Padmanabha Swamy Temple Tour: Walk with Storytrails through Trivandrum's History
5.0
19 Ratings
Thiruvananthapuram
Embark on a captivating tour of Trivandrum's Padmanabha Swamy Temple with Storytrails. Discover the city's rich history through tales of warriors, saints, tragedy, and betrayal.
Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Mithrananthapuram Trimurti Temple - Visit a Brahma temple that is rarely seen in India and one that is at least 800 years old. The custom at this temple is to completely cover up the idol of Lord Ganesha with a sweet made of mashed bananas, jaggery and rice flour.
  • Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple - We’ll walk by the richest temple in the world, a temple with secret hidden vaults that were found to contain untold treasures. Entry into the temple is restricted and we will walk along a part of the outer perimeter
  • Ananthankadu Sree Nagaraja Temple Trust - A temple dedicated to snake Gods. We’ll walk by the temple and observe walls lined with hundreds of snake idols that were deposited here by devotees
  • Sundaravilasam Palace - The erstwhile estate of the Attingal Ranis and now the state HQ of the archaeological survey of India.
  • Koyikkal Palace - A palace that is now a dance school that teaches Kathakali, Mohinyattam, Kudiyattam, Ottanthullal, Chakyarkuthu
What's Included
  • Bottled water
  • Guide
  • Tender coconut water
What's Not Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

Come along with Storytrails for a stroll around the Padmanabha Swamy temple in Trivandrum. You’ll hear stories of formidable heroes and devout holy people, of blessings and condemnations, of massive calamities and treason - elements that contribute to the luminous past of this town. A local tour guide will reveal these tales and views to you during a leisurely walk covering less than 1.5 miles.

  • Comfortable walking shoes are recommended
  • Children must be accompanied by an adult
  • Dress conservatively, keeping knees and shoulders covered for both men and women. Avoid shorts and sleeveless tops.
Location
Villa Maya
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(19 Ratings)
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Dreamer65804985098
Mar 16, 2024
Awesome - Aditi was amazing!! So much knowledge and an amazing story teller. She was friendly and accomodating and spoke exceptional English. This was our second tour as we did it the previous year also, and we will probably do it again next year. We all LOVED it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
90vishakhap
Jan 13, 2024
.loved Aditi's tour - Very informative nicely done explorations of old traditions and made our subsequent trip - to padmanakh Swamy temple that much better. Must do if in Trivandrum
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Skm09
Jan 13, 2024
Wonderful start to our Kerala vacation - This was an excellent experience. Thank you Aditi! Wonderful storytelling. We did this on the first day of our 10-day family trip to Trivandrum/Kerala and was the perfect way to get oriented into the history and culture of Travancore. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Juliedf43mz
Jan 11, 2024
A lovely walk! - It was a lovely experience for my mother and I. A great opportunity to learn more about the history of the place and to discover the smaller streets around the more touristic places. The guide is patient and has amazing strides to share!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lalitha
Aug 15, 2023
Inspiring and entertaining! - Absolutely lovely, knowledgeable and charming! We had a lovely time and learned a lot. Also - it was lovely to explore the temple surrounds with an insider - as someone not from India I would have been unsure as to where I am allowed to enter and where I should not - this way, we were guided through very smoothly.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ajay_h
Aug 4, 2023
A must do tour with Aditi - Aditi is a fabulous narrator. We do walking tours wherever we travel in the world and Aditi is definitely on our list of the top 7 hosts of walking tours! She is a story teller & a narrator who engages one deeply in the architecture & history of Trivandrum with fascinating stories of kings & kingdoms, consorts & queens, customs & rituals, betrayals & beliefs. Our walk through Amaveedas of the bygone era, by-lanes and temples around The Padmanabhaswamy Temple, was a memorable one and one of the highlights of our stay in Kovalam.
Review provided by Viator
377ellena
May 10, 2023
A very different tour and enthralling - We did the Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram) kingdom of gods small walking tour with Mr. Suresh K V. We knew about story trails and their unique way of educating us on the history through their videos on the website, but doing this live was even a better experience. Mr. Suresh (and I am sure their other hosts) are not the run of the mill guides. They are history buffs who do this with a passion and know the entire background and can answer most questions. Mr. Suresh made it fun, enjoyable and was very patient. This is a must do. If you have children who think that history is another boring subject, bring them to one of these and their perception will change. Thank you Mr. Suresh and the story trails management.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Vidya
Feb 26, 2023
One of the best guides and walk - Booked through Viator as the Story trail app was still dysfunctional. Was a bit apprehensive about the communication efficiency of the guide. But was very happy when Adithi was prompt and arrived 5 minutes early. Was patient when we delayed a bit in finishing our coffee. What a find. She was an absolute pleasure and enthralled us with her stories as she walked us around the ammaveedu roads and into the Thanjavur ammaveedu. She was so passionate in her narration that we were transported back in time and lived alongside with Raja Swathi thirunal and his wife Sundara lakshmi. Next came the bylanes of the Padmanabha swamy temple and she even organised a quick darshan for us. Waited for us to finish and walked us back to our starting point. Have done many walks all over the world and always felt that we did lack good people back home who could engage us with the stories of the land and be passionate about it. Also if they did , sometimes language becomes a barrier and we are unable to understand or relate. So happy to have done the walk with Adithi. Thank you and would love to go back to get to know the city better with her. Well done Story trails.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gojudilb
Jul 21, 2022
Well worth the walk! - Aditi was knowledgeable about local lore and history & I learned a lot as we visited several locations, including a stop for fresh coconut water. She spoke inclusively to all members of our group which included children & adults, and paced our walk beautifully. Well worth it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Leaverussin
Jun 18, 2022
Insight into another world - Aditi was a knowledgeable, engaging, funny, and overall entertaining guide. I learned more about the history of Kerala and the city of Thiruvanathapuram than I would have ever expected. I would highly recommend all who wish to learn about the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple to go on this tour. I especially appreciated how we navigated through the streets around the temple providing a unique and authentic view of the surrounding neighborhoods. The stories that capture the unique matrilineal heritage of the people of Kerala, the mother-houses etc. made this an exceptional experience. The fresh coconut water (cut open right in front of you) was the perfect, final topping to an incredible experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
May 2024
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