Cochin day tour recommendation

We travelled on Celebrity Constellation over Christmas and New Year and I pre booked day trips with several different tour companies prior to arrival. In Cochin we booked a mini bus and driver and with Just Taxi Holidays and had a fantastic time. We were a group of 7 and had a mini bus that sat about 12 people so plenty of space to spread out. The driver was waiting with our name board when we exited the ship around 9 am - ahead of the ship's tour which didn't depart until 10 am. We enjoyed the hair raising tour to the backwaters which took about 1 1/2 hours. In complete contrast we then had a very relaxed 2 1/2 hour private boat tour around the backwaters which was incredible - a very memorable way to spend Christmas day! We drove back to Cochin via Fort Cochin. All in all a brilliant day at a fraction of the cost Celebrity were charging. I highly recommend this tour. Any questions ask away!

Was it a standard itinerary for cruise ships or did you specify where you wanted to go? And what was the cost please

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We did pay 500 inr for a tuk-tuk tour to Fort Cochin - link to a review of the tour and Cochin details

HW-PYhY5e_s

We did pay 500 inr for a tuk-tuk tour to Fort Cochin - link to a review of the tour and Cochin details

 

HW-PYhY5e_s

Did you use the Tuk Tuk till you went back to the ship?

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Did you use the Tuk Tuk till you went back to the ship?

We did hire the tuk-tuk for the entire tour. Cochin is not that walkable.

Plenty of tuk-tuk at the pier.

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Thank you very much for the video you've posted, Mogens - we'll be there in April and it gives a really good idea of what to expect!

The tour to the backwaters cost around $47 per person. We opted not to have any food on the houseboat. The trip was very similar to the Celebrity trip but we had a small mini bus just for the 7 of us and our own houseboat. I definitely recommend going down to Alleppey rather than just staying in Cochin. It was a great day :)

Celebrity were charging $220 per person for the same trip! There was no way we could pay that much for a day trip so this made it affordable and also more personal.

We are visiting Cochin next April and this topic has given us some ideas. It looks like the houseboat is the thing to do.

Personally I would say it is a great day trip. It was our fist ever time in India and the drive down was really interesting (and at times quite hair raising) - for us it was all part of the experience and we felt we had seen a lot.

The tour to the backwaters cost around $47 per person. We opted not to have any food on the houseboat. The trip was very similar to the Celebrity trip but we had a small mini bus just for the 7 of us and our own houseboat. I definitely recommend going down to Alleppey rather than just staying in Cochin. It was a great day :)

I am interested in the tour you took. Would you mind posting the company you went with?

APOLOGIES...PLEASE DELETE.

The trip was very similar to the Celebrity trip but we had a small mini bus just for the 7 of us and our own houseboat.

Hi kruzgal, glad you enjoyed your tour and you clearly chose the right company to book. We took a chance on Muziris Heritage - day tours, for the "Cochin Backwater tour (with food)" and we were double disappointed. The group was supposed to be max 10 people (as sold on their website), but our bus of 12 was joined together with another bus of 12, once at the houseboats. I won't go further into detail, but there were several reasons why we were not happy. Long story short: the chief executive suggested to refund our tour (as they also pretend to have a "money back guarantee" on their website), but it's been three months now and there has been no refund, after keeping me on the leash and a chain of false promises.

Thanks for your recommendation and we'll definitely keep it in mind when we return to Cochin! ;)(y)

Personally I would say it is a great day trip. It was our fist ever time in India and the drive down was really interesting (and at times quite hair raising) - for us it was all part of the experience and we felt we had seen a lot.

My wife is curious to know what made it hair raising.

Thank you very much for the video you've posted, Mogens - we'll be there in April and it gives a really good idea of what to expect!

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My wife is curious to know what made it hair raising.

 

 

 

 

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I don’t know about Cochin, going there next month. Indian traffic is at its best hair raising. There is so much if it, nobody appears to follow rules, and it is very noisy. However in 7 days of touring India we only saw one accident and that was on a highway linking two major cities. When going out on our own for a couple of hours our guide gave us this advice. The white lines painted on the road are not like a zebra crossing in your country, here they are just a decoration. Do not put any faith in anyone stopping for you.

It is a noisy, dirty amazing country. I am looking forward to going to two ports next month. Go with an open mind, and hang on tight in the bus and/or the tuk tuks.

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My wife is curious to know what made it hair raising.

For us it was the fact that they use a two-lane road as a four-lane road. It felt like they were playing chicken the whole time. Strangely enough, after some time, we got used to it. ;)

For us it was the fact that they use a two-lane road as a four-lane road. It felt like they were playing chicken the whole time. Strangely enough' date=' after some time, we got used to it. ;)[/quote']

 

 

 

I knew things were “different” when our van left the airport and drove down the middle of the two lane road. Not to mention having to stop for the cows on the highway leaving Delhi.

 

 

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We took Muziris Heritage Day tours in Cochin, Goa, and Mumbai and all were great. They were punctual, Small groups, great guides and they covered many sights. I highly recommend this company.

contact details - http://www.tourwithlijo.com

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