By Bus

Although generally less comforable than travelling by train, buses fill inthe gaps in the rail network, and can be quicker. They go almost everywhere, and more frequently than trains.

Serveices vary somewhat in price and standard. KSRTC (Kerala State Road Transport company) tend to be the most ramshackle of all. Invariably jam-packed, they cover both short and very long distances; in the latter case, express services are run which have limited stops. In more widely traveled areas there are usually additional private buses offering more legroom and generally traveling faster – not necessarily a plus point when you consider the dilapidated state of the vehicles.

Some clue as to comfort can be gained from the description give to the bus. “Ordinary” buses usually have minimally padded fixed upright seats. “Deluxe” “Luxury” and even “Super-deluxe” are fairly interchangeable terms and when applied to government buses may hardly differ from “Ordinary”. Usually they refer to private services, through, and should then guarantee a softer, sometimes reclining, individual seat. You can check this out when booking, and it’s also worth asking if your bus has a video or music system – if so, the deafening noise will prevent any chance of sleep. Always try to avoid the back seats – they accentuate bumpy roads, launching you into the air several times a minute. Try to sit in the middle of the bus for safety.

Luggage travels in the hatch on private buses, sometimes at a small extra charge. You can usually squeeze it into an unobtrusive corner inside state-run vehicles, although you may occasionally be requested to store it on the roof . Check that it’s well secured and not liable to get squashed. Baksheesh* is in order for whoever puts it up there for you.

* As a well off visitor, you will be expected to be liberal with baksheesh, which takes three main forms. The most common is tipping: a small reward for a small service, which can encompass anyone from a waiter or porter to someone who lifts your bags onto the roof of a bus or keeps an eye on your vehicle for you. Large amounts are not expected. Taxi drivers and staff at cheaper hotels and restaurants do not necessarily expect tips, but always appreciate them, of course, and the can keep people sweet for the next time you call. Some may take liberties in demanding baksheesh, but it’s often better just to acquiesce rather than spoil your mood and cause offence over trifling sums.

More expensive than plain tipping is paying people to bend the rules, many of which seems to have been invented for precisely that purpose. Examples might include letting you into a historical site after hours, finding you a seat or a sleeper on a train that is “full”, or speeding up some bureaucratic process.

Booking Tickets

Buying a bus ticket is usually less of an ordeal than buying a train ticket, although at large city bus stations there may be twenty or so counters, each assigned to a different route. When you buy your ticket you will be given the registration number of the bus and, sometimes, a seat number. As at railway stations, there is usually a separate, quicker ladies’ queue, although it may not be signed in English.

You can always get on ordinary state buses without a ticket, while at bus stands outside major cities it is usually possible to pay on board, though you have to be sharp to secure a seat. Prior booking is usually available and is recommended for express stat buses and private services; it is worth checking the precise departure point with the agent. You can usually pay on board private buses, too, although that reduces your chances of a seat.

By Car

It is much more usual for tourists in Kerala to be driven that its is for them to drive; car rental firms operate on the basis of supplying chauffeur-driven vehicles.

Chauffeur-driven car hire

You can arrange a chauffeur-driven care tourist offices or local car rental firms. On longer trips, the driver sleeps in the car, for which his firm may charge an additional charge. You should generally tip the driver.

Tips for renting a car
1.	You should fix your itinerary, the approximate mileage, traveling time, pick-up and drop-off locations – and, crucially, who is paying for fuel, road taxes and tolls, and the deriver’s overnight allowance – with the rental company in advance.
2.	Pin the details of any agreement down in a written contract.
3.	Should a deposit be required (one may be asked for, but you’re entitled to refuse), it is a good idea to wait until the time of departure to pay it – otherwise a different car may turn up from the one you agreed to. The remaining balance should be settled on the last day the trip. Whatever happens, never pay the full amount in advance and always insist on a receipt for any money you hand over.
4.	Never leave your passport or a credit card slip as security.
5.	Ideally, meet the driver (especially if it is for a long journey) ahead of departure, in order to ensure that his English is up to the task.
6.	Before leaving, check the vehicle (breaks, lights, indicators, steering).

Self driving car rental

The big international chains, Avis www.avis.com and Hertz www.hertz.com, usually have their offices in the up market hotels of major cities and are the best bet for self-drive car rental.

Driving in Kerala is not for beginners, if you do drive yourself, expect the unexpected, and count on other drivers taking whatever liberties they can get away with. Traffic circulates on the left, but don’t expect road regulations to be obeyed. In the city it is heavy and particularly undisciplined; vehicles cut in and out without warning, and you have to cope with pedestrians, cyclists and cows wandering nonchalantly down the middle of the road as is you don’t exist. In the county the roads are narrow, in terrible repair and hogged by overloaded trucks that move aside for nobody. To overtake, sound your horn – the driver in front will signal if it is safe to do so; if not, he will wave his hand, palm downwards, up and down. The vast number of potholes doesn’t make for a sooth ride either, and during the monsoon, roads can become flooded and dangerous; drivers burst their banks and brides get washed away. Ask local people before you set off, and proceed with caution, sticking to main highways as much as possible.

