Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

Food was excellent most of the time, especially the picnic and roadside lunches. Riding through the tea country was a delight.  Arriving at Vanilla Country. Welcoming happy people everywhere, and no begging.  Relaxing day spent doing not very much in Kumily.  Chettinah was amazing, but arrived at dusk so could not see the designated house. 

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our group leader was pleasant but not up to the job in hand and seemed unable to take charge on occasions, resulting in late arrivals and missed opportunities for previously planned sightseeing, and a lot of frustration. He appeared to have little training in coping with a group of travellers. 

Advice for Potential Travellers

Read the trip notes before you go and select this trip carefully. Prepare for long days of 100 kms plus. 

Suggestions

Some of the hotels could be improved on - bland chain hotels a few nights.  Luggage should arrive with the cyclists and not up to one hour later.  A more competent bike mechanic would have been appreciated. 

Most Inspirational Moment

On the first day cycling through the back streets of Pondicherry, as people were beginning to go about their day, with children getting ready for school, we arrived at the beach with the fishermen mending their nets. We all had our pictures taken with our back wheels in the sea in preparation for the adventure to cycle across to the other coast.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Peter was brilliant, adaptable. The back up team were great special thanks to Abi and Franklin.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Book no.

Suggestions

I loved eating and drinking tea and coffee in the little road side cafe ....places you would never go in usually, but with the real flavour of India. I believe no one got a bad tummy.

Most Inspirational Moment

The most inspiring moments of my trip were seeming people go about their daily lives early morning in Pondicherry. Visiting a village school and cycling through the tea plantations.

Thoughts on Group Leader

I had fantastic group leaders. Peter who created the route was always thinking of ways to improve the experience and our local India guys have become good friends.

Advice for Potential Travellers

It is a cycling holiday that happens to be in India. Not a holiday in India with some cycling. Be prepared for early mornings.

Suggestions

I really enjoyed staying at Vanilla County Homestay and would have liked to stay there for longer. The Temple and tour in Maduria was so interesting. I would spend less time at the bird sanctury, wildlife boat cruise and Thekkady. Allow a little more free time away from the group.

Most Inspirational Moment

Dropping down through the mountains to Vanilla County with mist over the rainforest and waterfalls everywhere. Simply magic - so much so I had to start singing!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Very flexible to the needs of the group, great knowledge of the country and culture.

Most Inspirational Moment

The most amazing day was the ride through the tea plantations, the sun was shining , the women were out picking the tea and the whole area looked perfectley manicured. There were also some numerous undulations which made a great ride.  

Thoughts on Group Leader

Peter the leader was absolutely great. Our trip was the second one run and he was continually tweeking and asking for feedback.

Advice for Potential Travellers

It Can be very hot for the April/May departure, a camelbak is usefiul to keep hydrated. If you feel you might be suffering from het exhaustion don't be afraid to use the airconditioned bus.Using hand gel before eating and for after loo stops wise. We had no serious stomach problems despite all the roadside snacks we sampled.Lots to photograph on the way so a camera that fits in the pocket is much more useful than a SLR ATM,s were a bit haphazard and sometimes it was necessary to try three before getting any money. Probably useful to have some hard currency just in case. In Kochi the palace and symague are closed Friday /Saturday so if you want to visit go Thursday, when you arrive.

Suggestions

Good to use so many local places for lunch and tea stops.Cold towels from an iceboox would be very welcome in the temperatures we were cycling  35 centigrade + some of the time.

Most Inspirational Moment

The Brihadishwara Temple in Thanjavur - for the astonishing buildings and unexpected sense of calm.  And by way of almost complete contrast, the village temple festival on the road to Kumarakom, which was a riot of music and gold-caparisoned elephants.  The Chettiar town of Karaikudi had a special atmosphere too.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Peter doesn't take sugar in his chai, which is almost unforgivable (!).  He did plan a superb route though.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Don't worry about the distances - the terrain in Tamil Nadu is extremely flat, and apart from a couple of hilly days in the Ghats, the cycling is not as intimidating as the distances imply;  The books on Chola bronzes in the museum at Thanjavur are poor quality, but you may be able to pick up a reasonably-priced copy of the excellent "The Sensuous and the Sacred" from one of the bookshops in Kochi instead.  This covers much of the same material, but with much better photography; The gentle hike around the Periyar / Kumily National Park seemed to be much better value that the boat trips - we saw plenty of birdlife and monkeys whilst on foot that would not have been visible from the lake;  Handmade soap is much cheaper to buy in Kumily than Kochi; If you have an early start for the flight home, there is a cafe on the roof of Kochi airport that serves a reasonable veg biryani and a very decent coffee (but no chai); Don't forget to pack your trunks - several of the hotels have excellent pools.

