South India Tour

Overview
A 17 days tour package, South India Tour Package intends to provide the best of the South Indian tourist places, encompassing some major tourist destinations like Chennai, some cities of Kerala and Goa. South India Tour covers a wide geographical area and stresses only on some selected and most preferred tourist destinations. In fact, it is a complete tour package that offers some enlightening trips to historic places, leisure resorts and adventure spots. Your tour begins from Chennai, from where you proceed to visit the temples of Mahabalipuram and Kanchipuram. Before entering Thekkady district of Kerala, you will visit a number of temples at Trichy and Madurai town of Tamil Nadu. Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is home to a variety of wildanimals that include tigers, elephants, leopards, wild dogs, langur monkeys etc. Next head towards port city of Cochin which is home to a number of attractions like Jewish Synagogue, Portuguese Churches and Dutch Palace. After exploring the city of Cochin head towards Karnataka's famous city Mysore and visit the neighbouring towns of Hassan, Hospet and Badami before entering the beach Paradise, Goa. Enjoy sunbath, water sports and several other leisure activities on Goa beaches. From Goa fly to Mumbai to board a flight back home.

Inclusions
Accommodation, Meal, Transport, Guides for sightseeing and wildlife tours, Boating across the Periyar Lake.

Exclusions
Shopping and other meals apart from breakfast.

Detailed Itinerary
Namaste - We welcome you with folded hands

Day 1 : Arrive Chennai
Arrival to Chennai airport. The moment you land at the airport our representative will receive you with a fabulous traditional welcome and soon transfer you to your hotel.

Overnight : At hotel in Chennai.
Day 2 : Mahabalipuram and Kanchipuram
Today we will take you to a full day tour of Mahabalipuram and Kanchipuram. We will start from Kanchipuram, the ancient capital of the Pallavas, which is famous as 'the City of Thousand Temples.' You will visit important temples that include Ekambaswara, Kailasanatha, Sri Kamakshi and Varadarajaswamy. After visiting the temples at Kahncipuram you will head for Mahabalipuram. The seven pagodas - an interesting group of ancient rock hewn temples, are sure to leave you in a spell. In the late evening you'll be transferred to the railway station for an overnight train to Trichy. Night on board.

Overnight : Train to Trichy.

Day 3 : Sightseeing tour of Trichy
You will arrive at Trichy in the morning and our representative will transfer you to the hotel. In the afternoon we'll take you to a tour of the city. You'll come to see Lord Robert Clive's House and the Danish Church. The awesome Rock-Fort is the landmark of Trichy. There is a climb of 434 steps to the ancient temple of Ganapati on top and a further climb to a Shiva temple.

Overnight : At hotel in Trichy.

Day 4 : Trichy - Tanjore - Madurai
Following breakfast in the morning we'll drive to Madurai visiting Tanjore, famous for its handicrafts, en-route. At Tanjore, you'll see the beautiful Chola Temple of Brihadeeshwara, which is crowned by a monolithic cupola made of a single granite block weighing 80 tons.

Overnight : At hotel in Madurai.

Day 5 : Sightseeing tour of Madurai
After breakfast we'll take you to visit the famous Meenakshi Temple, dedicated to the consort of Lord Shiva. Later on, you will visit the Tirumala Nayak Palace- a splendiferous building in the Indo-Saracenic style. It is noted for the exquisite Stucco work on its domes and arches. Also visit the Alagar Hills and Tirupara Kundran Rock temple.

Overnight : At hotel in Madurai.

Day 6 : Madurai - Periyar
Following breakfast we will take a morning drive to the popular sanctuary of Kerala, Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. We can proceed to the Periyar lake for a wonderful cruise. You may also get to see elephants, wild boars, sambars, tigers, leopards, wild dogs, langur monkeys etc., across the lake.

Overnight : At hotel in Periyar.
Day 7 : Periyar - Cochin
Today after breakfast we'll drive to popular city of Cochin. On arrival you will be transfered to your hotel in Cochin.

Overnight : At hotel in Cochin.

Day 8 : Sightseeing tour of Cochin
After breakfast we'll proceed outside our hotel to explore the old port city. You will visit popular places such as Jewish Synagogue, Portuguese Churches, Mosques and Hindu temples. The Chinese Dishing Nets certainly deserve attention and you will come across a number of them here. Afternoon will be at your disposal. Evening is free for leisure activities.

Overnight : At hotel in Cochin.

