Mystical South India – Tamil Nadu and Kerala

Highlights include…

• World famous shore temples of Mahabalipuram
• The ancient and remarkable boulder-strewn landscape of Gingee Fort
• Arunachala, one of the world’s great spiritual power centres
• Tiruvanamalai and locations around Mount Arunachala
• Visit to the famous temple of Thanjavur (Tanjore)
• Tiny French sea-side state of Pondicherry
• The tropical forests of the Western Ghats
• Kerala Backwater cruise
• Ancient city of Cochin
• Emerald green tea plantations
• Exciting cycle rickshaw ride through old Madurai

Take a peek at this gallery from last years two trips

General Summary

An innovative and exciting photographic adventure visits both Tamil Nadu and Kerala. For over two weeks we will be immersed in the vibrantly colourful, spiritual and bustling heart of this mystical sub-continent. South India’s culture like its people is a rich mosaic, vibrant, chaotic, a land of incredible contrasts and paradoxes: a singularly beautiful land offering abundant opportunities for landscape, people and architectural photography; a fantastic challenge to those of us hoping to capture its essence in images. By immersing ourselves in the moment and approaching each day with curiosity and flexibility we will come to understand that India is truly one of the world’s most stunning photography locations; we will no doubt return home with some truly striking adventure travel images. Accompanying us throughout is Martin Sammtleben as the photography tutor, joined by various local experts who will ensure that we are in the right place at the right time for those superb and unusual images. Non-photographer spouses/partners will be welcome.

The Locations

Kerala

A region of South-West India well known for its stunning natural beauty. Bordered by the tropical rain forest of the Western Ghats on the east, and the Arabian Sea on the west, Kerala is covered by lush tropical vegetation, fascinating back-waters, the Arabian Sea, fragrant spice and tea plantations of the Cardamom Hills.

Tamil Nadu

Home to an ancient and little changed Dravidian civilisation, it is less frequented than its more visited neighbour Kerala; a remarkable and intensely rewarding place to explore, the Tamils are a welcoming, curious and friendly people. The coast of the Gulf of Bengal offers long and lovely beaches where traditional fishing aboard catamarans is common, you will find, rice-fields, coconut groves, market garden produce, cotton plantations, sugar cane, tobacco, mangoes and bananas. We were described in a Times travel article as the only operator to run this type of holiday here.

Brief Itinerary

For full details download the PDF dossier

Day 1

Transfer from Chennai International Airport to Mahabalipuram famous for its miles of unspoiled beaches and rock-cut art. Our hotel is beautifully situated right by the beach.

Day 2

Today we explore Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO World heritage site. These sanctuaries, founded by the Pallava kings, were carved out of rock along the Coromandel coast in the 7th and 8th centuries. This remarkable place is popular and we will make good use of the ambient early morning sunrises and the evening light.

Day 3-6

On the first morning we will rise before breakfast to make the most of the early morning quietness and light before driving to our next location via one of India’s largest bird reserves, Vedenthangal, superb bird shots guaranteed!

For the next three days our base in Tiruvanamalai at the foot of Arunachala offers fine opportunities to experience Southern India at its best. The holy mountain of Shiva, Arunachala rises directly for almost 3000ft from the flat plain. During our four days here we will have the opportunity to capture bustling markets; a myriad of colour, the peaceful tranquility of Sri Ramana Ashram at dawn and dusk, women in brightly coloured saris planting rice, orange robed Sadhus, weird fortresses that rise abruptly from the shimmering forested hills, ancient shrines, peacocks, monkeys and hermits caves, small village farming communities hidden away in the hills where life has changed little for thousands of years, bullocks are still used for ploughing the fields and transport. Our local knowledge of this area is unsurpassed, our specialist guide David Godman has lived here for thirty years. We have appeared in a Times travel article as the only operator visiting this area. Our base is the beautiful tranquil Sparsa Eco Resort.

Day 7

This morning we explore the ancient and remarkable boulder-strewn landscape of Gingee Fort a surreal and highly photogenic landscape including a beautifully intact but abandoned Vishnu temple. In the late afternoon we take the hour and a half drive to Pondicherry situated on the Coromandel coast, a restored, attractive, former French colony, exuding a Mediterranean aura with its chic streets, elegant houses, ornamental gardens. There is a charming atmosphere, excellent restaurants with a fine selection of French wine.

Day 8

To Thanjavor (Tanjore) the “Rice bowl of Tamil Nadu”, an area at the confluence of several rivers resulting in an especially lush environment. It is also famous for the Brahadeeswarar Temple constructed more than thousand years ago by the King Rajarajan; an architect’s marvel.

Day 9

Today we have a busy schedule, morning will see us making the short drive to Tiruchirapalli (Trichy) famous for its rock-fort temple, here we will catch the train to Madurai. Our journey in comfortable air conditioned carriages allows us to travel arriving fresh and rested at our destination Madurai, an ancient and prestigious city bursting with remarkable places to visit.

Day 10

Today we will have a guided tour of some of Madurai’s important and iconic sights including the temple and an exciting bicycle rickshaw ride through the old part of the city.

Day 11–12

This morning we drive high into the Western Ghats, and Kerala, a fascinating journey that will take us steadily uphill, through coffee and spice plantations, huge expanses of symmetrical, emerald green tea plantations, past granite domed mountains until to arrive at our hotel in the Cardamom Hills. The photographic opportunities here are diverse and will include several of the highest tea estates in the world where women in colourful saris harvest the tea shoots with deft fingers into large baskets, the planters houses that dot the hillsides, the vegetable, spice and meat markets of Munnar, forest and mountain exploration. The hills are densely forested and the various protected areas support a large number of exotic species of flora and fauna, Rajamala National Park, has half the world’s population of Nilgiri Tahr, a rare endangered species of mountain goat; elephants and tigers also roam the forests here. During our stay in the Ghats we will be accompanied by a local Indian guide who has vast experience in the area and can be relied upon to find us the best and most unusual locations.

Day 13

Leaving the mountains behind we make the fascinating journey through coffee and spice plantations towards the Arabian sea and the world famous Keralan backwaters where we will board our air conditioned converted rice boats to make a memorable journey through the heart of Kerala , palm trees, amazing bird life, rice fields, bustling villages, temples, elephants, a chance to get in really close for some exceptional shots. We will be on the water at both sunset and sunrise.

Day 14–15

After a final morning on our boat we travel to the old seaside city of Cochin where we will spend the last two nights of our trip based in the delightful ‘Secret Garden’. Winding streets crammed with 500 year old Portuguese houses, synagogues, palaces, forts, Chinese fishing nets, spread over a charming cluster of Islands and peninsulas. We will take rickshaws through the narrow bustling streets and we will have the opportunity to witness and photograph Kerala’s ancient temple performance, Kathakali.

Day 16

Departure Guests can choose to book their homeward flight from Cochin or take an early morning flight from Cochin International to Chennai for International connecting flights homeward. If choosing the latter this will be at the guests own cost.

During the holiday, Martin will be offering Lightroom tuition to enable participants to take home some really professional images.

Complete itinerary and full details

This page is only a brief summary. A complete itinerary and full details can be found in our PDF dossier. It is important that you read the full day-to-day description and further information for this holiday before making your booking.

To book contact us by email, phone 00354 5888939 or download a booking form.