The Colonial Quarters and Sacred Sites of Thangassery
Walk north from the harbour along the streets of Thangassery and you step into centuries of layered history. The Portuguese arrived here in the 16th century, and their mark remains in the stone and timber of the quarter they built. You can visit the Infant Jesus Cathedral, established in 1614, a vestige of Portuguese rule that still stands 200 metres north of the Thangassery Fort intersection. Nearby, the St Thomas Fort sits at the north end of the harbour—its limited standing ruins visible both from the water side and from the opposite approach, though the site is slightly overgrown. The Thangassery Lighthouse, a modern structure in this historic Christian setting, opens to climbers in the afternoons between 3 and 5 PM, and the two sites are within easy, shaded walking distance of each other. This neighbourhood rewards wandering: you are walking through the geography of Kollam's ancient role as a meeting place for Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs, Chinese traders, and the Syrian Christians who arrived in the 8th century.
Paddling Through Village Life on Munroe Island
Beyond the scale of the houseboat tours lies a more intimate way to move through the backwaters. Vijeesh runs canoe tours from Munroe Island, northeast of Kollam, that let you navigate the narrow channels the larger vessels cannot reach. You paddle directly through the village itself—past houses, gardens, and daily life unfolding at water level. This is how to see the actual geography of the backwaters rather than observing it from a distance. You can reach the island by rickshaw (around ₹400 from Kollam) or by local train, and Vijeesh can arrange the train details when you contact him. The tour costs ₹300 per person, and he also runs a homestay on the island if you want to linger.
The Waterfront and Market Life
Kollam's identity as a working port and trading city means you can experience it as merchants have for millennia—at the water's edge. Visit Kollam Beach or Thangassery Beach, a functioning fishing harbour, to see the daily commerce of the sea. The beaches themselves are busy with activity rather than solitude, which is closer to how Kollam actually exists.
Day Trips Into the Surrounding District
Kollam sits at the edge of a network of places worth a few hours or a full day away. The sacred and scenic lie close at hand:
- Sasthamcotta, 19 kilometres away, holds the largest freshwater lake in Kerala—a calm contrast to the salt water surrounding the city.
- Sakthikulangara, only 7 kilometres toward Aleppey, marks where Ashtamudi Lake meets the Arabian Sea and is home to a leaning lighthouse, similar in character to the leaning tower of Pisa.
- Aryankavu, 73 kilometres east, is an old pilgrim centre and former trade route across the Western Ghats, known for its shrine of Lord Sastha and fine sculptures and mural paintings.
- Thenmala, 66 kilometres east (also reachable from Thiruvananthapuram), offers a dam site set within dense forest and is known for eco-tourism.
- Alumkadavu, 26 kilometres away, presents blue-green stretches of backwater ringed by coconut palms, with Ayurvedic treatment centres and backwater cruises available.
Understanding Kollam's Layered Past
This is not a city you need to imagine as ancient—the evidence lives in its streets and water. Kollam was one of the four great entrepots of 13th-century global sea trade, alongside Alexandria, Cairo, Quanzhou, and Malacca. Mar Sabor and Mar Proth, East Syriac bishops, founded the port here in 825 CE and established the Malayalam calendar—the Kollavarsham—which still marks time in Kerala today. The Tarisappalli church near the port commemorates this founding. Kollam is also home to one of the seven churches established by St Thomas and one of the ten oldest mosques founded during the era of Malik Dinar. Walk here and you walk through the routes of Ibn Battuta, Marco Polo, and centuries of Chinese, Arab, and European traders. The city's role as a maritime crossroads shaped not only its own fate but Kerala's.
Begin planning a visit to Kollam with a sense of what draws you—the colonial architecture, the backwater ecology, the sacred sites, or simply the experience of a living port city with deeper roots than most places you will visit. The specific sites are there, accessible, and worth your time.