Cherai Beach – One of the Best Beaches in Kerala

Description
About Cherai Beach:

Cherai Beach is a beautiful sandy beach located on the Northside of Vypin Island which is part of Kochi city. It is the fourth-best beach in South Kerala after Kovalam, Varkala, and Mararikulam. The most unique thing or importance about Cherai Beach is – this is part of a narrow strip of a long stretch of beach approximately 8 kms starting from Kuzhuppilly beach to Munambam.  One side of this long and narrow beach is the Arabian Sea and the other side is the beautiful backwaters which make it’s again unique. This narrow stretch of beach ends at Munambam where the famous Periyar river ends its journey and joins the Arabian Sea.  Munambam is one of the best photo-stop places for tourists.

If you are on a short holiday to Kochi city and would like to visit a beach for a couple of hours, this is the most suitable and nearby beach.

Why Cherai beach is the best tourist attraction?

  1. One side is Cherai Beach and the other side is backwaters. Most of the resorts have beaches and backwater view. This is not available in any part of Kerala.
  2. It is much less crowded than other beaches like Varkala or Kovalam and gets crowded during holidays and weekends.
  3. Cherai is the 4th best beach in south Kerala after Kovalam, Varkala, and Mararikulam.
  4. The sea bed is not so deep so its safe for swimming.
  5. Cherai is a fisherman village of Kerala. You can get good seafood in Cherai.
  6. Cherai is also famous for its backwaters. While experiencing the beach, you can also hire a country boat for a backwater tour.
  7. Adventure beach activities like scuba diving, surfing, wind board, etc are all available on the beach.
  8. Frequent dolphin sighting available.
Things to Know before Travel Cherai Beach:
  • If you are driving yourself, ensure that you start a little early as the road leading to Cherai is single-lane and narrow with too much local traffic. There is very few parking available so come early to get a parking space.
  • The beach is very safe for those who want to swim. You can walk upto 50 meters into the sea if the weather and waves are normal. Swimming on the beach is not allowed after 18:30 hours.
  • Beach shakers and umbrellas NOT commonly available for hire. These are being provided free of cost of respective resorts for their guests.
  • During season or rush time, all the activities need to be booked in advance in case interested.
  • Monsoon in Kerala starts during the 1st week of Jun till Aug end and the beach is not idle for swimming.
  • Lifeguards and tourist police help available on the beach.
  • Washroom available but NO bathing arrangement available.
  • This beach is not crowded during weekdays. But it will be crowded with local tourists during holidays and weekends.
  • In case your hotel is not nearby, carry your extra towel, changing clothes, etc.
  • If you are coming all the way to spend a full day in Cherai for sunbath or enjoyment, carry your belongings. Note that the beach is very hot except for the months from Nov to Jan.
  • Better to leave the place after sunset as there are no street lights there. It’s a safe place to go. Local people are there to help if the need arises.
  • There are only a few restaurants available on the beach.
Things to do in Cherai Beach:
  1. Neptune water sport.
  2. Puthuvype Lighthouse
  3. Munambam beach
  4. Kuzhupilly Beach
  5. Pallatthankulangara beach
  6. Dolphin sighting
  7. Pallippuram curch
  8. ASVD temple
  9. Lake Poyil
How best you can experience Cherai Beach? 

The best option to experience this beach is to stay overnight in any of the resorts and then spend your time on the beach.  As we mentioned earlier, this beach is idle for all-purpose whether swimming in the sea, adventure activities, or just relaxing.  Since this beach is a favorite for local tourists, it is crowded during local holidays and weekends. If you like to have a peaceful beach for relaxation, it’s always better to go to Kuzhupilly Beach. This is located 5 kms from Cherai Beach towards the Vypin Island ferry jetty.

Best time to visit Cherai Beach:

This beach is open to receive guests during round the year. But if you want to enjoy the beach like to experience any adventure activities or beach activities this beach is not idle during monsoon. Monsoon in Kerala starts from the first week of June and lasts till the end of Aug. During monsoon time, due to high tide and wind, the beach is not idle even for a day visit.  The best time to visit this beach is from Oct till May end.

