The next day we got up early and took the taxi to Alleppey (Alappuzha). Historically known as Alappuzha, Alleppey rose to prominence in the late 18th century under the vision of Raja Kesavadas, the Diwan of Travancore, who transformed a secluded coastal strip into a world-class commercial port. Strategically engineered with a network of canals to link the inland backwaters to the Arabian Sea, the town became a thriving trade hub for coir, ginger, and spices, earning it the nickname “Venice of the East” from Lord Curzon in the early 20th century. While its importance as a deep-sea port eventually waned, its sophisticated aquatic infrastructure survived, allowing Alleppey to transition from a merchant stronghold into the premier gateway for Kerala’s backwater tourism and its iconic houseboat heritage.
The modern era of houseboat tourism in Alleppey was pioneered in November 1991, when the first traditional cargo barge was officially converted into a recreational “floating hotel” to save the dying craft from obsolescence. As modern roads and the national highway system replaced the need for water-based freight in the mid-20th century, these massive 100-foot vessels—which could once carry up to 30 tons of rice—were reimagined by local entrepreneurs who added bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, and kitchens while preserving the iconic “no-nail” vaulted bamboo roofs. Today, this industry supports over 1,200 boats and thousands of local families, transforming a functional relic of the spice trade into a global symbol of slow travel and architectural heritage that defines the Kerala experience.
We had rented a two bedroom houseboat for a one night trip along along the waterways and shortly after reaching the docking point, we found our houseboat and were welcomed on board with a fresh coconut drink and we started on our journey.
These houseboats are fully self contained and often have a service crew of 2-3 people to take care of you and one of the highlights of these houseboats is the food which can be a rather eloborate spread for both lunch , dinner and breakfast the next day
Towards the evening, the boat owner asked if we wanted to take a smaller boat along the smaller canals which cannot be traversed by the bigger houseboats. After some discussions we agreed and we were handed over to a smaller boat which took us along some very scenic canals
After a short but very enjoyable ride, we returned to the houseboat where we had dinner and then retired for the night. The next morning we got up a beautiful sunrise and a good breakfast and post that returned to the main dock where we met our taxi driver to go to our next stop which was a resort owned by my old collegemate
