Kerala India Travel » Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary

Best Places to See Elephants in Kerala

Erin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 16:00:23 +0000

Festival in Thrissur, Kerala. Photo by Spisharam.

Who doesn’t love elephants? If you love them as much as I do and would like to see some on your trip to Kerala, here are the best places to find them.

If you’d like to spot elephants in Kerala in the wild you’ll need to visit one of the national parks. Of course, sightings aren’t guaranteed, but if you do get lucky it’ll be an exciting experience.

Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary

The most popular wildlife sanctuary in Kerala has a good population of elephants. A boat trip is a popular way to explore but you’ll have a better chance of seeing elephants if you go for a guided trek into the forest. The longer the trek, the better your chances. Read my Guide to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary for full details.

Wayanad

The Wayanad region in Northern Kerala is much less visited than Periyar and has two wildlife sanctuaries with good chances of spotting elephants. Read my post on Quiet Alternatives to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary for full details.

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary

Chinnar is easily reached from Munnar, but also receives far less visitors than Periyar. The watch tower is a great place to look out for elephants and you can even sleep out overnight. Chinnar is another one of my Quiet Alternatives to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, so have a read for more information.

If you don’t fancy venturing into one of the parks, or if you didn’t have any luck finding the gentle beasts, don’t despair! There are some great options for guaranteed close up interaction with elephants.

Kodanad Elephant Training Centre

Kodanad is an elephant rescue and training centre that is a popular daytrip from Cochin. It’s located 50km away so you’ll need to arrange a trip through your hotel or tourist office, or hire a taxi. If you arrive by 8am you’ll have the opportunity to help wash the elephants, and you can also have an elephant ride. If you are hiring a car to take you from Cochin to Munnar this is a good place to stop on the way.

Guruvayur

Guruvayur is an interesting off the beaten track place to visit in Kerala. It’s a bustling pilgrim town 25km from Thrissur that is well known for its temple, one of the richest and most important in the state. Although non-Hindus aren’t allowed inside the temple you can still enjoy the activities that take place outside during one of the many festivals held there.

The largest festival is Ulsavam during February or March. There are a variety of music and dance performances, as well as an elephant race and procession.

Even if you don’t visit during a festival you can still see elephants at the Punnathur Kotta Elephant Sanctuary 3kms away. Elephants are trained there for temple activities, and visitors are always welcome.

Thrissur

Highly decorated elephants are an essential part of temple festivals in Kerala. Thrissur is another less obvious place to visit in Kerala that has plenty of temples and festivals, so it’s a great place to spot elephants. The annual Puram Festival, the biggest festival in all of Kerala, takes place here in May and features elephant processions, drum orchestras and lots of traditional arts. You can get here by bus or train from Cochin in a few hours.

Festivals take place in Kerala temples throughout the year so keep your eyes open, ask around and you’re bound to come across some elephants.

Where is your favourite place to see elephants in Kerala? Leave a comment and let us know

Quiet Alternatives to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary

Erin — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 15:00:00 +0000

Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is the most popular destination in Kerala for wildlife viewing, but often the crowds can make it difficult to spot any animals. As part of our Quiet Alternatives series here are a few off the beaten track wildlife sanctuaries you could visit instead of Periyar. Your chances of spotting animals will be increased and you’ll have a much more interesting experience in these locations, but don’t expect the luxury accommodation or comforts that you find in Periyar.

Wayanad

We featured the beautiful region of Wayanad as a quiet alternative to Munnar for a peaceful retreat in the hills. It also contains two wildlife sanctuaries- Muthanga and Tholpetty. Tholpetty Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Northern section of Wayanad and is one of the best parks in South India to spot elephants in the wild. You’ll also have a good chance of seeing bison, deer, boar and monkeys. Tigers are present but rarely spotted, as in all of India’s parks.

How to get here:From Kannur it’s a 2.5 hour bus journey to Mananthavady, the nearest town to Tholpetty, from where you can pick up a bus or taxi for the 45 minute journey to the park entrance. You can also connect to Mananthavady from Kalpetta (and onward to Calicut) or Sultanbatheri, where you can take the bus to Ooty (4 hours) or Mysore (3 hours).

Where to stay: Pachyderm Palace is a basic guesthouse in a great location just outside of the sanctuary. The best room is the treehouse surrounded by forest. The food is delicious and the welcome is friendly, but don’t expect luxury. Two safaris a day are included in the price.

How to explore: You have the option of two hour jeep safaris in the morning or evening, or 5 hour guided hikes in the morning. It’s a good idea to try both options. These can be arranged at the park entrance, or through your hotel.

