Take a country boat ride to the uninhabited isle of Ponnuthuruthu, surrounded by the Anjengo backwaters. Ensconced amidst thick coconut groves, this island shelters a century-old temple dedicated to Shiva and Parvathy. The queens of the Travancore Royal Family used to visit the temple and hide their precious jewellery on the island for safe keeping and hence the island came to be known as Ponnuthuruthu meaning ‘Golden Island’.

Anjengo fort:

Visit the fort, a 130-feet tall lighthouse, the ruins of an ancient factory and a dilapidated masonry canal extending all the way north to Alappuzha and Kollam, in the fishing hamlet of Anjengo, a strip of land sandwiched between the sea and the backwaters.