Kerala 6 Days Itinerary: Munnar, Thekkady & Houseboat
Standard Package

Kerala 6 Days Itinerary: Munnar, Thekkady & Houseboat

A slower 6-day Kerala plan from Kochi: three nights in Munnar with Marayoor and Chinnar, Periyar in Thekkady, and a night on an Alleppey houseboat.

⌖ Kerala, India ✦ Family & senior friendly planning
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DestinationKerala
Travel styleStandard Package

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Your holiday

A thoughtfully planned holiday experience.

Give Munnar the time it deserves. This 6-day Kerala trip from Kochi spends three nights in the tea hills: one day for the classic sights, and a second for Marayoor’s sandalwood forest and the wild, dry hills of Chinnar. Then you take a boat ride on Periyar Lake in Thekkady, and finish with a night on a private houseboat in the Alleppey backwaters. Private car and driver throughout.

Good to know

Package typeStandard Package
Planning supportSmall changes by enquiry
Best forFamilies, couples & seniors
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Trip highlights
✦ Kochi to Munnar – Waterfalls on the Way Up
✦ Munnar – The Classic Sights
✦ Marayoor and Chinnar – Munnar Beyond the Tea
✦ Munnar to Thekkady – Periyar Tiger Reserve
✦ Thekkady to Alleppey – A Night on the Backwaters
✦ Alleppey to Kochi – Fort Kochi and Departure
Day-wise plan

Your itinerary, day by day.

Day 1
Kochi to Munnar – Waterfalls on the Way Up

Kochi to Munnar – Waterfalls on the Way Up

⌖ Munnar

Your driver collects you at Kochi airport or railway station and heads inland towards the Western Ghats. The plains soon give way to rubber estates, then cardamom forest, then the first neat rows of tea. Stop at Cheeyappara and Valara, two waterfalls that drop right beside the road, and at a spice garden to see pepper, cardamom and cloves growing. You check in at Munnar by mid-afternoon, with the evening free to settle in.

Drive: about 4 hours · Overnight: Munnar

Day 2
Munnar – The Classic Sights

Munnar – The Classic Sights

⌖ Munnar 🍽 Meals: Breakfast

Start the day at Eravikulam National Park, which opens at 9 am. A park bus takes you up to the grassy slopes where the Nilgiri tahr, a mountain goat found only in the Western Ghats, grazes close to the visitors' path. Next is the Tea Museum, where you see tea processed from fresh leaf and taste the result. In the afternoon, drive out to Mattupetty Dam, call across the water at Echo Point and take a pedal boat on Kundala Lake. Our Munnar tour packages page has more ideas for your time here.

Overnight: Munnar

Day 3
Marayoor and Chinnar – Munnar Beyond the Tea

Marayoor and Chinnar – Munnar Beyond the Tea

⌖ Munnar 🍽 Meals: Breakfast

Today you drive north-east from Munnar, stopping at Lockhart viewpoint and Lakkam waterfall, where a shallow pool at the foot of the falls is good for a paddle. Next is Marayoor, home to Kerala's only natural sandalwood forest. The town is also known for its dolmens, stone burial chambers several thousand years old, and for the dark jaggery made from local sugarcane. Continue to Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, which lies in the rain shadow of the Ghats: dry, scrubby hills that look nothing like the rest of Kerala, and home to the rare grizzled giant squirrel. Return to Munnar in the evening.

Day trip by car · Overnight: Munnar

Day 4
Munnar to Thekkady – Periyar Tiger Reserve

Munnar to Thekkady – Periyar Tiger Reserve

⌖ Thekkady 🍽 Meals: Breakfast

Leave Munnar after breakfast for a 3–4 hour drive through cardamom plantations to Thekkady. In the afternoon, take the boat ride on Periyar Lake, inside the Periyar Tiger Reserve, looking out for elephants, gaur (Indian bison), sambar deer and otters along the banks. In the evening, choose a Kathakali performance, a Kalaripayattu martial-arts show or a guided walk through a spice plantation. Read more in our guide to Thekkady tourist places.

Drive: 3–4 hours · Overnight: Thekkady

Day 5
Thekkady to Alleppey – A Night on the Backwaters

Thekkady to Alleppey – A Night on the Backwaters

⌖ Alleppey 🍽 Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

An 8 am start gets you down from the hills to Alleppey (Alappuzha) in about four hours, in time to board your private houseboat between noon and 1 pm. Through the afternoon you glide along the backwaters past rice paddies, coconut groves and lakeside villages, while the crew cooks a Kerala lunch on board. The boat moors for the night at about 5:30 pm, as local rules require, and dinner is served on deck. Compare boat categories on our Alleppey houseboat packages page.