Suggestions

Perhaps it was because I went on the first of these trips, perhaps it was the dynamic of the group - or perhaps it was just me, but I was hoping for a more integrated cycling / cultural experience than I got.  Whilst appreciating that not everyone is interested in temples (although I have to recommend Michael Wood's "A South Indian Journey", which gives a great flavour of the vibrant living classical civilisation that can be experienced in Tamil Nadu), some of us are - and make the trip to India specifically to see these things and learn more about the country that is hosting us.  We did have a local guide on one day (who gave us an excellent tour of the Meenakshi-Sundareshwarar temple in Madurai), and I would have appreciated more of this level of local engagement.  Having said all of which - I'm sure I'll be back in India in the not too distant future.

Most Inspirational Moment

Reaching the top of the 13k hill, struggling up hairpin bends whilst monkeys looked on leisurely chewing branches.   Watching the sun go down over the tranquil back waters, then waking up on such a millpond with the fishermen quietly going about their business. Banana Jam!!!!! 

Thoughts on Group Leader

Peter our leader was a good judge of character and tended to any needs, the back up support was also superb.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Make the booking :)

Suggestions

You will love it 

Most Inspirational Moment

Pedalling up to Periyar, not as big a climb as the one up to Ooty but still a challenge. Realising we had indeed pedalled from coast to coast.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Peter....great and never flustered.

Advice for Potential Travellers

It can be very very hot in the lowlands and I would aim for December/January departure for maximum comfort.look out for random speedbumps, I didn't see one as I was too busy looking at  village life and had a spectacular fall. Luckily no major damage and my gashed/grazed arm healed remarkably quickly....I was paranoid about cleaning it and it didn't get infected, which I think is quite unusual for India!

Suggestions

Take a comfy saddle as there are some long days and my posterior suffered! Get used to the idea of being photographed by locals incessantly, they clearly were intrigued by us!Take long sleeves and trousers for evenings as there are quite a few mosquitoes.

Most Inspirational Moment

The amazing people of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. There cheers, waving and welcome. We attracted a lot of attention. Tea stops could cause minor traffic jams as crowds came to greet us. It was funny having our picture taken!The ride through the tea plantations and down hill to the home stay was probably my favourite day but every day was great, diverse in scenery and interest. Chettinad is almost like being on a film set. The Sri Meenakshi-Sundareshwara temple is amazing.Coming across a spectacular festival in a temple just by hearing the music as we cycled.

Thoughts on Group Leader

The reason why I booked this trip was because of Peter. Having cycled around Sri Lanka with him I knew the trip would be good. He is a great group leader. The support staff were also great. There local knowledge steered us through some stunning back streets. We were well looked after.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Again, this was the first time the trip had been run so the itinerary might be tweaked slightly.Tickets to get inside Auroville should be booked in advance. When we arrived the next available ticket were two days later.Visit the market at Thanjavur.If you want to visit the Periyar Wildlife sanctuary, book tickets in advance if the day of arrival doesn't change.You will see more wildlife in a few minutes on the house boat than an hour in the bird sanctuary but it was worth getting up early for the sunrise! Completely cover yourself with mosquito repellent on the boat. They were biting through clothing! In Fort Cochin the Synagogue is closed Friday and Saturday. The Palace is also closed on Friday, so if arriving on Thursday visit these first. If you want to see the Katharkali dancing I would also suggest booking the tickets early so you can get a seat nearer the front. For those who like a cold beer after a hot day in the saddle be advised that a lot of the hotels do not have a liquor liscense. It might be an idea for exodus to get a cool box (not just for beer) and pick some up on the way. You might have to ask for "special tea or coffee"!  Odomos is a local mosquito repellent, widely available and very cheap. Money - £250 covered everything including tips at the end. There are ATMs if you plan to do a lot of shopping.Camelbaks or something similar I suggest are better than bottles. I would also suggest getting/bringing a handlebar bag. There are so many photo oppurtunities. It would make life easier. 

Suggestions

Get on it!