A small town by the sea going up from plain land to the cliff, and then again the land is smoothing with the sea level; Varkala is the place to enjoy beach, get tanned under the sun, gorge on sea food, fresh fruit juice, South Indian delight and relax as long as one stays here. Or may be planning body detoxification by Yoga, Ayurvedic treatment and luxurious Kerala Spa.
How to reach Varkala:
As I came from Munroe Island, so first the direction from Mundrothuruthu: (train station of Munroe Island)
From Mundrothuruthu to varkala: There are direct train to Varkala from Mundrothuruthu but not very frequent, however one can get a train to Kollam and from Kollam there are frequent train available to Varkala. It takes about 1 hour or little more time. Many express trains/ local trains available throughout the day from kollam to go to Varkala (55 mns travel time by train). (Please follow train schedule available on internet, and trains in Kerala are mostly on time)
From Tiruvananthapuram to Varkala: From Trivandrum, Varkala is the closest beach destination after Kovalam for weekend escape. There are frequent trains available from Trivandrum, hence reaching Varkala in less than an hour is no issue.
BY Road: Also, both the places are well connected by road.
If the sun is hiding under the cloud, the day is apt for a long walk across the cliff. From the helipad area keeping the beach at my left and the heard of restaurants, shops at my right, the hour long walk to the end of the cliff is postcard perfect as the scenery is changing very frequently. Crossing fishermen’s village, seeing them drying their fishing nets, waving at them, the boats drying under the sun, tourists enjoying the beach, sunbathing, finally reaching the last stretch of the land, Odayam beach, which is also a black sand beach and so very scenic.
What to see in #Varkala:
Janardan Temple: entry fees: 10 rs. Per person (no photography allowed, though special ticket of 200 rs is available for photography): the temple is an old beauty of this place, and another good thing is even foreign tourists are allowed inside the temple. 15 minutes tour inside the temple after taking some 50 steps up is ok.
Long walk on the cliff and crossing fishermen’s village, then Odayam Beach (black sand beach)
Varkala is all about enjoying a lazy holiday and get pumped up before going back to the rat race of our daily noisy life.
Stay at Varkala: Try to stay close to the cliff area which seems to be more happening, in case someone is looking for a bit of seclusion then Odayam beach area is a good option. Starting from 2-3 nights to a week, Varkala is not a waste to spend a week long holiday here.
TurtleGotWings 
Lovely post, accompanied by nice pictures too. We had plans for Varkala before lockdown happened, It still stays on my list, hope we get to visit soon. Thanks for sharing your trip.
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I truly hope we all get to travel safely soon.. and I also hope you get to go to Varkala once, a lovely place that is. Thank you for reading.
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What beautiful pictures you’ve put up. I can imagine myself walking down those narrow streets. Can’t wait to travel after all this is over with.
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I will say I was lucky enough to come across the sunset, I had almost lost my hope when I finally got to see the sky diffusing shades.
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