Tourist Attractions in Kanyakumari District

While While Kanyakumari town has tourist attractions of its own, the district has many more, from centuries-old historic and religious sites to scenic places. The district is also rich in flora and fauna. A unique feature of Kanyakumari district is that it has all kinds of natural eco-systems. Thus, one can see beaches, mountain valleys, evergreen forests in the deep interior, rubber and clove plantations on the highlands, etc. - all in a 50 km radius of Nagercoil, the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari District. Nagercoil is 22 km from Kanyakumari town.

The following are some of the many popular tourist attractions around Kanyakumari-

• Vattakottai Fort (literally, "circular fort") is an 18th-century fort overlooking the sea, located six kilometers from Kanyakumari. The small historic fort also gives an enchanting view of the sea around and the hills on the other side.
  
• Suchindram has the Sthanumalayan temple with a repository of art treasures belonging to several kingdoms. The temple is famous for its ninth-century inscriptions, musical columns, and 6-meter-tall statue of the monkey god Hanuman. The main deity in the form of a shivlinga represents Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma, the trinity of the Hindu pantheon.
• The Panchappathi, five primary sacred places of Ayyavazhi are all situated within a twenty-kilometer radius of Kanyakumari. It also includes the Swamithope Pathi, a famous temple in Tamilnadu, situated ten kilometers to the northwest. It is not structurally massive temple, but is known for its non-idolatry system of worship.
  
• Nagercoil has the St. Francis Xavier's church at Kottar, where the missionary, St. Francis Xavier resided when he did his missionary work in the nearby areas. In Nagercoil, there is also the Nagaraja Temple, and shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva and Vishnu. The entrance to this temple is reminiscent of the Chinese architecture of a Buddhist Vihar.
  
• Padmanabhapuram Palace is a large 17th century palace of the Travancore kings, made almost entirely of wood - the only one of its kind in India. Udayagiri Fort, built by King Marthanda Varma, has a foundry for casting guns. It is also the tomb-site of the king's trusted European general Captain De Lennoy. Udayagiri Fort is now a bio-diversity park, administered by the Department of Forests, Kanyakumari Division.
• Mathur Hanging Trough, near Thiruvattar in the District, is an aqueduct that carries irrigation water through a canal between two hills. The canal itself goes above a small river. Built on very high pillars, is one of the biggest aqueducts, both in height and length, in Asia. The view from the middle of the aqueduct of the surrounding hills and vegetation, and the small river flowing down below, is breathtaking.
• 'Baywatch' (Water Amusement-park), and Wax museum(which is the only one of its kind in India) are the newest attractions, located within 2 km from Kanyakumari.
  
• Chitharal Jain Monuments (about 35 km near Marthandam), impressive rock shelters and idols dated 9-11th Century.
• Thirunandikkara temple (about 20 km), rock-cut cave temple of Pallava art can be traced back to seventh and eighth century AD.
  
• Thengapattinam Beach. This beach is located on the west coast near Painkulam village in Vilancode Taluk. It is a fine beach adorned with coconut groves. It is also a magnificent estuary where the river meets the sea. Riding in a catamaran (small boat) in the river can be a pleasant experience which can be arranged through local fishermen. It is 35 km from Nagercoil, 12 km from Kuzhithurai and 54 km from Kanyakumari.
  
• Olakaruvi waterfalls, about 20 km from Nagercoil is on the middle of a hill and requires an hour's trek by foot from the base of the hill (better to go in a group, as it is a forested area)
• Keeriparai - for nature-lovers and adventurers - pristine and beautiful, places like Keeriparai haven’t been publicized much by the Forest Department for various reasons - Keeriparai hills (30 km from Nagercoil) and the nearby Kalikesam are good picnic spots - one can enjoy water rushing through small mountain streams - with pebbles and ferns all around. There are also a few small waterfalls in this area - the popular one being Vattaparai Falls. Maramalai, which is further up in the hills of Keeriparai is famous for Wild elephants.
  
• Kodhayar (called Kodhayar Lower Camp) – is about 60 km and takes travellers through some exciting motorable hill roads with some thrilling 'hair-pin bends' and U-turns - Kodhayar forests are famous for bisons. Access to some areas need prior permission from the Forest Department.
• Pechiparai Reservoir, about 30 km from the town,and also Perunchani and Chittar dams are a must-see for the nature-lover (with clouds touching the top of the hills around the dams on a misty day !).
• Thiruparrapu Falls, is a waterfall near Thiruparrapu. There is an ancient temple near the falls, which is popular among the locals and Keralites.
• Muttom, a coastal village, is another popular place with tourists. The terrain in this village and its surroundings is hilly and from a height one can have an idyllic view of the place, with a Portugese style church standing in the middle of the village. The beach-area is somewhat rocky. There is also a 100-year old lighthouse. The lighthouse, though near the sea, is situated on a land mass some 105 feet above sea level. Another attractive feature of this area, is a ravine-like area with casurina trees near the seaside. This place with very popular with Tamil and Keralite film-makers, especially Tamil film director Bharathiraja.

Tourist Information

The state-owned Poompuhar Shipping Corporation runs ferry services between the town and the Vivekanda Rock Memorial and Thiruvalluvar statue, situated on rocky islets off the coast.

Kanyakumari is directly connected by rail with almost all metropolitan cities in India.

Nearest Airport is Trivandrum International Airport, 90 km away from Kanyakumari Town and 70 km from Nagercoil.