Kanyakumari

Kanyakumari is about 6-7 hours journey from Rameshwaram. You may take an overnight bus to reach here. It is the Southernmost point of India. You may also take a train to Nagercoil to reach Kanyakumari which is around 21 km from there.

We had visited Kanyakumari from our Kerala trip. So, we had taken a cab from Kovalam to Kanyakumari. We went there in the month of April which is highly not advised. The heat will tire you if not kill you. We enjoyed the place but most of time we spent looking for a shade to sit. Try visiting there during winter months for a better experience. However, there was a huge crowd in the month of April as well.

Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Sripada Temple

Vivekananda memorial as well as the statue of Saint Thiruvalluvar are located side by side in the Indian ocean on separate rock islands. They are accessible by ferries which run from the mainland to both the islands. There is always a long queue for the entrance which starts from 1-1.5 km far from the entrance and does not have a shade until you arrive at the entrance area. This queue is the general queue which has a ticket priced at ₹50.

There is a special queue as well with tickets priced at ₹200 which has a shorter queue but still you need to wait for around 30-40 minutes. After the waiting, both queues merge into same for entering the ferry. When we went there only two ferries were in operation and visit to the Thiruvalluvar statue was stopped. It took longer because of the same reason. The place is open from 8AM-4PM. A new glass bridge has been built connecting the two sites shown here.

Structure

The Vivekananda Rock Memorial is a structure built upon the same rock which is believed to have been the meditation point of Goddess Sri. Swami Vivekananda had visited the place and hence a memorial in his honour was built here. There are two parts of the memorial, one which is dedicated to Swami Vivekananda and his works and another structure dedicated to the deity. The temple structure has a footprints of the goddess in its sanctum. You get access to the entire memorial.

The structure sits atop a huge rock projecting from the Indian ocean. There is a mandapam turned into a museum for the life of Swami Vivekananda, his beliefs and works. At one end of the building you can see the waters of the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal merging into one. It is also the southernmost point of India.

Thiruvalluvar Statue

The Thiruvalluvar statue is the next stop of ferry. It is a lone statue built on an isolated rock a little distance from the memorial and mainland. Thiruvalluvar was a revered poet cum saint in the Tamil literature whose most popular work is the Thirukkural. The height of the statue is the same as the no of chapters in Thirukkural. It is a popular sightseeing point in Kanyakumari.

After visiting both the places, you can watch the beautiful sunset from the beach or from the memorial. We advice that you plan the trip in such a way that you get to see the majestic sunset from the viewpoint.

Kanyakumari temple

This temple is dedicated to deity Kanyakumari after whom the place is known. There is always a long queue to the temple and you need to start early if you want to visit the sanctum. We had arrived late and already watched the sunset. We also had to return to Kovalam, so, we could not visit the temple.

If you want to know about more tourist spots in Tamil Nadu, do visit this post.