Kottayam

Understand

Kottayam is a city in south-central Kerala, sandwiched between the Vembanad Lake and the Kerala hill-country. Best known as a hub of trade and commerce, Kottayam is also a centre for education and literature, and as a centre of Kerala's large Christian population.

The lingua franca in Kottayam is Malayalam, the official language of the state of Kerala. Travellers should not face much difficulty in getting by with English, as the language is widely understood, at least at a rudimentary level. Most sign-boards above shops are in English as well. On the other hand, conversing with the locals in Hindi is a far more difficult task and best avoided.

Eat

thumbnail|Meen Mulakittathu or spicy fish is a speciality of Kottayam restaurants. There are many restaurants and cafes in Kottayam. What the town lacks, however, is variety. Local food is extensively available and is generally quite good, as is South Indian vegetarian food. Beyond this, food has been uniformly categorized by restaurants as being either North Indian, Chinese or Continental. Most dishes that go under the last two categories are imaginative concoctions that draw on the worst elements from various styles of cooking. In summary, stick to Kerala food in Kottayam. If you still insist on trying other things out, then head to the luxury resorts in Kumarakon near Kottayam, and pay absurd sums of money for a meal.

A large number of bakeries can be found in Kottayam. You can get freshly made bread and other snacks at these outlets. They are quiet popular and worth a visit.

A word of caution for the religiously inclined. Beef is easily available in Kottayam and is a staple in the people's diet. If you do not want to end up eating beef you will need to be wary of anything that says meat or beef on it. A meat roll would very likely have beef in it, for example. To be on the safe side, make your preference known explicitly.

Drink

Drinking in Kottayam is a fairly entertaining experience. Local pubs tend to be lively, but serve primarily a male clientele. The local beverage called Toddy, made from palm sap, is quite potent and not for the faint-hearted.

The retail sale of alcohol in Kottayam (as with the rest of Kerala) is a government monopoly, and liquor stores are often stocked with only the most popular varieties and labels. Wine is almost impossible to find, and getting popular international brands of anything from whiskey to beer is a bit hit-and-miss. The more upscale hotels do have bars where one can be certain of a reasonable ambiance and a well-stocked bar, while the smaller ones can appear quite dodgy.

Side-dishes/Touchings, the local terms for snacks consumed along with drinks, is also something to try out. These vary from chicken, fish, duck to various wild birds and are considered de rigueur for any true drinking experience.

Sleep

There are a number of hotels of varying quality in Kottayam. Since the town is not spread out, proximity to the down town area is not really a selling point. Most hotels are rated (or approximately equate to) Indian two and three stars. Nightly room rates average of ₹1,000-2,000, with seasonal increases around September (Onam) and December (Christmas, New Year's). An alternative to established hotels is to use the services of an ever-growing list of homestays and vacation apartment.

There is a large concentration of resorts run by large Indian and international hotel chains, as well as smaller boutique operators, at Kumarakom (14 km from Kottayam) on the Vembanad Lake, where rooms, cottages and houseboats aimed at deeper pockets are available. Expect to pay top dollar for resorts run by the likes of the Taj and Radisson. Vacation Apartments are becoming a much more affordable alternative in several parts of Kerala for tourism.