Fly to Kochi (COK). Direct flights from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and most metros.
Kumarakom is a ~2 hour drive (75 km) from the airport. Taxis and Uber are both available at Kochi airport, with prepaid taxi counters in arrivals.
Prefer the train? Kottayam station is 45 minutes from the resort, well connected on the Kerala main line.
Flying from the US? Our recommendation: a direct Air India flight to Mumbai or Delhi, then a short domestic hop to Kochi. We’ve had far better experiences with that than layovers in Europe or the Middle East. (The plane in our tree is not a coincidence.)
From elsewhere, Kochi (COK) is an international airport, one stop from most of the world via Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, or Colombo.
Visas: most nationalities can use India’s e-visa; apply online a few weeks ahead at indianvisaonline.gov.in.
Same deal on arrival: a ~2 hour taxi or Uber from the airport to the resort.
The classic kettuvallam cruise through paddy fields and villages. Book a day boat from Kumarakom jetty, or just watch them drift past your room.
Kerala is famous for its Ayurvedic massages, and the resort spa does traditional treatments. Book one for the morning after the sangeet.
Kerala has 3,000 years of civilizational history: historic temples, Ashoka's edicts, Roman trade, St. Thomas in 52 AD, and India's oldest mosque. Start with Fort Kochi and Mattancherry.
Next door to the resort. Herons, egrets, kingfishers, and Siberian migratory birds. Feb is peak season, go at dawn.
An hour away across the lake: canal-side villages, toddy shops, and the famous canoe routes through the narrow waterways.
Extending your trip? Munnar is four hours east, a hill town surrounded by tea estates. Worth two extra days.
Karimeen pollichathu (pearl-spot fish), appam with stew, puttu, and a proper sadya on a banana leaf.
Honestly, the best thing to do is nothing: a chair by Vembanad at 6 PM with a tender coconut. You’ll see.