Drive: about 4 hours · Overnight: houseboat

Day 6
Alleppey to Kochi – Fort Kochi and Departure

Alleppey to Kochi – Fort Kochi and Departure

⌖ Kochi 🍽 Meals: Breakfast

After a short morning cruise and breakfast, leave the boat by 9 am. Take a walk on Alleppey Beach, then drive about two hours to Kochi. If you leave in the evening, there's time for Fort Kochi: the Chinese fishing nets, St Francis Church, Mattancherry Palace and the antique and spice shops of Jew Town. Your driver drops you at Kochi airport or the railway station. Plan your visit with our Fort Kochi tourist places guide.

Drive: about 2 hours

Hotel confirmation

Hotel names will be provided after booking, subject to availability and confirmation. We do not hold hotel confirmations before booking.

Inclusions

  1. 4 nights in hotels or resorts of your chosen category (3 in Munnar, 1 in Thekkady), with daily breakfast
  2. 1 night on a private houseboat, with lunch, dinner and breakfast on board
  3. A private sedan, SUV or tempo traveller with an English- or Hindi-speaking driver for all 6 days, including fuel, tolls, parking and driver allowance
  4. Pickup and drop at Kochi airport or railway station
  5. All sightseeing and transfers listed in the itinerary

Exclusions

Not included: flights or trains, entry tickets (Eravikulam National Park, Tea Museum, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Periyar boating), cultural shows, meals other than breakfast and houseboat meals, and personal expenses.

Important Terms

These terms apply to every Kerala tour package booked with Dreamland Vacations LLP ("we", "us"). By paying the advance, you ("the guest") accept them on behalf of everyone named in the booking.

1. Quotes and availability

1.1 Quotes are valid for 3 days and are subject to availability until the booking is confirmed. Hotel and houseboat prices change often, especially for December and January travel.

1.2 Hotels named in a quote are our first choice. If one is unavailable when you book, we'll offer a hotel of the same category and tell you before confirming.

2. Booking and payment

2.1 Once we confirm availability, pay 50% of the total package cost to confirm your booking. Your booking is confirmed only when we have received this payment and sent you a written confirmation with hotel names.

2.2 Full payment is due 30 days before your travel date. If it is not received by then, we may treat the booking as cancelled by you, and the charges in section 4 apply.

2.3 For bookings made within 30 days of the travel date, full payment is due at booking.

2.4 We accept payment by bank transfer, UPI or our online payment link. Payment-gateway charges, where applicable, are shown before you pay and are not refundable.

3. Prices

3.1 Prices are per person, based on two adults sharing a room, unless the quote says otherwise. GST is charged extra at the rate applicable on the invoice date.

3.2 Child rates apply to children aged 5 to 11 sharing their parents' room. Children under 5 travel free without an extra bed, subject to hotel policy.

3.3 Hotels add compulsory gala-dinner charges for 24 and 31 December. These are not included unless the quote says so and are payable at the time of booking.

3.4 Once confirmed, the package price is fixed, except for changes in government taxes, park fees or fuel surcharges imposed after booking.


Cancellation by you

4.1 Cancellations must be sent by email to info@dreamlandvacations.com. The charges below are counted from the day we receive your email, in Indian time.

4.2 Bookings for travel between 20 December and 5 January, and any hotel, resort or houseboat we have told you is non-refundable, cannot be refunded once confirmed, whatever the cancellation date.

4.3 Flights and train tickets booked through us follow the airline's or railway's own cancellation rules, plus our service fee of Rs 500 per ticket.

4.4 GST and payment-gateway charges already paid are not refundable.

4.5 We recommend travel insurance that covers cancellation, as these charges apply whatever the reason for cancelling, including illness.

5. Changes by you

5.1 One change of travel dates is free if requested 31 or more days before the original arrival date, provided the new dates are within the same season and the hotels are available. You pay any difference in price.

5.2 Date changes requested within 30 days of arrival are treated as a cancellation and a new booking.

5.3 Other changes, such as upgrading a hotel, adding a night or adding a houseboat, are possible at any time, subject to availability and the price difference.

5.4 Changing the name of a traveller is free up to 7 days before arrival.

6. Refunds

6.1 Refunds are made to the original payment method within 21 working days of the cancellation, after deducting the charges in section 4.

6.2 There is no refund for any service you don't use once the tour has started, including meals, sightseeing, a missed houseboat check-in or leaving early. If you leave early, we'll try to cancel later bookings and pass on whatever the hotels or suppliers refund to us.

7. Changes by us

7.1 If we must change a confirmed hotel, we'll replace it with one of the same or a higher category at no extra cost, and tell you as soon as we know.

7.2 If we have to cancel your tour for any reason other than those in section 8, you can choose a full refund of what you have paid or a different tour of equal value.

8. Events beyond our control

8.1 Heavy rain, landslides, floods, strikes and hartals, road closures, government orders, park closures and similar events can disrupt travel in Kerala, especially in the hills during the monsoon.

8.2 If such an event affects your tour, we'll arrange the best available alternative, such as a different route, hotel or sightseeing. Any extra costs are payable by you, and we'll refund only what the hotels and suppliers refund to us for services not used.

