Kovalam means "coconut grove," after the coconut trees which are common there.
History
Kovalam first received attention when the Regent Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore constructed her beach resort, Halcyon Castle, here towards the end of the 1920s. Thereafter the place was brought to the public eye by her nephew the Maharaja of Travancore.[2] The European guests of the then Travancore kingdom discovered the potentiality of Kovalam beach as a tourist destination in the 1930s. In the early 1970s many hippies came on their way to Ceylon in the Hippie Trail, beginning the transformation of a casual fishing village of Kerala into a significant tourist destination.[3]
Kovalam has three beaches separated by rocky outcroppings in its 17 km coastline, the three together form the crescent of the Kovalam beach.[4]
Lighthouse Beach
The southernmost beach, the Lighthouse Beach, is the one most frequented by tourists. It got its name due to the old Vizhinjam Lighthouse located on top of the Kurumkal hillock, 35 metres high. The lighthouse is built using stones, is colored in red and white bands and stands at a height of 118 feet (36 m).[5][6]
Hawah Beach
Eve’s Beach, more commonly known as Hawa Beach, ranks second, in the early day, is a beehive of activities with fishermen setting out for sea. It consists of a high rock promontory and a bay.
Samudra Beach
A large promontory separates this part from the southern side. The local fishermen ply their trade on this part.
Detour past Kovalam junction to land on Samudra Beach which is to the north of Ashoka Beach. One has the option to walk along the sea-wall too, where the sea can be sighted above the rocks.
Shallow waters stretching for hundreds of metres are ideal for swimming. The beaches have steep palm covered headlands and are lined with shops that offer a variety of goods and services.[7]
Evening time view of the beach
Places to visit
Karamana River - Karamana River originates from the southern part of Sahyadri Range. The river predominantly flows through an outskirt region of Kovalam called Karmana, hence the nomenclature.
Vellayani Lake
Halcyon Castle
Kovalam Art Gallery
Valiyathura Pier
Neyyar Dam
Aruvikkara Dam
Thiruvallam Parasurama Temple
Vizhinjam Rock Cut Cave Temple
Kovalam lighthouse evening view
Tourist facilities
There are a large number of beach resorts in and around Kovalam.[citation needed] The sea port of Vizhinjam is about 3 km away and famous for its special varieties of fish, old Hindu temples, churches and a mosque.[citation needed] The Proposed International Trans shipment Terminal at Vizhinjam is also close to Kovalam.[citation needed]
Kovalam was among the most prominent tourist spots in India during the hippy era.[citation needed] It still has a high status among tourists, who arrive mostly from Europe and Israel.[citation needed] Kovalam is finding a new significance in the light of several Ayurvedic salons, and recuperation and regeneration resorts which provide a wide variety of Ayurvedic treatments for tourists.[8]
kovalam, region, city, trivandrum, around, southwest, city, center, whose, beaches, tourist, destination, suburb, beach, trivandrumshow, keralashow, indiacoordinates, 4004, 9787, 4004, 9787, coordinates, 4004, 9787, 4004, 9787countryindiastatekeraladistrictthi. Kovalam is a region in the city of Trivandrum around 13 km southwest of the city center whose beaches are a tourist destination 1 KovalamSuburbKovalam beach TrivandrumKovalamShow map of KeralaKovalamShow map of IndiaCoordinates 8 24 01 N 76 58 43 E 8 4004 N 76 9787 E 8 4004 76 9787 Coordinates 8 24 01 N 76 58 43 E 8 4004 N 76 9787 E 8 4004 76 9787CountryIndiaStateKeralaDistrictThiruvananthapuram districtGovernment TypeMunicipal Corporation BodyCorporation of TrivandrumLanguages OfficialMalayalam EnglishTime zoneUTC 5 30 IST View of Kovalum from Light House Hawa Beach Kovalam Palm grove in Kovalam Boat Houses of Kovalam Contents 1 Etymology 2 History 3 Geography 3 1 Beaches 3 2 Places to visit 3 3 Tourist facilities 3 4 Transport 4 Politics 5 Gallery 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksEtymology EditKovalam means coconut grove after the coconut trees which are common there History EditKovalam first received attention when the Regent Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore constructed her beach resort Halcyon Castle here towards the end of the 1920s Thereafter the place was brought to the public eye by her nephew the Maharaja of Travancore 2 The European guests of the then Travancore kingdom discovered the potentiality of Kovalam beach as a tourist destination in the 1930s In the early 1970s many hippies came on their way to Ceylon in the Hippie Trail beginning the transformation of a casual fishing village of Kerala into a significant tourist destination 3 Geography EditBeaches Edit This section contains content that is written like an advertisement Please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view