjoying it at all unless I just book one of those package tours that last my whole vacation where they just plan it all for me in future. Has anyone felt a similar way and has any advice? An example is Munnar, if I just got a coach there myself there’s no way I would have found the amazing hiking trail without the help of a tour. The problem is I like travelling independently, on a budget, and taking in everything like a local, I don’t want to just be whisked about like some theme park. Also, I do normally love solo exploring chaotic countries, I don’t just stick to the orderly countries, but there was just something about India that didn’t gel with me. I heard Kerala was the calmest of the country too, I can’t imagine it getting worse! Please let me know tips for my second trip, or if India is just not for me