Places of worship in Kottayam
- 01
Kottayam Cheriapally (St Mary's Orthodox Church)
A small Malankara Orthodox church built in 1579 on the Kumarakom road, known for its restored wall paintings and laterite walls.
- Time needed
- 30 to 45 minutes
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Morning; mid-August and mid-January are festival periods, so expect crowds then
- Tickets
- No ticket in the ordinary sense; it is a working church. Dress modestly, remove shoes, and ask before taking photographs inside. The Holy Girdle relic is shown to the public only on specific days in August, so check locally if that is your reason for going.
Read the Kottayam Cheriapally (St Mary's Orthodox Church) guide →
- 02
Kottayam Valiyapally (St Mary's Knanaya Church)
The 1550 Knanaya church at Thazhathangady, known for its granite crosses with Pahlavi inscriptions and for altar and ceiling paintings.
- Time needed
- 30 to 45 minutes
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Morning; the annual feast in April brings crowds
- Tickets
- No ticket; it is a working parish church. Dress modestly, remove shoes, and ask before photographing the altar or crosses. Check service times so you do not walk in during worship.
Read the Kottayam Valiyapally (St Mary's Knanaya Church) guide →
- 03
St Joseph's Monastery, Mannanam
A hilltop Syro-Malabar Catholic church and monastery in Mannanam, where St Kuriakose Elias Chavara is buried and where a press that produced an early Malayalam newspaper once stood.
- Time needed
- 1 to 1.5 hours
- Walking
- Moderate
- Best time
- Weekday mornings; pilgrim feast days are busy
- Tickets
- No ticket; it is a pilgrimage church. Dress modestly, observe silence in the church and tomb, and check Mass timings. Ask before photographing the tomb.
- 04
Thazhathangady Juma Masjid
A timber-carved mosque beside the Meenachil River, described as one of India's oldest, with a single-stone ablution tank and a courtyard sundial.
- Time needed
- 30 to 45 minutes
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Morning; avoid Friday midday prayers unless attending
- Tickets
- No ticket; this is a working mosque. Non-Muslim access depends on the committee and prayer times, so ask at the gate. Women were first admitted in 2019 on days and in attire set by the committee; check current rules. Dress modestly.
Experiences in Kottayam
- 05
Aruvikkuzhi Waterfall
A cascade among rubber plantations east of Kottayam, with a small church overlooking the falls and a short walk down to the water.
- Time needed
- 1.5 to 2 hours
- Walking
- Moderate
- Best time
- June to November, when the stream flows; dry in summer
- Tickets
- I found a very small entry fee quoted by one source and no confirmed current figure; check at the gate. Do not swim or climb the rocks in the rains.
- 06
Rubber Plantation Country
Kottayam leads Kerala in rubber, and the Rubber Board is headquartered here; the landscape of tapped trees outside town is the clearest way to see it.
- Time needed
- 1 to 2 hours
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Early morning, when tapping is under way; dry months for easier driving
- Tickets
- No standard ticket. Estates are private, so ask permission. The Rubber Research Institute of India is at Puthuppally about eight km from town; I could not verify visitor access, so check first.
Landmarks in Kottayam
- 07
CMS College
Kerala's first Western-style college, founded in 1817 by the Church Missionary Society, on a wooded hillock above the town.
- Time needed
- 30 to 60 minutes
- Walking
- Moderate
- Best time
- Weekday morning during term; avoid exam periods
- Tickets
- No ticket; it is a working college. Ask at the office on arrival and check any rules about entry and photographs.
- 08
Old Seminary (Orthodox Theological Seminary)
The Pazhaya Seminary of 1815, a teak naalukettu building where Malayalam printing, English education and the Bible translation have deep roots in Kottayam.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes to 1 hour
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Morning on a working day; ask about visiting hours
- Tickets
- No standard ticket is published that I could verify; this is a working institution. Contact the seminary or check ots.edu.in for visiting hours and rules before going, and dress modestly.
Read the Old Seminary (Orthodox Theological Seminary) guide →
Temples in Kottayam
- 09
Ettumanoor Mahadeva Temple
An old Shiva temple about 12 km from Kottayam, known for Dravidian-style murals, a fortress-like wall and a festival in which golden elephant figures are displayed.
- Time needed
- 1 to 1.5 hours
- Walking
- Moderate
- Best time
- Early morning outside festival time; festival is in February or March
- Tickets
- Entry rules at this temple are usually for Hindus; confirm current rules and the dress code with the temple or Devaswom authorities. Photography inside is typically not allowed. Check festival dates before travelling.
- 10
Thirunakkara Mahadeva Temple
The Shiva temple at the centre of old Kottayam, believed to date from the 16th century, with a ten-day annual festival that ends in an aaraattu procession.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes to 1 hour
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Early morning or around the evening lamp-lighting; festival season for spectacle, off-festival days for quiet
- Tickets
- Entry is usually restricted to Hindus at most Kerala temples of this type, and a traditional dress code (mundu or saree/long skirt) normally applies; confirm current rules with the temple or Travancore Devaswom Board before going. Photography inside is generally not allowed. Check festival dates locally.
Culture in Kottayam
- 11
Kottayam's Publishing Heritage (Printing and Book Trail)
Kottayam is the base of Malayalam publishing, from the 1821 C.M.S. Press to the writers' cooperative of 1945 and DC Books today.
- Time needed
- 2 to 3 hours
- Walking
- Easy
- Best time
- Weekday daytime, when shops and offices are open
- Tickets
- No single ticket. Bookshops are open to browse; offices and presses may not admit visitors, so ask first. Confirm any museum or gallery hours before going.
Read the Kottayam's Publishing Heritage (Printing and Book Trail) guide →
