KERALA HOTELS

Kerala Houseboat ( Kettuvalam )

The Houseboats / kettuvallams of Kerala are giant country crafts, measuring up to 80 feet in length, retrieved from being lost to the State altogether. Once these houseboats / ketuvallams ruled the backwaters, poled along by one or two men, heavily loaded with rice, coconut and other commodities. But in the recent times, the kettuvalloms or rice-barges have been replaced by more and modern modes of transport, relegating them to neglect and decay.

It takes great skill and meticulousness to construct these giant Houseboats by tying huge planks of jack wood together. Curiously enough, not a single nail is used in their making of a houseboat. There used to be an entire clan of artisans who were involved in kettuvallom construction. Today, an innovative holiday idea has restored these majestic representatives of a unique culture and with them their makers.

The Kerala houseboats / rice barges that cruise these emerald waterways are an improvisation on the large country barges which were an essential part of the land's ethos in days gone by. Modified to meet a novel concept of holidaying, the kettuvalloms ( houseboats ) are comfortably furnished with an open lounge, one or two bath attached bedrooms and a kitchenette, and are extremely eco friendly, merging smoothly into the panorama. Every houseboat / kettuvallom is manned by a crew - usually a cook, guide and oarsman.

Backwaters in Kerala is a network of 1500 kms of canals both manmade and natural, 38 rivers and 5 big lakes extending from one end of Kerala to the other. Before the trucks became popular, the main cargo transportation was through backwaters by 'Kettuvalloms'. Kettuvallom means, ‘stitched boat’. They are 70 foot long, 30 tons capacity, made with wooden planks joined and stitched together with coconut ropes and painted with cashew nut oil inside and fish oil outside.

In earlier days, boatmen rarely stopped along the waterways for meals. Their diet consisted of freshly caught backwater fish, like karimeen (pearlspot) and kalangi (barramundi, an estuarial and fresh water game fish found also in Australia), nonperishable staples such as lentils and local large grain "red" rice, and inexpensive spices - coriander, ginger, dried chillies, turmeric, and black mustard seeds.

These they carried in ungrounded form to retain their freshness, crushing them into a spice paste with a stone "rolling pin" on a matching flat stone plate. Added into the paste was a liberal measure of grated coconut, which was also the source of the boatmen’s cooking oil.
Meals were prepared on an earthen stove, fuelled by coconut shells, at the stern of the kettuvallam, with the spice paste roasted slowly in earthen pots. The fish was added only in the later stages of preparation.

Their vegetable and fruit diet consisted on the few things available such as yam, breadfruit, raw mango, and jackfruit (and its seeds), which grow in great abundance along the waterways.

Houseboats are converted ‘kettuvalloms’. They are designed for comfortable cruise and overnight stay. The boat has one / two bath attached double bedrooms with modern comforts, a living cum dining room, sundeck and a kitchen. The boat has solar lamps and fans. The Houseboats are of premium category (Golden Star - approved by Department of Tourism, Kerala State).

In the one bedroom boat the living cum dining room is bigger in size. This boat can accommodate two persons.

The two bedroom boat also has a living cum dining room. This boat can accommodate four persons.

The boat is constructed by Eco-friendly materials like bamboo mat, Arecanut trees and coir. A distinctive feature of the kettuvallom is the design suggesting the possible Chinese influence. The canopy’s sides can be lifted. Traditionally, the boat only had a single such opening on either side. But our houseboats have three, thus ensuring plenty of shade, cool breeze, and a better view of the passing scenery.