How do I get to Cherai Beach?cherai beach

How to go to Cherai Beach from Fort Kochi and Kochi city?

fort-kochi

  • Though Cherai beach is in Vypin Island and this is close to Kochi city or Fort Kochi but there is no bridge directly connecting to these islands to the main city.  The only connecting bridge called “Gosree Bridge” is not connecting directly to Vypin, but to Bolgaty island and then Vallarpadam island and finally reach Vypin Island.  Therefore, you can go to Cherai beach either by road or partially by service boat and by road.  Since the service boat takes almost 30-40 minutes, by road s the most suitable option to reach Cherai Beach. Below are the details.
1) Routes for Cherai Beach from Kochi city:

The best option to go to Cherai beach is by road.  You need to come to Bolgaty Island from Kochi city via “goshree bridge”.  From Bolgaty Island, you can choose three different routes to reach Cherai beach.

a) Route No 1 –
  • From Bolgaty Island you need to turn right which goes to Varapuza, Koonammavu, Paravur. You need to turn left from Paravur to reach Cherai beach in 10mins.  This road is a highway, less traffic except for a little bit at Paravur Jn. Total 35 kms and you can reach in 1hr in normal traffic. This is the best route without much traffic except at Kochi MG road, High court Jn and Paravur.
b) Route No 2 –
  • From Bolgaty direct to Vallarpadam Island from there you need to turn right towards Elamkunnapuza, Edavanakadu to Cherai. The road is single and in some places, you need to cross a couple of fish and veg markets which have more traffic jams. This is a total of 33 kms and it may take 1 hour 10 mins.
c) Route No 3 –
  • From Bolgaty direct to Vallarpadam Island from there you need to turn right towards Njarakkal via Elamkunnapuza. After Njarakkal police station, you need to turn left to go to the beach road. This is called the beach road and you can see different beaches on the way. The road is single and narrow but still you can enjoy the ride. You can have a stopover at Kuzhupilly beach as this is much better than Cherai beach. It may take approximately 1 hour 15 mins to reach. This route is not suitable during monsoon and when there is high tide.
2) Routes to Visit Cherai Beach from Fort Kochi:
  • Fort Kochi is an island located very close to Vypin Island but there is NO road directly connecting to the Island.  The best option to visit Cherai Beach from Fort Kochi is to reach Vypin Island first and then proceed to Cherai beach.  Public ferry service commonly called in Kerala as “Jankar” is operating from Fort Kochi Jankar Jetty (Close to Brunton Boatyard hotel) to Vypin island.  The jankar can accommodate a couple of cars, motorcycles, passengers, etc and it takes 5mins to cross to the Island. On reaching Vypin Island, you can go to Cherai either via the market or beach.
How to include Cherai Beach in your Kerala tour itinerary?

cherai-beach

Before including Cherai beach in your Kerala tour itinerary, you should know below important points. 

  1. In case you are visiting Kovalam / Varkala/ Mararikulam beach in your tour itinerary, it’s not necessary to include Cherai Beach.
  2. In case you are coming for a short visit, you can include Cherai overnight stay or a day visit provided your arrival and departure should be from Kochi Airport / Railway station / Bus stand.
  3. This beach is located close to Kochi airport or Kochi City. In case of your arrival and departure at Trivandrum, including Cherai in your itinerary is difficult.
What to Prefer at Cherai Beach – Overnight Stay or Day Visit?

If you are on a south Kerala round trip or short visit, you can experience Cherai beach for a day visit or an overnight stay. South Kerala round trip means your arrival and departure is from Kochi and visiting destinations like Munnar, Thekkady, and Alleppey.  Below are some of the important points so that you can decide whether you need a day visit or an overnight stay.

  1. Cherai beach is almost one hr drive from Airport or Kochi city. Therefore, after the short tour, in case you are going back by an evening or late evening flight, you can just visit Cherai and departure back.
  2. Cherai is located close to Alleppey, Kumarakom, and Munnar. It’s very easy to visit this place if you are coming for a short south Kerala trip covering Munnar and Alleppey.
  3. Since it’s just 35 kms and one hr drive from Kochi city, if you are coming to Kochi for a short visit, you can stay in any resorts at the Cherai beach and you can plan a visit to Kochi city.
  4. It’s advisable to include or visit Cherai either while starting the trip or ending the trip.
Faq

Cherai is a highly popular beach in Kochi, Kerala, its known for being one of the cleanest beaches in Kerala.

Yes, Cherai Beach is generally safe for swimming.

Cherai Beach stretches for 10 km (6.2 mi) and sometimes you can spot dolphins. It's also significant in Kerala's history as the birthplace of two important political figures: Mathai Manjooran and Sahodaran Ayyappan.

How to Reach

By Airport:

Kochi (Cochin) airport is 45 kms away from Cherai Beach. The easiest way to reach Cherai is by a local taxi. There is NO direct local bus service from the airport to Cherai.

By Railway Station or Bus Stand:

Aluva railway station or bus stand is the nearest and most suitable point of arrival. The easiest and cheapest way to reach is by three-wheeler auto.  There is a direct bus service from the Aluva bus stand to Cherai Beach.

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