Day 9 : Cochin - Bangalore - Mysore
Following breakfast in the morning our representatives will escort you to Cochin airport for the flight to Bangalore. From Bangalore we'll drive directly to Mysore, on arrival transfer to your hotel room.

Overnight : At hotel in Mysore.

Day 10 : Sightseeing tour of Mysore
On day 10 full-day sightseeing tour of Mysore will be organized for you in the morning. You'll visit the magnificent Mysore palace built by the famous Maharajas of Mysore in 1911-12 A.D. Its archways, domes, turrets, colonnades and sculptures makes it a marvellous monument. You will also visit the Art Gallery and from there on we will head for Chamundi hill to see Chamundeshwari Temple. The place offers a panoramic view of the Mysore city. On the way back, see the Nandi Bull.

Overnight : At hotel in Mysore.

Day 11 : Mysore - Belur - Halebid (Hassan)
Today you'll have a full day tour of Belur and Halebid. We'll take you to the 900 year old Chenna Kesava temple of Belur. The Hoysala art of the temple is quite impressive. Thereafter you will head to visit Halebid's 12th century Hoysaleswara and Kedareswara temples, master pieces of Hindu art. On the way we also visit Sravanbelgola where the statue of Lord Gomteshwara is erected. The statue is hewn out of a single rock and visible from a distance of 25 kms.

Overnight : At hotel in Halebid.

Day 12 : Hospet - Hampi
After breakfast we'll drive to Hospet. It would be worth visiting the ruins at Hampi. Some interesting ruins at the site are the Virupaksha, Vittala and Hazara Rama temple's huge Ganesha and Narasimha images, the elephant stables, the Queen's Bath, carvings on the Ramachandra temple & Lotus Mahal.

Overnight : At hotel in Hospet.

Day 13 : Badami - Aihole - Pattadakal
In the morning we'll drive to Badami and en-route visit Aihole and Pattadakal. Aihole is the cradle of ancient stone temple architecture of the southern Dravida School. The temples you'll visit are the Durga temple, noted for its sculptures and the Meguti temple, built of 630 small stone blocks. At Pattadakal, referred to as Petrigal, you will visit the Sanghameswara Temple, and the Mallikarjuna Temple, which has pillars depicting life of Krishna. The carvings on the pillars and ceiling of the Papanatha Temple are quite impressive.

Overnight : At hotel in Badami.

Day 14 : Sightseeing Tour of Badami
After breakfast we will leave for sightseeing tour of Badami, also known as Vatapi. The area is dotted with Hindu and Jain temples carved out of sand stone hills. Apart from the temples, you'll visit the Fort, perched atop a hill. It encloses large granaries, treasury and a watch tower. There is an impressive Malegitti Shivalaya temple, built entirely of stones.

Overnight : At hotel in Badami.

Day 15 : Badami - Goa
In the morning we'll drive to Goa and on arrival you'll be transferred to a beach resort. Amuse yourself with the ambience of Goan lifestyle on the soft sands of the palm fringed beach. At night you may visit a tavern, pub, bar, or discotheque. The place offers an exciting nightlife.

Overnight : At beach resort in Goa.

Day 16 : Sightseeing tour of Goa
You have a day free for leisure activities. We'll take you to visit the World Heritage Site of the Churches and Convents, including the Church of Bom Jesus, containing the tomb of St. Francis Xavier. We'll also take you to the fishing villages to watch fishing nets. Finally, come back to your resort to pass rest of the night.

Overnight : At beach resort in Goa.
Day 17 : Goa - Mumbai Departure
You will be transferred to the airport for the flight to Mumbai. On you arrival at Mumbai, you'll be transferred to the city centre. Later, in the evening we'll arrange for your transfer to the international airport to board you departure flight.

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Feedback
Oh! Our trip was great, we had never imagine about such a fantastic trip. Before travelling to India we were little worried about transportation and accommodation, but Trinetra offered arranged everything very well. We would recommend Trinetra to all who are planning a trip to India.


It was a wonderful trip. South India tour was a nice combination of sightseeing and adventure. We enjoyed the boat cruise at Periyar lake and see tigers, elephants, leopards, wildboar and many other wildanimals. We also savoured sea-food at Goa beaches which were very delicious, feni (local drink) was also fabulous.


I was planning a trip to India for a longtime, then one of my friend suggested me to book the tour with Trinetra. On his suggestion I booked the tour with Trinetra, when I reached India I got much more than what I expected earlier. Our trip leader Sachin was a nice person, he helped us throughout the trip. Thanks Trinetra for providing us a memorable trip.