Madurai, Rameswaram and Kanyakumari Temple Trail

5 Nights 6 Days Kanyakumari tour package from Bangalore

5N / 6D Madurai (1N) → Rameswaram (1N) → Kanyakumari (2N) → Madurai (1N)

Madurai, Rameswaram and Kanyakumari Temple Trail

1750 km

by road

34 h

driving

places

nights

meals

Pick the hotels that suit your budget

Private car with driver from Bengaluru

No payment now. We call to confirm

Overview

A 6 day temple and coast road trip for families, couples and parents who want to see Madurai, Rameswaram, Dhanushkodi and Kanyakumari without changing trains and buses. Your private car and driver pick you up from home in Bengaluru and stay with you all 6 days, and no day has much more than 8 hours of driving. You stay a night in Madurai, a night in Rameswaram, two nights in Kanyakumari and a last night in Madurai, so the long drive home starts fresh. Highlights are the Meenakshi temple, the holy bath in the 22 wells at Rameswaram, the road to Arichal Munai where India ends, and the ferry to Vivekananda Rock with the new glass bridge to the Thiruvalluvar statue. Best from December to March. Honest caveat: Day 1 and Day 6 are long drives of about 8 hours, temples ask for traditional dress and phones are not allowed inside.

Your route

Real road route from Google. Tap a day to zoom in. Numbers match the places in each day below.

Is this trip for you?

Moderate

Day 1 and Day 6 have about 8 hours in the car with stops, Day 3 about 6.5 hours after a 4:30 AM start. Temples mean a lot of barefoot walking on stone.

Great for

Families taking parents on a pilgrimage
Couples who like temples and old palaces
First trip to the southern tip of India

Think twice if

Long road days on Day 1, 3 and 6
Someone can't manage early starts and long barefoot walks in temples
Travelling in November, when the northeast monsoon brings heavy rain

Day by day

Day 1

Bengaluru to Madurai and the Meenakshi temple

441 km 8 h 32 min driving 1 place

6:00 AM
Pickup from your home
Your driver calls you 30 minutes before. An early start beats the Hosur road traffic.
2 h 8 min · 91 km
8:15 AM
Breakfast stop near Krishnagiri
Idli, vada and filter coffee at a highway restaurant. Pay as you eat.
4 h 58 min · 286 km
1:45 PM
Lunch near Dindigul
A banana leaf meals, or the famous Dindigul biryani if you eat meat.
1 h 18 min · 63 km
4:00 PM
Check in at your hotel
Rest for an hour. Change into traditional clothes for the temple.
8 min · 2 km
4:30 PM
1
Meenakshi Amman Temple
2 h 30 min here
Open about 5 AM to 12:30 PM and 4 PM to 9:30 PM. General entry is free, we include the special darshan ticket. Phones and cameras are not allowed: leave them in the car or at the phone counter. Men in dhoti or full trousers with a shirt, women in saree, salwar or long skirt. No shorts.
9:00 PM
Palliyarai pooja
Optional · Free to watch
The night ceremony when Lord Sundareswarar is carried to Meenakshi's chamber. Tell your driver if you want to stay late.

Day 2

Thirumalai Nayakkar Palace, Pamban bridge and Dhanushkodi

213 km 4 h 2 min driving 4 places

7:45 AM
Breakfast at the hotel
10 min · 3 km
9:00 AM
1
Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal
1 h here
A 1636 palace with huge white pillars and painted domes. Open 9 AM to 5 PM. Entry ticket included.
2 h 44 min · 160 km
1:15 PM
2
Pamban bridge viewpoint
20 min here
Stop on the road bridge to look at the sea and India's first vertical lift rail bridge, opened in April 2025, next to the old Scherzer bridge. Stopping is allowed only at the marked spots.
1:45 PM
Lunch in Rameswaram
Simple seafood or vegetarian meals near the bus stand.
13 min · 9 km
2:45 PM
3
APJ Abdul Kalam National Memorial
45 min here
The memorial to the former President, built where he rests. Free entry. Phones and bags stay outside.
33 min · 24 km
4:15 PM
4
Dhanushkodi and Arichal Munai
2 h here
Drive past the ruins of the town washed away by the 1964 cyclone to the road end at Arichal Munai, where the Bay of Bengal meets the Indian Ocean. The road is open in daylight only and police may close it in rough weather. Do not swim here.
23 min · 19 km
6:30 PM
Check in at your hotel
Early night: the theertham bath starts before sunrise.

Day 3

22 theertham bath at Rameswaram, drive to Kanyakumari

327 km 6 h 20 min driving 3 places

8 min · 2 km
5:00 AM
1
Agni Theertham and the 22 wells
2 h here
Take a dip at Agni Theertham beach, then an attendant pours water from each of the 22 wells over you. Wells open about 5:30 AM to 12:30 PM. Ticket included. Wear clothes you can get wet and carry a change and a towel.
7:15 AM
2
Ramanathaswamy temple darshan
1 h here
Darshan of the Jyotirlinga in dry traditional clothes, then walk the 1,200 m pillared corridor. Phones stay outside.
8:45 AM
Breakfast and check out
3 h 55 min · 192 km
1:30 PM
Lunch near Thoothukudi
2 h 10 min · 131 km
5:30 PM
3
Sunset at Kanyakumari
45 min here
Watch the sun go down over the Arabian Sea from the sunset point near the beach.
7 min · 3 km
6:30 PM
Check in at your hotel
Ask for a sea facing room if you booked one, and set an alarm for sunrise.

