Kerala, the better known and most visited South Indian state, with its coconut fringed beaches, beautiful landscapes and backwaters, sets it apart from its neighbours. A Kerala holiday is perfect for a first time visitor to India and an excellent holiday option for families. The coast is strewn with undeveloped and undiscovered beaches allowing a chance to get away from it all. The slow flowing calm found in the network of lagoons and rivers known as the backwaters is wonderfully relaxing and a visit here offers an insight into a unique way of life. The ramshackle port city of Cochin with its mixing pot of cultures and religions illustrates a fascinating past. The lush green paddy fields of the plains through spindly rubber plantations and blooming coffees plantations up to thick tea estates in the hill side villages of Thekkady and Munnar are well worth a visit. Another fascinating aspect of Kerala is that beneath its relatively westernised surface, lies an ancient world of shamanistic beliefs that are celebrated each year in dramatic and colourful festivals. Kerala’s perfect climate suits its unique blend of culture and scenery and it never fails to entice.