Plan your weekend: Beaches, forts and lighthouses attract tourists to Varkala

The place is popular for its hippie culture with shacks on the cliff serving great seafood and playing global music. Varkala is a calm and quiet hamlet that lies on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram district in Kerala. The place is popular for its hippie culture with shacks on the cliff serving great seafood and playing global music. Varkala has some of the best pristine beaches and the most popular one is the Papanasam Beach (also called Varkala Beach), ten km away from Varkala. It is believed that taking a dip here cleanses away all your sins. ‘Papanasam’ in the local language (Malayalam) means ‘destruction of sins’. The beauty of dusk and dawn can be viewed easily from here and you spot a lot of small shops near the beach. Certain parts of this beach are used by local people to scatter the mortal remains. They believe that by doing so the soul of the deceased will reach heaven.

A 2,000-year-old Janardhanaswamy Temple that stands on the cliff is a famous religious site. An interesting mythology behind the construction of this temple is that it was built by a Pandyan ruler after Lord Brahma forgave a sin committed by him.

The Sivagiri Mutt, founded by the great religious reformer and philosopher Sree Narayana Guru is also close by. The mutt is also popular as the local people organise various programs including cultural shows, seminars, community feasts, public meetings, debates, etc.

Other tourist attractions in Varkala include, Anjengo Fort, Kappil Lake, Varakala tunnel, and the Varkala light house. The nearest railway station is the Varkala Railway Station that is 3 km away and the nearest airport is the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport that is about 50 km away.