8.3 Houseboat cruising may be shortened or stopped in bad weather or under local regulations. Periyar boating and Eravikulam National Park can close without notice. These are not grounds for a refund of the package.

9. Our responsibility

9.1 We arrange hotels, houseboats, transport and sightseeing through independent suppliers. We take care to choose them well, but we are not responsible for loss, injury, damage, delay or illness caused by their acts or omissions, or by you.

9.2 Please look after your own belongings. We're not responsible for lost or stolen items.

9.3 Wildlife sightings, weather and views cannot be guaranteed.

10. Travel notes

10.1 Every guest must carry a valid government photo ID (Aadhaar, passport, driving licence or voter ID). Foreign nationals need a valid passport and Indian visa. Hotels may refuse check-in without ID.

10.2 Hotel check-in is usually 2 pm and check-out 11 am or 12 noon. Early check-in and late check-out depend on availability and may be charged.

10.3 The vehicle is for the itinerary as booked. Drives beyond it, or after 8 pm, may cost extra. Drivers may switch off the air-conditioning on steep hill roads.

10.4 Houseboats moor for the night at a fixed time under local rules. Air-conditioning on Deluxe boats usually runs at night only.

10.5 Behaviour that endangers others or breaks the law may lead to the tour being ended without refund.


Good to Know

  1. Eravikulam National Park closes for a few weeks each year between February and April for the Nilgiri tahr calving season. On those dates we replace it with Top Station or extra time at the tea estates.
  2. The Tea Museum is closed on Mondays, and Mattancherry Palace on Fridays. The Paradesi Synagogue in Jew Town is closed on Fridays and Saturdays.
  3. Periyar boat tickets sell out in peak season and on weekends. We book them for you in advance.
  4. The Day 5 drive starts at 8 am so you reach the houseboat in time. Pack the night before.
  5. Hill roads around Munnar and Thekkady are winding. Carry motion-sickness tablets if anyone in your group needs them.

Best Time for This Itinerary

September to March is the best time: Munnar is green and cool, Periyar is lush, and the backwaters are calm for a full afternoon's cruise. Chinnar is at its best after the monsoon, from October to January. December and January are the busiest months, so book early. April and May are hot on the coast but pleasant in the hills, and the monsoon (June to September) brings full waterfalls and lower prices. See our guide to the best time to visit Kerala.

Make It Your Own

  1. Shorter trip: our Kerala 5 Days Itinerary covers Munnar, Thekkady and Alleppey with two nights in Munnar.
  2. A waterfall start: begin with Athirapilly, Kerala's biggest waterfall, on our Athirapilly, Munnar, Thekkady & Houseboat tour.
  3. A beach start: spend the first night at Cherai Beach with our Cherai, Munnar, Thekkady & Houseboat tour.
  4. Upgrade the hotels: choose 3-star, 4-star or 5-star, place by place, and a Premium or Luxury houseboat.
  5. Travelling with family? We'll pick hotels with pools and family rooms. See our Kerala family tour packages.

Get a free quote for this itinerary

More Kerala Itineraries

  1. Kerala 4 Days Itinerary: Munnar and a houseboat in four days
  2. Kerala 5 Days Itinerary: Munnar, Thekkady and an Alleppey resort
  3. Kerala 7 Days Itinerary: two nights in Thekkady, an Alleppey resort and a houseboat

See all our Kerala tour packages.

Get a free quote for this itinerary

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 6 days enough for Kerala?
Yes. Six days covers Munnar, Thekkady and the Alleppey backwaters comfortably, with an extra day in Munnar that most shorter trips leave out. If you also want a beach, add Kovalam or Varkala and plan for eight days or more.
Why spend three nights in Munnar?
Two nights is enough for Munnar's main sights. The third night lets you see Marayoor's sandalwood forest, its ancient dolmens and the dry hills of Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, a very different landscape from the tea country, without rushing.
What is Marayoor known for?
Marayoor has the only natural sandalwood forest in Kerala, managed by the forest department. It is also known for its dolmens, prehistoric stone burial chambers, and for Marayoor jaggery, a dark sugar made from local sugarcane that makes a good gift to take home.
Is the drive from Thekkady to the houseboat long?
It takes about four hours. We leave at 8 am so you board the houseboat between noon and 1 pm, in time for lunch on board. The road comes down from the hills through Kottayam to the backwaters.
Can I stay at a resort instead of a houseboat?
Yes. We can replace the houseboat night with a lakeside resort in Alleppey, which some guests prefer with young children. You can still take a shikara or canoe ride through the canals in the afternoon.
Is this itinerary good for families and senior travellers?
Yes. Most drives are under four hours, and the extra night in Munnar means less packing and unpacking. The Day 3 trip can be shortened, and the Eravikulam walk is gentle but uphill, so we can adjust it for older travellers.
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