Kerala

Kerala is a narrow green strip between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats — a land of coconut palms, lagoons and spice plantations. Fort Kochi offers old lanes, spice warehouses, galleries and the Chinese fishing nets on the shore, and in the evening performances of Kathakali, the classical dance-drama of vivid make-up and costume.

Around Kumarakom stretch the waters of Vembanad Lake and a maze of backwaters, where traditional wooden houseboats drift slowly past rice fields and abundant birdlife. Ayurveda lives on here as an age-old spa tradition of herbal oils and massage. The best time is roughly November to March; in the monsoon the landscape turns especially lush and green.