The best time to visit Kerala is September to March. September to November gives you the greenest hills, full backwaters and rates still below the peak; December to February is the peak itself, cool in Munnar and beach weather at Varkala and Kovalam. June to August is the monsoon, half the price and the Ayurveda season. April and May are hot on the coast and pleasant in the hills. Here is the year month by month, with what each month is like in Munnar, on the backwaters and on the beach, and what a trip costs in each.
Month by month
| Month | Munnar (hills) | Alleppey and the coast | Prices and crowds | What is on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10 to 24°C, cool mornings, clear | 24 to 32°C, dry, sea calm | Peak; flights and resorts at their highest till mid-month | Beach season; Sankranti week busy from Hyderabad |
| February | 12 to 26°C, clear | 25 to 33°C, dry | High but easing; the best peak-season value | Eravikulam closes for the tahr calving; the Kochi biennale in odd years |
| March | 15 to 28°C, warm afternoons | 26 to 34°C | Moderate; the exam-break week is busy | Eravikulam still closed till early April |
| April | 16 to 29°C, pleasant | 27 to 35°C, humid | Low; resorts drop 20 to 30 percent | Vishu, Thrissur Pooram (the elephant festival); Eravikulam reopens |
| May | 17 to 29°C, pre-monsoon showers | 27 to 34°C, humid | Low, except the school-holiday fortnight | A hill-heavy plan works; pre-monsoon Ayurveda offers begin |
| June | 16 to 24°C, heavy rain | 24 to 30°C, heavy rain, sea closed | Lowest of the year | The monsoon arrives on 1 June; waterfalls at full flow; Ayurveda season |
| July | 15 to 23°C, rain most days | 23 to 29°C, rain | Lowest | The greenest month; some hill roads and the Periyar boat close on heavy days |
| August | 16 to 24°C, rain easing | 24 to 30°C, showers | Low; Onam week busy with Kerala's own travellers | Onam, the Nehru Trophy snake-boat race at Alleppey (second Saturday) |
| September | 16 to 25°C, clearing | 25 to 31°C, showers ending | Low to moderate; the best value month | Hills at their greenest, backwaters full, Onam if it falls late |
| October | 15 to 25°C, second showers | 25 to 32°C, afternoon rain | Moderate; Dussehra and Diwali weeks busy | The north-east monsoon brings short afternoon rain, evenings clear |
| November | 13 to 25°C, clear | 25 to 32°C, drying | Moderate, rising in the last week | Beach season opens; the last month before peak prices |
| December | 10 to 24°C, cool, clear | 24 to 32°C, dry | Peak from the 20th; book by October | Christmas in Fort Kochi; New Year on the houseboats and at Varkala |
Temperatures are typical daily lows and highs. "Peak" means resort rates 30 to 50 percent above the September to November figure and flights from Hyderabad and Bengaluru at their highest.
September to November: the value season
The monsoon has just left, so the tea slopes are at their greenest, the waterfalls on the Munnar road still run, the backwaters are brimming and the houseboats are quiet. Resorts have not yet moved to peak rates and flights are cheap. Afternoon showers in October are short. If you can travel in any month, travel in these three. Every plan on the Kerala tour packages page is at its best-value price then.
December to February: the peak
This is the Kerala in the photographs: 10°C dawns in Munnar with mist on the tea, dry, calm seas at Varkala and Kovalam, and the houseboats at their busiest. It is also the most expensive season, and the Christmas to New Year fortnight needs the houseboat and the Munnar resort booked by October. Late January and February give the same weather at 20 to 30 percent less, which makes them the honeymoon months; the one thing to know is that Eravikulam National Park closes from February to early April for the tahr calving season.
March to May: the quiet months
The coast is hot and humid, 34 to 35°C by April, but Munnar, Thekkady and Vagamon stay at 25 to 29°C, so a hill-heavy plan works well and costs 20 to 30 percent less than in winter. April has Vishu and the Thrissur Pooram, the biggest temple festival in the state, with its elephants and fireworks. The May school holidays lift prices for a fortnight; the rest of the two months are the emptiest Kerala gets.
June to August: the monsoon, and why some people prefer it
The monsoon breaks on 1 June and rains most days through July, easing in August. Resorts drop to half their winter rate, the waterfalls are at full flow, the hills are the greenest they will be all year, and this is the traditional Ayurveda season, when the cool, damp air is said to open the body to treatment; the Ayurveda resorts run their best packages then. The houseboats keep running (the backwaters are calm even in rain). What you give up: the sea is closed to swimming, Eravikulam and the Periyar boat shut on heavy-rain days, and a hill road can close for a morning. August brings Onam and the Nehru Trophy snake-boat race at Alleppey on the second Saturday, worth planning a trip around.
The best months for each kind of trip
- Honeymoon: late January to February, or November. Cool Munnar mornings and the beaches open, below the December price. The Kerala honeymoon packages are priced for these months.
- Family with school-age children: the Sankranti week in January or the Dussehra and Diwali weeks in October for the weather; the May holidays for the price, with the hills as the base.
- Budget: September, or the monsoon.
- Ayurveda: June to August.
- Wayanad: October to February; the monsoon there is heavier than in Munnar.
- Beaches at Varkala and Kovalam: November to March; the sea is closed June to September.
What to pack for each season
September to March: light cotton by day, a light jacket for Munnar mornings and the houseboat deck at night, a shawl for temple visits (shoulders and knees covered, and men wear a mundu or trousers at the big temples). June to August: a proper rain jacket, quick-dry clothes, sandals that grip, and a dry bag for the phone. Sunscreen and mosquito repellent all year on the backwaters.
Once you have the month, the rest is on the Kerala tour packages page: the trip cost from Hyderabad and Bengaluru for that month, and the 5 day itinerary with the monsoon swaps marked.