Day 4

Kanyakumari sunrise, Vivekananda Rock, glass bridge and Padmanabhapuram

76 km 2 h 29 min driving 5 places

5 min · 2 km
6:00 AM
1
Sunrise at the triveni sangam
45 min here
Where three seas meet. In winter the sun rises at about 6:25 AM. From late March to early May you may see sunrise and moonset on full moon days.
7:15 AM
Breakfast at the hotel
7 min · 2 km
8:00 AM
2
Vivekananda Rock and the glass bridge
2 h 30 min here
Ferry runs about 8 AM to 4 PM, weather permitting. Join the queue early, it gets long by 10 AM. Ferry and memorial tickets included. The 77 m glass bridge, opened in December 2024, now links the rock to the Thiruvalluvar statue, no separate ferry needed.
10:45 AM
3
Kumari Amman temple
45 min here
Men remove their shirt inside. Usually closes around 12:30 PM for the afternoon.
41 min · 23 km
12:30 PM
Lunch in Nagercoil
31 min · 16 km
2:00 PM
4
Padmanabhapuram Palace
1 h 45 min here
The largest wooden palace in Asia, once the seat of the Travancore kings. Closed on Mondays and from about 1 PM to 2 PM. Shoes off inside. Ticket included.
42 min · 21 km
4:45 PM
5
Suchindram Thanumalayan temple
1 h here
A temple to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma together, with an 18 ft Hanuman and musical pillars. Opens again in the evening around 5 PM. Men remove their shirt inside.
22 min · 14 km
6:15 PM
Back to your hotel
Walk the shops on Sannathi Street for shell crafts and cashews.

Day 5

Kanyakumari to Madurai via Tirunelveli

267 km 4 h 56 min driving 2 places

7:30 AM
Breakfast and check out
Catch the sunrise once more from the rooftop if you like.
1 h 34 min · 87 km
10:45 AM
1
Nellaiappar temple
1 h here
A huge twin temple with musical stone pillars. Closes around 12:30 PM, so we leave Kanyakumari by 9 AM.
23 min · 10 km
12:00 PM
Lunch and halwa in Tirunelveli
Iruttu Kadai halwa opens in the evening only, but other old sweet shops sell the same halwa all day.
2 h 52 min · 169 km
3:45 PM
2
Gandhi Memorial Museum
1 h here
Holds the blood stained dhoti Gandhiji wore on the day he was shot. Open about 10 AM to 5:45 PM. Free entry.
7 min · 3 km
5:15 PM
Check in at your hotel
Free evening: the Meenakshi temple once more, or Sungudi cotton sarees and brass lamps in the temple streets.

Day 6

Madurai to Bengaluru

426 km 7 h 40 min driving

7:00 AM
Breakfast and check out
3 h 52 min · 240 km
12:30 PM
Lunch near Salem
3 h 49 min · 187 km
5:30 PM
Drop at your home
Home by early evening, depending on Bengaluru traffic.

Hotels

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Best time to go

Jan

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Dec

Best Good Heavy rain This month

What to pack

Traditional clothes for temples: dhoti or full trousers for men, saree or salwar for women. No shorts.
A spare set of clothes, a towel and a plastic bag for the wet theertham bath.
Sunscreen, a cap and cotton clothes. It is hot even in winter.
Cash in small notes for phone and shoe counters, flowers and halwa.

Included

5 nights in the hotel option you pick: 2 nights in Madurai, 1 in Rameswaram, 2 in Kanyakumari (or one of the same star rating if it is full, we tell you before you pay)
Breakfast from Day 2 to Day 6
Private car with driver for all 6 days, sized to your group, home pickup and drop in Bengaluru
Fuel, tolls, parking, driver allowance and driver stay
Tamil Nadu interstate permit for the car
Entry tickets: Meenakshi temple special darshan, Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal, 22 theertham bath ticket at Rameswaram, Vivekananda Rock ferry and memorial (includes the glass bridge), Padmanabhapuram Palace
GST

Not included

Lunch and dinner
Special poojas, abhishekam or archanai tickets at any temple
Priority ferry ticket at Kanyakumari (about Rs 300 per person, bought there)
Light and sound show at Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal
Camera fees, phone and shoe deposit fees, tips to theertham attendants
A train ride over the new Pamban bridge
Personal shopping and anything not listed above

Plans change, we understand. Read our cancellation policy to see how changes and refunds work.

Madurai, Rameswaram and Kanyakumari Temple Trail

Overview

Your route

Is this trip for you?

Day by day

Pickup from your home

Breakfast stop near Krishnagiri

Lunch near Dindigul

Check in at your hotel

Meenakshi Amman Temple

Palliyarai pooja

Breakfast at the hotel

Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal

Pamban bridge viewpoint

Lunch in Rameswaram

APJ Abdul Kalam National Memorial

Dhanushkodi and Arichal Munai

Check in at your hotel

Agni Theertham and the 22 wells

Ramanathaswamy temple darshan

Breakfast and check out

Lunch near Thoothukudi

Sunset at Kanyakumari

Check in at your hotel

Sunrise at the triveni sangam

Breakfast at the hotel

Vivekananda Rock and the glass bridge

Kumari Amman temple

Lunch in Nagercoil

Padmanabhapuram Palace

Suchindram Thanumalayan temple

Back to your hotel

Breakfast and check out

Nellaiappar temple

Lunch and halwa in Tirunelveli

Gandhi Memorial Museum

Check in at your hotel

Breakfast and check out

Lunch near Salem

Drop at your home

Hotels

Best time to go

What to pack

Included

Not included