Alleppey isn’t much geared towards entertaining children, but if your kids enjoy outdoor activities you’ll find more than enough to keep them busy. Thanks to the abundance of water in the region, there is a well-developed industry for water sports and other kinds of watery adventures. Boat cruising is a particularly great activity that kids and parents alike can enjoy together.

Bird Watching
The entire area around Alleppey is filled with birds, and bird watching is fast becoming a popular activity for visitors. Bring a pair of binoculars, buy a local bird guide and make a game out of trying to identify the birds you spot.

Canoeing
One of the best ways to experience the watery world of the Backwaters is to rent a canoe and paddle along the endless canals and waterways with your family. You will see plenty of wildlife, birds, and the unique riverside life of the locals. Guided tours are available in Alleppey, or you can buy a map and do this activity independently.

Cinemas
A great experience for kids is to take them to see an Indian movie, with movie-watching being a national pastime in India. There are several theatres in Alleppey, including the popular Ralban Santhi cinema where you can see Bollywood’s latest blockbusters.

Nehru Cup Snake Boat Race
If you’re visiting in the middle of August, you won’t want to miss this amazing festival where elaborate boats of all sizes race along lake Vembanand. The lake itself is also a great place to rent a boat or go fishing at any time of the year.

With a nickname like the ‘Venice of the East’, it’s easy to imagine why water plays such a vital role in the cultural life of the residents of Alleppey. This pleasant market town is bordered by the Arabian sea on one side and an endless network of canals and waterways on the other. Visitors will want to take a cruise or two on a traditional houseboat, and the Keralan architecture of Alleppey’s quaint streets is another highlight. If you’re lucky, you’ll be in town during one of the lively festivals that occur throughout the year.

Champakulam Church
Christianity has had a foothold in this part of India since the time of Christ, and this church is one of the oldest in Kerala. Believed to be one of the seven churches built by St Thomas around the 1^st century AD, Champakulam offers the best glimpse of this religion’s influence in the region. 

Chavara Bhavan
To experience another side of spirituality in Alleppey, visit this holy shrine which was once the home of the revered Kuriakose Elias Chavara. Devotees regularly make pilgrimages here to pray, and since it’s only accessible by water, it makes for a unique cultural excursion.

Coir Production
While you’re in this region of India, it’s interesting to visit the coir factories which are unique to this area. Here, coconut husk is woven into rope and coir yarn for use all over the world. Watching the production of this craft makes a nice side attraction from temple tours and visiting nature spots.

Cruising the Backwaters
The highlight of any trip to Alleppey is a cruise along its waterways aboard a traditional Keralan houseboat called a kettuvallam. Cruises are the main tourist activity here, and these livable boats can be rented for short trips or excursions lasting several days. Watching the traditional riverside life of the locals, native wildlife roaming the riverbanks and fishermen at work guarantees a truly memorable experience.

Mohiniattam Dances
Known in English as the ‘dance of the enchantress’, this traditional Keralan dance is one of the few which is performed by women. Dressed in elaborate clothing, the graceful movements and exaggerated facial expressions of the dancers make this a cultural highlight. Most resorts offer Mohiniattam performances as part of their traditional dance and music shows.

Toddy Tapping
Watching dexterous young men climb to the top of coconut palms to tap the trees for their sweet sap is a tradition that goes back centuries. The sap can be drunk right away, but is usually left to ferment for a day or two until it transforms into Alleppey’s local hootch, which is considered by many to be an acquired taste. Visitors can watch trees being taps at several locations in Alleppey.

Vegetarian food is the dominant cuisine around Alleppey, due in large part to the influence of Hinduism, and comes in a bewildering array of dishes. Most of the traditional dishes of southern Indian cooking such as masala dosa are available at restaurants around town.Meat eaters will have a hard time finding much selection, but as Alleppey is a tourist town, there are a handful of places which serve a limited number of meat dishes, mostly made up of chicken and mutton. Your hotel will likely be the best place to find meat dishes, as the majority of restaurants in town cater to vegetarians only.

Local snacks are readily available everywhere you go. Coconut water is a great thirst quencher, as well as a source of energy to keep you going in the heat. Fried banana chips are the main snack in Alleppey, and come in a variety of flavours, from plain salted to spicy and peppered.

Alleppey offers a number of locally-produced goods which are the specialty of the region. Coir carpets and other woven coir products are the highlight for shoppers here. The low prices and high quality make the locals handmade products popular purchases for visitors with some outlets offering shipping services.

Alleppey is also famous for its production of spices such as cardamom, areca nut, pepper and others, and this is a great place to stock up. There is a great selection of fresh fruit and produce in town, but souvenirs aren’t prevalent.

The region around Alleppey is loaded with outdoor activities, nature parks and a healthy wildlife population. With all the water around, boat excursions, fishing, canoeing and other watery sports are the most popular things to do. There are also places to ride horses, watch for birds and go cycling. Your hotel or resort can arrange anything you feel like doing. Otherwise, check out one of the tour outfitters in town.

Bird Watching
If you enjoy bird watching, Alleppey is one of the best places in India to do it. Vembanad lake and the Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary are the prime locations to pull out your binoculars, bird guide book and enjoy the scenery. Migratory birds such as egrets, darters, harrens and Siberian storks all make stops here to add to the myriad local species which have made Alleppey their permanent home.

Boat Cruises
By far the most popular activity to do in Alleppey is to take a cruise on a traditional kettuvallam houseboat. These amazing vessels are made with huge sheets of jackfruit wood without a single nail. There are dozens of different cruises available, from short half-day jaunts to longer, multi-day adventures where you eat and sleep on the boat.

Canoeing
Renting a canoe or kayak and slowly exploring the waterways around Alleppey is an excellent way to get a close look at the birds, wildlife and local residents who live along the rivers.

Cycling
There are a number of interesting cycling tours established in the area around Alleppey. Riding a bike is one of the best ways to see the lush countryside of Kerala at your own pace. Guided tours can be arranged at outfitters in town, or you can simply rent your own bike and go at it alone.