Kalypso Adventures

Wanting to do cycling, hiking & kayaking, Kalypso Adventures drew up an amazing 10 day schedule to suit our needs. They use quality equipment and the guides, the best we’ve had on a multi-day tour, were exceedingly knowledgable, open, friendly & safety conscious. I highly recommend this company and will use them again for trekking in Northern India in the near future.

My wife and I have been cycling almost every year for the last 20 years or so in Europe, USA and Canada, but this 45-day cycling tour in Southern India was most certainly our most exhilarating cycling experience so far. Roads were beautiful (country roads, village roads, forest roads, mountain roads). Homestay and resorts were authentic, traditional, comfortable and quiet (tea, coffee and spice plantations, rice fields, tiger reserves, natural forests). Food was delicious, authentic, even though a little spicy... People were friendly, welcoming, curious and smiling. And our guide and chauffeur were knowledgeable, helpful and very good travel companions. We are looking forward to do a similar trip with them in Northern India sometime in the next years.

Jacques Carrière
Québec City
Canada

To say our Munnar trek was the highlight of our two weeks in India would be an understatement. The trek was everything we wanted it to be – challenging, picturesque, and informative. This is almost entirely due to our guide, Brijesh. He was knowledgeable about the native flora, pointing out Rhododendron trees, goat weed, and lanterna. By the end of the two days, I’d learned the names of many new plants, as well as what they were used for or if they were invasive.
Brijesh also knew the natural features of the land, pointing out Anamudi on the first day as we trekked to Meesapulimala and Anerangel on the second day as we trekked through the Shola. He was pleasant to trek with, making nice conversation in great English. He checked in often to make sure we had water and that we weren’t getting too tired. Best of all, he gave credit to the support guides, Raghu and Raja, when it was due.
I would highly recommend booking treks through Kalypso Adventures – they took care of all the logistics (hotels, transfers, even our taxi back to Kochi). We’re considering a trip to Sri Lanka in the future, and we’d definitely book another Kalypso Adventure if we do.

We actually went in November 2016, but Kalypso weren't on Tripadvisor then.
They organised a private tour which consisted of birding and kayaking inland, then three and a half days kayaking the backwaters and staying at a different hotel each night.
It was a great holiday, organised with military precision (when you look at the Managers' backgrounds you understand why!).
Kalypso were very responsive during the booking process, and the tour was "made to measure" in that we chose the hotels and Kalypso took care of all the bookings and found us a very knowledgeable and enthusiastic bird guide.
Absolutely no complaints, an excellent Company.

We are just back from 2 weeks cycling in Kerala with these guys. We saw wonderful things, ate amazing food and stopped in some varied and interesting accomodation. We were looked after by our guide, Francis and driver, Das superbly, they were so kind and helpful, nothing was too much trouble. They really made it a very special holiday, thank you so much, we had a great time.

I had an amazing time trekking and was very well looked after by the kitchen staff and guide Reghu. Reghu was a very friendly and kind guide with lots of information and knowledge. As a solo female traveller, Sujith in the office did well to accommodate for my needs and Reghu made me feel very safe and supported me with my ongoing transport. An unforgettable experience!

We organised with Kalypso a 10 day tailor made tour. We cycled, hiked and kayaked. Starting just outside Fort Kochi we headed up to Munnar, hiked to the summit of Meesapulimala, walked through the tea plantations and the cardamom hills. We also visited the Periyar National Park and finished with a 3 day Kayak in the backwaters near Alappuzha. Abid was our guide for the cycling and hiking. He was firstly very safety conscious, he was also knowledgeable and a good spotter of birds and wild life. Deepu was the support driver he was never very far away if you needed water or had had enough. The same can be said for Vineeth, our kayak guide and Moni the support boat driver. It was a fabulous experience. We would definitely use this company again

After attending a 3 day Hindu wedding in Chennai, India, we spent the next 12 days in three locations in the state of Kerala, India: Ft Kochi; Munnar; and the backwater country outside of Alappuzha (or Alleppey). We were looking for a mix of 'opportunistic exploration' and planned activities, including: bicycling, hiking, and good food experiences. We arranged to stay in ‘homestay’ accommodations to better understand life in Kerala. I am pleased to report that our Kalypso guide, Swaroop understood our interests and provided an experience that fully delivered what we planned and expected. Swaroop had full knowledge of both social and natural ecology of Kerala. We were introduced to birds, wildlife, flora, herbs, fruit, as well as peoples, environments, markets, and villages, that are beyond the usual scope of most travel guide summaries.
We bicycled through outskirts of Ft Kochi, seeing active fishing, lowland waterways, local schools, and markets; We hiked Meesapulimala, outside of Munnar; and biked, walked, and paddled through the village backwater of Manapra, in the Alleppey region. Swaroop was knowledgeable, resourceful, and flexible. We discussed daily and next day plans; and easily adapted the specifics of the day according to external circumstances, and our interests. For example, one day returning from a training center for ‘otherwise abled ‘ youth in the Tea Plantation region, we planned on visiting another nearby village; enroute, we encountered a monumental traffic blockade over a single lane road that crossed a large dam. We turned the car around, and Swaroop, connected with an associate in a village in the opposite direction, who brought us on a beautiful walk through cultivated flora and fruit, culminating with snacks and 360 degree views of all the western Ghatts from his newly opened resort, The Kites.
The one small disappointment was that accommodations in Ft Kochi, and Munnar were more Bed and Breakfast type facilities than our notion of ‘homestay”. Our third and last stop however, at Kurialacherry House, made up for that small deficit. This accommodation was indeed a multi generational family residence; with separate outbuildings for guests; meals prepared with fresh ingredients each day for family and guests (eaten separately); and ample opportunity to see, talk and interact with people involved in fishing, rice growing and harvesting, schools, religious programs (the area is famously diverse with Hindu, Christian and Muslim populations) , and life in a small village in the backwater region.
Finally, but not insignificant in a country (in)famous for its driving habits, we were driven by Binu, who was attentive to and skillful in navigating the tumult of people, vehicles (including bicycles , scooters, tuk-tuks, auto’s , trucks) and occasional water buffalo, competing for space in multiple directions on barely 2 lane roads that are in various states of repair. The cacophony of sound resulting from the ‘road experience’ did not distract, nor deter Binu from providing considerate and safe transfer to, from and between each destination.
In short, our good experience was essentially informed and made by Swaroop’s guidance and Binu’s safe transport! We recommend both of these individuals, and Kalypso Adventures without reservation for your South India travel consideration.

My first five night/six day endemic birding tour in Kerala was beautifully arranged by Thomas Zacharias of Kalypso Adventures and went off without a hitch. From the time I was meet at Kochi airport by Peter, my guide and Das, my driver, my adventure was wonderful. Over 125 bird species were spotted and identified by Peter who also shared in capturing many via photo. Peter was skilled in recognizing bird calls as well and used a calling device to attract specific birds and determined that I have both a satisfying & safe time.

Just had the most amazing week with Kalypso in Kerala touring round the area experiencing life with Culinary Tasting through parts of the region. We experienced a night at Hornbill, Heritage Homes and the beach. The tour also included kayaking and guided walks as well and knowing you were in very safe hands with Vinnie and Ramesh looking after us. Thank you for an experience if a lifetime.