Kerala

Mundu and Neriyathu

Kerala's traditional Handloom cloth, Mundu and Neriyathu, can be purchased directly from weavers mainly in Chendamangalam near Kochi and Balaramapuram near Trivandrum.

 

Large stores in Kochi, Trivandrum and many other cities have good collection of worked sarees, Churidars, dress materials, salwar-suits, Indian men's wear like Kurtha-Pyjama etc

souvenirs

A wide range of coconut shell products can be found in Alleppey, most of them hand-made.

While visiting Aranmula, a small town in Pathanamthitta, you will find for sale the famous Aranmula Mirror - a mirror made out of metal instead of glass, using a metallurgic formula which is a closely guarded secret. Very expensive option, but a truly unique souvenir.

A visit to any emporium will reveal a lot of handicrafts. Kerala is famous for its wooden crafts, brass items models of cultural icons like vallam snake boats, urus sailboats, elephants in temple festival style, artifacts like traditional jewel boxes and so on.

Showcase pieces like Nettipattam The Caparison used for elephants in Plastic mould and associated decorations like Peacock quill etc are popular with visitors. The God's Own Craft, an organization based in Kochi has popularised the sale of such pieces in plastic, helping visitors to carry them home, while retaining the traditional look and charm.

Coir wall hangings with beautiful pictures and fans made out of Lemongrass that makes natural scent while fanning etc

bank and money

Kerala has one of the excellent banking systems in India, thus cards both debit, credit and cash cards are widely accepted in almost all towns and cities. Banks, money exchange facilities and ATMs are widespread. Traveller's Cheques are accepted in almost all banks. Credit and local debit cards are widely accepted in towns. Rural areas traditionally have a cash-based society, though credit/debit cards are widely accepted in tourist-oriented villages and areas. Foreign debit cards are not accepted, though foreign credit cards are accepted in almost all places. However chip-embedded cards are not accepted. There is a cash limit that can be drawn per day, limiting to Rs 10,000 US$ 200 when drawn thro' ATMs. A surcharge of Rs 50 US$ 1is charged for transactions beyond first ten transactions in a month. Foreign currency can be converted into Indian Rupees at any authorised money changers or nationalised banks up to Rs 50,000 in value in one transaction and any amount above this, requires a bank account and Indian PAN Card. Foreign currencies are not accepted anywhere in Kerala, except in airports.

The largest Kerala bank is Federal Bank with its headquarters in Aluva,Kochi, with wide range of branches across the state. Major Kerala banks include, State Bank of Travancore, South Indian Bank, Catholic Syrian Bank, and Dhanalakshmi bank, apart from almost national bank brands. International Banks such as HSBC, Standard Chartered and CitiBank operate mainly in Kochi and Trivandrum.

Service charges are common in hotels and restaurants which will be normally included in your bill standard is 10%, which varies depending upon the status and rankings, but not beyond 15%. In addition to this, tipping is common everywhere and its a social norm to pay tip in hotels as well as restaurants which is normally in between Rs 10 to Rs 20. In larger five star hotels or similar large restaurants, the tipping norm is normally 10% or 12% of your bill value. No tip is given for auto or taxi drivers, though over-night taxi drivers have to be pay bata official tip which shall be charged separately in your taxi bill.

Currency Exchange is very easy in Kerala, as there are many international money changers as well as forex players across the state.

oils and spices

Kerala, is well known for spices. Cardamom, pepper, cloves, turmeric, saffron and many others can be found when shopping in Kerala's bazaars. Some of the recommended spice markets are Broadway in Kochi and Chalai in Trivandrum. At Wayanad, Idukki, Pathanamtitta, Kottayam and Kozhikode you can find first quality premium spices from many authorised spice centres. These places are famous for value-added spice products like curry masala powders, ready-to-use spice powders, spice essences, extracts, spiced teas and coffee. Rare spice oils and concentrates used as bases for perfume and scents can also be found.

Many outlets sell unique natural cosmetic powders like mango, orange and papaya peel powder, turmeric powder. These and other spices, herbal powders and natural extracts are good for making face and body cleansing powders and soaps. Its worth to look around and investigate what is on offer.

Try buying some lemongrass oil, famous for its rare scent. It can also be used on the skin to discourage mosquitoes. There are more than a dozen oils in Kerala, famous for maintaining a healthy skin glow and reducing blemishes and acne.

Coconut oil is good to keep hairfall under control and nurture hair growth as well as for promoting a healthy glowing skin. Keralites put coconut into a multitude of varying uses. It is used as a high temperature cooking oil and scrapped powder and coconut milk is used in many local cooking styles. Roasted oil & virgin coconut oil are known to reduce cholesterol and are popular for good health. It is also used by expecting mothers for keeping their baby healthy.

costs

Kerala is generally an expensive destination when compared to elsewhere in India.

Budget tourists normally require Rs 1,000 US$20 per day for a decent stay including food. They can depend ordinary restaurants or road-side hawkers called Thattukadas for their food which costs less than Rs 40 less US$1. Middle class tourists must keep around Rs 1,400-Rs 2,000 US$24-US$40 per day a stay in pretty good hotel and for food in standard restaurants. For rich, Kerala is a destination that costs normally beyond Rs 4,000 US$80.