Private Trip

South India Active Expedition

South India Active Luxury Tours

Type
Private

X
Scheduled
The right number of like-minded travellers to make new friends.
Private
Your dates. Your group. Our expertly-designed itinerary.
Custom
Tailored to your interests, a bespoke travel experience.
Support
Daytime Guided

X
Self-Guided
Combines the hallmarks of any B&R itinerary (excellent hotels and beautiful routes) with the freedom of pacing each day exactly the way you like.
Daytime Guided
Throughout the day, a knowledgeable local guide provides insider access and expert tips. At night, you can explore and dine on your own.
24/7 Guided
Our B&R guides are with you throughout, anticipating needs, translating languages, providing advice and—above all—facilitating fun.
Hotels
Signature

X
Signature
We use premium hotels that are unique expressions of the region. Often they’ve had a previous life as a monastery or a castle, but in every case they offer an exceptionally comfortable stay.
Bistro
These are stylish 4-star properties that offer a casual and comfortable stay. Often without a 24-hour concierge or room service, they tend to be smaller family-run hotels that are perfect for the region.
Level
Recreational

X
Occasional
“I can’t say I really ‘work out,’ but I’m in good shape and am relatively active.”
Recreational
“I enjoy a good walk or ride, and feel comfortable while on the move.”
Enthusiast
“I get moving at least once a week, and don’t mind a little sweat.”
Avid
“I get moving a few times per week and enjoy some exertion.”
Expert
“I want to feel invigorated each day and going hard is how I like to do that.”
Click here for full details on each activity level »

The soothing embrace of India's south

Southern India is truly distinctive from the rest of the country. Pillowy green hill stations are laid out like patchwork quilts, bristling with temples and ashrams. Compared to the hustle and bustle of the North, the pace is slow and the surroundings are tranquil—a perfect recipe for relaxing! The cuisine—subtle yet fiery—is influenced by the sea, replacing the North’s filling meat dishes. On your journey, you’ll experience the grand temples of Madurai, the warm hospitality South India is so famous for and the soothing influences of Kerala.

Trip designed by Travel Expert Karen MacRae

View Karen’s Profile

TRIP DETAILS

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Based on 4 ppl double occupancy
Request your date for exact pricing 17 Days / 16 Nights
Bangalore to Cochin request a
DETAILED ITINERARY

PHOTO & VIDEO GALLERY

How do you want to travel?

Go Private Go Bespoke

South India Active Expedition

Ready-to-Book private tours are designed to be enjoyed off-the-rack, but there is room for minor adjustments to fit the trip to your needs. If the gap is too great, then we’d be happy to tailor-make you a Bespoke trip from scratch. Simply tell us a few details about your group and select your preferred date. One of our Trip Designers will spring into action, confirming the details or exploring alternatives, over the next 48 hours.

Best Time to Visit

January	April	July	October
February	May	August	November
March	June	September	December

Request Your Date

Have a custom trip designed exactly to your interests. Like a tailor making a bespoke suit, it will fit you perfectly.

Our Bespoke trip designers are a talented bunch who can craft unforgettable experiences for your specific group—and working within your needs and budget.

Get in touch with a Trip Designer to begin planning your perfect vacation.

REQUEST A QUOTE

Day by Day

Welcome to the Garden City of India! From the airport in Bangalore, a private car will take you to your hotel.

Today’s Pete City Walk will be a feast for the eyes as you take in all of Bangalore’s highlights. Discover both new and old areas of the city, with the former offering communities of professionals buzzing with energy and the latter comprised of crisscrossing narrow lanes and century-old temples tucked away behind posters of Kannada films.

After a delicious breakfast you'll drive to Mysore. Options for the afternoon include strolling around art galleries, visiting the palace or walking through one of Mysore’s famous gardens.

You'll walk through Mysore’s amazing market with a local historical expert. Lunch will be at Hitananjali Farm with a gregarious family. Not only will you learn cooking secrets from these excellent chefs, but they are also a goldmine of information about Coorg history.

Spot tigers, panthers, jackal, mouse deer and chital as you spend the day on safari in the Bandipur National Park.

This morning will see a jeep safari. This afternoon you'll have time to relax before heading out for another night safari to catch glimpses of tigers.

Today you'll journey to the beautiful hill station of Ooty in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. From here you'll visit India's oldest and largest botanical garden.

Today you'll venture to Coonoor, where you will visit a green tea plantation for a tasting session and glorious lunch. To get back to Ooty, you'll ride the famous toy train. Toot toot!

After checking into your hotel in Pollachi, you can either visit the market or check out some of the fabulous colourful temples that dot the region.

After journeying to Madurai, you'll participate in the evening bed ceremony at the Meenakshi Temple, where you’ll witness the Brahmin priests remove Shiva from his sanctum and parade him around the temple.

Enjoy a daytime visit to the Minakshi Temple and spend the afternoon browsing the markets that surround it.

Enjoy a stunningly scenic drive to Thekkady. Once you have settled into your oasis-like hotel, you'll check out a kalaripayattu show and see what is considered to be one of the oldest fighting systems in existence.

Drive to Kumarakom to begin your two-night cruise through the magical canals of backwater Kerala. After boarding, your cruise will set sail along the main waterway of Vembanad Lake entering the Alleppey Canal. Lunch will be on board with a traditional cultural performance.

This morning observe the rich life along these water highways while passing through one of the few areas in the world where farming is done below sea level. Later you’ll have the opportunity to navigate the narrower sections of the backwaters in a traditional rice barge.

Wave goodbye to your floating hotel as you journey to Cochin, stopping along the way to meet Mr. and Mrs. John. Mrs. John, widely known as the “Keeper of Alleppy’s History." Mrs. John will take you on a walking tour sharing her personal memories and extensive knowledge of the area’s history.