March 2019 Learn how and when to remove this template message Kovalam has three beaches separated by rocky outcroppings in its 17 km coastline the three together form the crescent of the Kovalam beach 4 Lighthouse BeachThe southernmost beach the Lighthouse Beach is the one most frequented by tourists It got its name due to the old Vizhinjam Lighthouse located on top of the Kurumkal hillock 35 metres high The lighthouse is built using stones is colored in red and white bands and stands at a height of 118 feet 36 m 5 6 Hawah BeachEve s Beach more commonly known as Hawa Beach ranks second in the early day is a beehive of activities with fishermen setting out for sea It consists of a high rock promontory and a bay Samudra BeachA large promontory separates this part from the southern side The local fishermen ply their trade on this part Detour past Kovalam junction to land on Samudra Beach which is to the north of Ashoka Beach One has the option to walk along the sea wall too where the sea can be sighted above the rocks Shallow waters stretching for hundreds of metres are ideal for swimming The beaches have steep palm covered headlands and are lined with shops that offer a variety of goods and services 7 Evening time view of the beach Places to visit Edit Karamana River Karamana River originates from the southern part of Sahyadri Range The river predominantly flows through an outskirt region of Kovalam called Karmana hence the nomenclature Vellayani Lake Halcyon Castle Kovalam Art Gallery Valiyathura Pier Neyyar Dam Aruvikkara Dam Thiruvallam Parasurama Temple Vizhinjam Rock Cut Cave Temple Kovalam lighthouse evening view Tourist facilities Edit There are a large number of beach resorts in and around Kovalam citation needed The sea port of Vizhinjam is about 3 km away and famous for its special varieties of fish old Hindu temples churches and a mosque citation needed The Proposed International Trans shipment Terminal at Vizhinjam is also close to Kovalam citation needed Kovalam was among the most prominent tourist spots in India during the hippy era citation needed It still has a high status among tourists who arrive mostly from Europe and Israel citation needed Kovalam is finding a new significance in the light of several Ayurvedic salons and recuperation and regeneration resorts which provide a wide variety of Ayurvedic treatments for tourists 8 Kovalam Beach Resort by Charles Correa One of the first hotels to open there was the Kovalam Beach Resort which was designed by Charles Correa from 1969 74 9 10 Transport Edit The nearest train station is Thiruvananthapuram Central railway station about 16 km 9 94 mi away The nearest airport is Trivandrum International Airport about 10 km 6 21 mi away Politics EditKovalam assembly constituency is part of Trivandrum Lok Sabha constituency 11 In 2016 Kerala Assembly elections M Vincent of the Indian National Congress defeated incumbent Jameela Prakasham by over 2 500 votes 12 Gallery Edit Kovalam Light House Kovalam Light House beach Lighthouse beach Hawwah beach Eves beach Samudra beach Kovalam beach view from lighthouse Kovalam Beach View from lighthouse other side Kovalam beach with Leela Kovalam in the background Fishermen and bystanders bringing a fishing boat ashore on Kovalam Lighthouse beach May 2002 See also EditA few other beaches in Kerala Kollam Beach Varkala Beach Shankumugham BeachReferences Edit Kovalam KTDC Archived from the original on 21 September 2012 Retrieved 31 August 2018 Paradise of South India Kovalam kovalam com Archived from the original on 11 October 2007 Retrieved 7 January 2008 Kovalam kovalam hotels com Retrieved 7 January 2008 Kovalam video travel trends360 wordpress com Retrieved 7 January 2016 Kovalam Travel Guide Archived 2015 02 22 at the Wayback Machine kovalam org kovalam org Archived from the original on 4 January 2014 Retrieved 6 November 2013 Ayub Akber ed Kerala Maps amp More 2006 edition 2007 reprint p 97 Stark World Publishing Bangalore ISBN 81 902505 2 3 Ayurveda Archived 15 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine Ayurveda in Kovalam Kovalam Beach Resort by Charles Correa Open to sky space Approach 16 January 2021 Kovalam Beach Resort 13 March 2022 Assembly Constituencies Corresponding Districts and Parliamentary Constituencies PDF Report Election Commission of India Archived from the original PDF on 4 March 2009 Retrieved 5 August 2016 Election trends Retrieved 5 August 2016 External links Edit Kovalam travel guide from Wikivoyage Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kovalam Kovalam at Wikipedia s sister projects Definitions from Wiktionary Media from Commons News from Wikinews Quotations from Wikiquote Texts from Wikisource Textbooks from Wikibooks Travel guides from Wikivoyage Resources from Wikiversity Data from Wikidata Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kovalam amp oldid 1130263967, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
