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After almost a year and a half of virtual celebrations, people are indeed excited to have some sense of normalcy back. Christmas is around the corner and markets have rebounded to spread the cheer and spirit of this season. People are thronging to the streets for festival shopping. Thanks to the vaccination drive by the government, the fear of Covid-19 is ebbing away in the minds of people it seems. Even though the life as we know it has been altered, people have learned to swim with the sharks now.

The city of Kochi has been bootstrapping for the last couple of months in anticipation of the inflow of tourists this season. Major tourist destinations like Fort Kochi, Mattancherry, Cherai beach etc have already put up their welcome banners. Kochi has been marked as an affordable Christmas and New Year destination by the social media for many years. Lots of vloggers and influencers have reviewed that the climate in Kerala is very pleasant for tourists nationally and internationally.

How about planning a vacation to Kochi this time? A 3-to-5-day trip to experience the vibe of this city and its suburb will leave you with a refreshed and rejuvenated mind. The responsible tourism mission undertaken by the Kerala tourism department has made inroads into the suburban villages where people can experience true hospitality interwoven within the cultural and social fabric of the local people.

Niko hotels is hosting its 5^th Christmas season this year. With Christmas attractions, superior hospitality, and delectable cuisines at your disposal, you are bound to recover and rejoice after a year of hard work. As the famous Christmas carol goes “tis the season to be jolly”, we cordially welcome you to Kochi city to experience the spirit of the season.

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Kochi is known for its scenic beauty. But more than now its also known for the adventure sports. While you are planning for a trip to Kerala post covid do not forget to visit Kochi.

Bhoothathankettu Trekking

Bhoothathankettu is the tourist destination in Ernakulam. It is one of the best trekking spots in Kerala. Also, you can experience a boat ride here. There is also a myth related to this dam and its name. Bhoothathankettu means monster rock. Large blocks of unshaped stones are placed on the sides of the Periyar river. Thus making it look like monster rock. The famous Thattekad bird sanctuary is located nearby.

Beaches

Beaches are one of the major attractions of Kochi. Due to covid, the beaches were closed but the officials have addressed recently that beaches will open soon. As an adventure trip, you can choose cycling from the Fort Kochi through the local areas of Kochi.

Scuba Diving

Scuba Kochi Centre will be one of the exciting places if you want to try Scuba diving. As Kochi is situated in the waterfront, adventure sports related water is common. Enjoy the underwater wildlife in Kochi.

Diwali the festival of lights is reaching closer. It is one of the most celebrated festivals in India. This year the celebration is different as global pandemic also affected the energy of the festival. Government has announced the guidelines for the festival. 

Go digital
Diwali is one of the festivals where the family bonds. If you are away from the family during this festive season try to adjust with the new normal. You can plan digital surprises for the loved ones.

Keep Sanitizer away from fire
Sanitizer is one thing which is now a part of life and we use it often. Since sanitizers are alcohol-based it tends to catch the fire easily. So keep away from fire and also be careful to not to handle diyas with just sanitized hands. Instead of the sanitizer, you can choose water or hand water for precautions.

Maintain social distancing
In this festive season try to adjust with new normal, maintain social distancing and stay safe. Celebrate Diwali by staying indoors. If stepping out please do not forget to wear a mask. You can also plan a get together at a good hotel which follows COVID -19  norms. 

Celebrate Diwali safely. Stay safe and healthy.

Kerala, God’s own country is known for its scenic beauty, waterfalls, beaches etc. But this tropical paradise also has a wide variety of wildlife to explore. Here we are listing wildlife sanctuaries of Kerala.

Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary

Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary situated on the banks of Vembanad lake, Kottayam. It is known for a large number of migratory birds. It is spread over 14 acres of land. The birds include the owl, waterfowl, heron, darter etc.

Periyar National Park

Periyar National Park is the notable tiger reserve and elephant reserve located in the Western Ghats. It has a wide range of flora and fauna. You can also have a boat ride through the Periyar lake.  

Eravikulam National Park

Situated on the Western Ghats, Eravikulam National Park. The national park is famous for its Nilgiri Tahr, the endangered species of goat. The park is closed from January to April. The other species lion-tailed macaques, Golden jackal, Sambar deer, leopard etc.