Spend the morning exploring the Mattancherri area and its jumble of antique and spice shops. After lunch at the Grand Hotel, famous for its Kerala fish curry and brown rice, discover the Heritage Zone and its many art galleries exhibiting local talent, small cafés, bookshops and boutiques. Enjoy a celebratory final dinner before heading out to watch a Kathakali (story-play) performance.

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Hotels

Oberoi, Bangalore

Nestled in lush, tropical grounds and equipped with the latest in technology, The Oberoi, Bengaluru reflects and harmonises the dual personalities of the Garden City and major IT hub. The hotel is located in the city centre and is built around the 120- year old rain tree that sits at its centre—the jewel of the hotel’s vast, exquisite gardens. View hotel website »

Windflower Resort, Mysore

Rewind to a land where the body and soul are still honoured, where inspired art and architecture echo vibrations of a time that stands still and proud. Mysore is home to kings and warriors and is named after the demon Mahishasura, it was the seat of Wodeyar and Vijayanagara dynasties. View hotel website »

The Serai, Bandipur

Overlooking the Nilgiris Mountain, The Serai is built seamlessly into the forests. The Serai reserves half of their land for the wild and houses a spa, gym and an outdoor pool. The Serai is sprawls across 18 acres of land with trees growing abundantly, and leaf-imprinted abound. View hotel website »

The Taj Savoy, Ooty

Ensconced high on a rising hill, the Savoy Hotel sprawls over six acres of landscaped gardens, offering colonial style cottages that were built between 1834 and 1865. Colourful flowerbeds merge to form a multi-coloured quilt around the cottages, adding to their gentle refinement and old English charm. A quiet retreat, the Savoy Hotel offers a little pocket of paradise. View hotel website »

The Banyan Tree Farm Stay, Pollachi

The Banyan Tree Farm Stay is remotely located at the foothills of Western Ghats. Explore the deep dense hinterland of South India at a farm-stay that keeps you as close to nature as possible. We love it for its untouched rural surroundings. View hotel website »

Heritage, Madurai

Spacious, airy rooms with detailed sitting areas, luxurious bedrooms and unbelievably vast bathrooms, all decorated with understated elegance. Cleverly transformed light fittings delight you at every turn: a riveting piece that once was a lantern; another, a carriage light; an old diya in new avatar, and the piece de resistance: a sun deck in each villa, that opens out into your own private plunge pool. View hotel website »

Spice Village, Thekkady

Curling around a misty ridge 609.6 m (2,000 ft) high in the Periyar vastness, we found a ranger's home surrounded by fruit trees, rare herbs and an abundance of flowering plants. View hotel website »

Oberoi Vrinda, Alleppey

The Oberoi Motor Vessel Vrinda is an exclusive Backwater Vessel with eight tastefully appointed Deluxe Cabins, all with king size beds and large picture windows overlooking the lake. Wake up to the backwaters almost at level with your view and feel the calmness while the world floats by. The Cabins are elegantly designed with timber flooring. Each has its own private and well-appointed bathroom with shower. View hotel website »

Malabar House, Fort Cochin

In the heart of historical Fort Cochin, this boutique heritage hotel is ideally located for sightseeing and shopping. Featuring 17 unique rooms and suites, The Malabar House seamlessly combines tradition and contemporary design, while tradition finds itself at a crossroads with innovation at the hotel’s gourmet restaurant—one of the finest seafood restaurants in the South. View hotel website »

Read about hotels

Travelers stay in small luxury properties, like the Relais & Châteaux Malabar House in Fort Cochin, and bike 50 to 60 km a day, past coconut and banana trees along the Arabian Sea and through tea and cardamom plantations. Riders go through the Western Ghats and along Vembanad Lake, where they spend the night in a private houseboat and visit local homes to learn about skills like the art of mat weaving.

The New York Times

We never wanted to be the biggest travel company in the world, just the best.
— George Butterfield

Consistently voted one of the World's Best Tour Operators in Travel + Leisure magazine's annual reader survey.

Travelling with B&R is what being alive all about. It’s action packed and incredibly invigorating with so many personal and group highlights that it’s hard to single out just one.

— Andrew Crowe

Activity Level What’s Included Gear Extend Your Trip

Recreational

This trip is appropriate for people who enjoy a good walk and feel comfortable while on the move.

The Traveller

“I enjoy going for a good walk or ride and can even handle an incline or two.”

The Terrain

Relatively flat but will include inclines and the occasional climb or two.

What’s included? Everything you need. Plus everything you’d
want. Plus a few things you never knew you wanted ‘til you got them.

In a word: everything. In ninety words? Signature B&R guides; local experts; unique, unforgettable biking and walking routes; private tours; authentic local cuisine; lessons and demonstrations; local artisanal wines; wine tastings; all victuals and libations; all the endorphins you can handle; new insight; interesting, fun and like-minded travel companions; a feeling of total freedom. In short: an extraordinary, hassle-free journey of discovery.

All hotel accommodation
Meals as indicated
Services of B&R-trained local guide
Water bottle
All special events and private tours
All transportation from rendezvous to drop-off
Internal flights (business where available)

The Bikes

You can’t enjoy a great biking trip without a really great bike. On this trip, we’ll use well-tuned, high-quality, local bikes that provide a good fit to your size and weight.

Sometimes your B&R trip simply isn’t long enough! Extend your stay for the best vacation possible. If you wish to spend a few days in region either before or after your official B&R trip, and need assistance making those plans, your B&R Travel Advisor can help. We can create an independent travel experience to fit your needs—and if you desire, arrange for a local guide.

We craft extraordinary experiences, tailor made to meet
your every need, with every stitch of every day crafted
just the way you want it. Learn more about Bespoke