Boat Trip on the Periyar Lake In Thekkady, Kerala
Thekkady is a beautiful forest town in Kerala, located in the Idukki district. The main reason it’s famous for is the Periyar National Park. And if someone is visiting the place it’s a must to go for the slow boat ride on the Periyar Lake. With the wildlife and greenery all around you. And most activities you would do would revolve around the Periyar National Park.
At a distance of 500kms from Bengaluru, it is easily reachable taking the night bus. If you are planning to reach here taking a flight the nearest airport is Kochi. From where you can take a bus or taxi towards Thekkady. There are many hotels or homestay near the bus stand which too is not that far from the Periyar National Park. So it is good if you get a place near the bus stop so you can reach other places easily. And I would suggest you walk around the place as most of the spots are easily accessible. Including the market and shows like Kathakali and Kalari with many theatres doing the activities on a daily basis in the evening.
How to book the Periyar Lake Boat Trip
It’s really easy as there are many boat trips happening every day. And you just need to reach the ticket booking counter 30mins before the different trip timings available. And there are seats available for even huge crowds coming there. The boats start from 7:30 AM till 5 PM and each boat trip last for about 90 mins. And you need to pay around Rs 200/head for the tickets to board the boat. There are restrooms available there including space for you to wait till the boat reaches if you missed the last one. I think the tickets are for the whole day and you can redeem the ride on any boats that day. At the waiting area, you will see the different activities available for you to do in Thekkady including the night safari, border trek and also stay in the wilderness.
Towards Periyar National Park
After settling in my homestay which was just 1km from the bus stand. I got ready and directly headed towards the Periyar National Park, at the entrance you need to take a ticket for Rs 25 to enter the park. After entering I saw many cycles parked just towards the left and thought to grab one as the lake was about 2-3 km from the entrance. Which is priced at Rs 10/hour any bike you take which are in good conditions and has a lock on each one of them. For you to not lose it anywhere if you are planning to walk around the lake.
I would suggest you take the cycle as its really nice to ride around the forest as the time I went there it was totally empty. A bit scared as its a Tiger Reserve but I didn’t see any and was totally happy with that. As there were no warnings and cycles easily available I don’t think there are no such problems of tigers out there which are life-threatening.
You don’t get the tickets for the boat trip at the entrance as it is available at the gates of the Periyar Lake. Which you can only buy when there is 30mins left for the boat trip to start.
My Boat Trip
After waiting for a while you are taken towards the boat. There are many boats including speed boat and others but we were taken to the double-decker boat and I chose to sit on the top deck to get a better view of the lake and the forest around. You are provided with life jackets if the boat breaks down. The ride started at a slow pace which continued at the same speed as the ride is really beautiful that way. We had a full round of the Periyar Lake, with animals and birds easily spotted if you have a binocular and somewhere almost there on the banks of the lake.
With elephants, wild boars, and deers for you to see in their natural habitat. Which includes the cold breeze which blows there making you feel sleepy. Even if you try hard to not close your eyes you are relaxed for the next 90 mins with all the greenery around you. This is something I will definitely suggest you guys as the 90mins ride in the lake is totally worth. One more suggestion I would have loved to experience was someone who would have spotted the birds and explained something like how they were available only in the wildlife sanctuary. Which is really amazing as some birds which will only be available there and not anywhere else.
So that was all you need to know about the boat trip on the Periyar Lake in Thekkady. Any questions you can comment down below and I would reply promptly.