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary is on the border with Tamil Nadu, 60km from Munnar along a winding mountain road. It’s much less visited than Munnar but still offers the chance to see a range of wildlife. It’s one of the best spots in Kerala for bird watching with 225 species. You are also likely to see the famous grizzled giant squirrels, as well as elephants, deer, and monkeys. You can enjoy wonderful views from the watch tower or trek through the park.

How to get here: Take the 1.5 hour bus from Munnar heading to Coimbatore. The sanctuary is 10km past Marayoor.

Where to stay: You can stay inside the forest in a treehouse or tribal huts. Contact the Forest Information Centre in Munnar to book ( Tel: 04865-231587, Email: roywlw@eravikulam.org).

How to explore: Treks are arranged by the Forest Centre with local guides.

Silent Valley National Park

Silent Valley National Park is not very well known but the pristine rainforest features over 100 different varieties of orchids, 211 bird species and 128 types of butterfly. The moist evergreen woodland is located 75km from Palakkad, so could be combined with a trip to Nelliampathy , our quiet alternative to Munnar. As well as beautiful flora you could see the rare lion-tailed macaque, gaur, sloth bears and even tigers.

How to get here: Take the bus from Palakkad.

Where to stay: In Mukkali there is a basic national park guesthouse near the ticket office. Tel: 04924 253225.

How to explore: You need to pick up a permit from the National Park office in Mannarkkad, 32km from the entrance or in Mukkali. You can hire a jeep or go on guided walks.

A Guide to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary

Erin — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 15:00:10 +0000

Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. Photo by mtkopone

Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the largest and most visited wildlife reserves in India, and one of Kerala’s most popular destinations. It’s located in the Cardamom Hills section of the Western Ghats at an altitude of 900m-1800m. Temperatures are cooler than on the coast, ranging from 15 – 30 degrees celsius, so bring warm and waterproof clothes.

Although you are extremely unlikely to see tigers, there’s a good chance of coming across elephants, sambar, gaur, mongoose, wild boar and plenty of birds. The best time to visit is the dry season from December to April when animals are drawn to drink at the lakeside.

Kumily is the nearest village to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary and is the main base. It’s located a few kilometres north of the sanctuary. Thekkady is the name used for either the entire area or the park entrance.

What To Do

Kumily is a tourist town and every hotel can arrange tours, as can the many tour agents in town. The main tourist area of Periyar is the lake which is surrounded by forest.

Tours outside the park – You can arrange tours of spice plantations, tea factories and Elephant Junction for elephant rides.

Boat Ride – The most common way of visiting the park is on the KTDC boat trips on the lake. These can get crowded and the engine noise prevents you seeing much wildlife. The best chance of seeing wildlife is on the 7am trip.

Trek – A range of treks are available with local tribal guides from 3 hours to 3 days. The forest department organises these tours and they need to be booked though the Eco Tourism Centre on Ambadi Junction.

Bamboo Rafting – This alternative boat trip is also bookable at the Eco Tourism Centre and has a much better chance of seeing wildlife as the rafts are paddled rather than motor-driven. They hold 4-5 people and some walking is also included.

Jeep Safari – All hotels and agents can book half or full day jeep safaris into the jungle bordering the park (the park itself is protected).

Where to Stay

Most people stay in Kumily as there is only limited accommodation in the park itself, and it is more expensive. I recommend staying on the edge of town where it’s quieter and you have views into the forest, but are still in walking distance of the shops and restaurants.

Budget: Meadow View Inn has great views into the forest from its simple stilted huts. It’s located on the edge of town near Coffee Inn, a popular guest house on Thekkady Rd. The Jungle Cafe next door has tasty food including dosa and uttappam for breakfast.

Midrange: Pepper County Homestay is a friendly homestay just outside of Kumily amongst spice plantations.

Luxury: Cardamom Club has seven large deluxe rooms in a quiet location five minutes drive from Kumily on the way to the Sanctuary with views overlooking the forest.

How To Get Here

Kumily can be reached by bus or car from Kochi (6 hours), Kottayam (4 hours) and Munnar (4 hours). If you are coming from Alleppey you can change buses in Kottayam. These times are for buses, but you should always allow extra time as there can be delays on the winding mountain roads. The views on the way are beautiful though. If you hire a car and driver the journey time can be reduced, and you can stop to take photos along the way.

You can also reach Kumily by bus from Madurai (5.5 hours) in Tamil Nadu.

All buses arrive in Kumily from where you can take a rickshaw to the park entrance.

Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is a popular tourist destination so in my next post I’ll be continuing with the Quiet Alternatives series with some off the beaten track alternatives for wildlife viewing.