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary is situated in the Western Ghats and this is one of the places where we can spot endangered species Giant Grizzled Squirrel. The sanctuary comprises of a variety of mammal, birds, reptile, fish species and flowering plants.

Posted By: Mami San, Niko Hotels, Kochi   –

Kannur International Airport in North Kerala was opened recently. It has been a long-awaited need and although it has come up late, it is now operational.

Kerala is a small south Indian state on the western coast of India. North kerala was once, the base of the sea silk road and has enjoyed relations with the Gulf coast such as Saudi Arabia and Dubai. As a result of this connection, at that time, many poor people in Kerala had moved to the Gulf in search of work. Especially since there are still a lot of immigrants from this area, this airport will be convenient for them.

Kerala, now has 4 international airports. Kerala. The first one is at the state capital of Kerala – Trivandrum. Since the center of business is Cochin, the second airport came up at Cochin. The Cochin  International aiport had last year opened a new terminal and it is a great success as Kerala’s largest airport. The third one is at Calicut. Now the fourth one at Kannur.

Although Kerala has four international airports, there are no direct flights to Japan yet. I have operated through locally arranged travel agency in Kerala for 14 years. The low reach to Japan has restricted my activities in spreading the information on Ayurveda. I am still looking up to introduce a lot of merits of Kerala to everyone in Japan.

A new airport was opened and a bigger window is now opened to the Gulf and other areas, but the window to Japan is still a narrow one.

I like to call the people of Kerala like this ♡

This video is a curtain-raiser of a new TV channel that will start from today. I would want to introduce the everyday life and people of Kerala well.

Kerala is my second home and my daily life in Kerala is really nice. People are bright and warm ☺
Even in the times of floods, we had seen that everyone was compassionate and positive. I am touched by their spirit.

Even though this TV commercial is done well, you can very well watch the ordinary Kerala in here.

Author: Mami san, Niko Hotels, Kochi

Let me introduce “The Plum Mix Ceremony”, one of the seasonal fancy ceremonies in Kerala.

It is said that Simon, on e of the twelve Apostles of Jesus, arrived in 54 AD Kerala and he propagated Christianity. There is a good number of Christians in Kerala, which is around 20% of the population in Kerala.

I do not know for what reason but somehow I have a habit of making plum cakes for presents at Christmas. Recently in the middle of December, this has also become a business attraction, where plum cakes are arranged in various packages in hotels, restaurants and bakeries. You can see well packed and designed plum cakes around the town. It is now customary that we exchange seasonal greetings and go to relatives and business partners presenting them with plum cakes.

And around October two months ago, a ceremony is held to soak plum into plum cake. This year, I was invited to this ceremony of CGHEarth, the largest hotel group in Kerala. I was happy that the guests also invited me to join the plum mixing where they pour liquor on plum.

The venue was recuperated by the smell of wine and rum and was wrapped in people’s laughter and fun aura.

Now, in the next 2 months, it is the season, where plums will be used as a soft-drink and will appear as plum cakes by December. I’m looking forward to seeing it again this time.

The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is conducted on the Punnamada lake in Alappuzha, in the Indian state of Kerala. This event is conducted on the second Saturday of August every year. The Punnamada is part of the Kerala backwaters. For the people of Kerala, the Boat Race is an event for celebration, marking the beginning of the monsoon season. Unfortunately, this year (in August 2018), Kerala witnessed a once in 100 years of flood and natural calamities caused by torrential rains. The Boat Race event was hence conducted 3 months behind schedule, on the 10th of November, 2018.

IT is such a fantastic sight to see many long and thin boats lined up for the action. Each boat has as many as 100 oarsmen to compete enthusiastically to come out victorious. In recent years, women’s groups are also participating. It really makes us all happy to see women advance to such levels, when this sport was once regarded as an men-only sports.

 

In August, 2018, the location where the race is conducted, was damaged by the flood waters. After the water levels had receded, the deposits were lying around causing bad smell. The general water transport was also avoided for a while, but Kerala has recovered from that flood by now.

People’s kind and compassionate mind, the speed at which things were done, the vitality etc., is the reason for the quick recovery of Kerala, back to normalcy.

Climate wise, Kerala state enters the pleasant season since October. Looking at the vitality and power of the boat race tells us that the the tourism industry that was a bit sluggish earlier, will now tide over the difficult times and come up stronger.