You should have an international licence to derive in Kerala. Insurance is compulsory, but not expensive. Car seat-belts are compulsory. Accident rates are high, and you should be on your guard at all times. If you do have an accident, it might be an idea to leave the scene quickly and go straight to the police to repot it; mobs can assemble fast, especially if pedestrians or cows are involved.

By motorbike

It is hard to overstate the sense of freedom that breezing around the backroads of Kerala can bring. On a rented bike you can reach the state’s remote beaches and cover long distance with relative ease, and air temperatures are warm enough to mean you don't have to keep wrapping and unwrapping layers each time you stop and start.

The downside, of course, is that two-wheelers can be perilous. Kerala's roads are dangerous and at least a half of all recorded traffic accidents in the state are motorcycle riders or their pillion passengers. Before driving away, therefore, ensure the lights and brakes are in good shape, and be especially vigilant at night: many roads are poor and unlit, and stray cows and carts can appear from nowhere. Another hazard to look out for are the speed breakers that slow progress on all Keralan roads. These speed bumps, often of massive proportions, are rarely marked, and regularly cause accidents when riders hit them at speed.

Motorcycles are available for rent in the coastal resorts of Kovalam and Varkala. Officially, you need an international driver's licence (lDP, type #1949, available through post offices, the A.A or RAC in the UK) to rent and ride anything, but in practice a standard licence will suffice if you're stopped and asked to produce your papers by the local police.

Helmets are also compulsory. The owner of your rented motorbike should be able to provide an Indian-made helmet, but it may not fit and isn’t likely to be of the best quality; you might want to consider investing in a new one (they're available in market) or, better still, bringing one from home which you know hasn't been cracked.

Rates for motorbikes vary according to season, duration of rental and vehicle; most owners also insist on a deposit and/or passport as security. The cheapest bike, a scooter-style Honda Activa 100cc, which has automatic gears. These are reliable and fine for buzzing to the beach and back, but to travel further you need a bit more power. Other options include the perennially stylish Enfield Bullet 350cc, although these are heavy, unwieldy - the most expensive bike to rent. For all-round performance and manoeuvrability, you can't beat the fast and light Yamaha RD, Honda Splendor and Baja Pulsars. Essentially Japanese-designed bikes built under licence (and with inferior materials) in India, they're economical on fuel and generally well suited to the windy Keralan roads.

Two-stroke fuel is sold at service stations (known locally as "petrol pumps") in the main towns and along the national highway. In out-of-the-way places, it's also sold in mineral water bottles at general stores or through backstreet suppliers. But you should avoid these whenever possible as some bulk out their petrol with low-grade kerosene or industrial solvent, which makes engines misfire and smoke badly.

As a rule of thumb, a newish 100cc scooter or geared bike should manage at ieast 35-40km per litre. Be warned, however, that fuel gauges rarely work, and those that do shouldn't be trusted. When riding in remote areas of the state where fuel stops may be few and far between, take a spare litre with you.

Most villages also have a motorcycle repair specialist or a "puncture-centre", although in theory the person you rented your machine from should foot the bill for routine maintenance (including punctures, blown bulbs and any mechanical failures). Damage to the bike incurred during a road traffic accident, of course, has to be paid for by you. It is important you agree on such details with the owner before driving away; you should also exchange mobile (cell) phone numbers.

Cycling

Indian-made, gearless Hero bicycles - ideal for a gentle jaunt along the shady backlanes of the coast but hard work over longer distances - may be rented in most towns and resorts. You could be asked to leave a deposit, or even your passport, as security - though you should think twice about doing this, perhaps suggesting a photocopy instead.

If you plan to spend a couple of months or more in Kerala, buying your own cycle is worth considering. There are bicycle shops in all major towns and cities.

Up in Periyar, you can also rent modern, European-made mountain bikes for longer cycle rides through the Cardamom Hills – Although hilly this area is also good cycling territory; bicycle rental is available from several stalls in the marketfor more physical trips into the mountains, Touromark www.touromark.commidway between Kumily and Thekkady, have imported speed mountain bikes for rent. The also offer gardens, coffeev plantations and woodlands to longer expenditions, such as the three-night/four-day ride across the Cardamom Hills from Periyar to Munnar.

From the Eco tourism Centre at Ambadi Junction, the forest department run village tours to a remote tribal settlement on the Tamil Nadu side of the mountains bordering Periyar. You are transported 10 KM by taxi to the start of the route, which is covered by bullock cart and coracle through a variety of different habitats and farmland. Profits to the development of the local community.

Bringing a bike from abroad requires no carnet or special paperwork, and most airlines allow you to take cycles at no extra cost - though they may insist on them being flat-packed in cardboard covers (available through good cycie shops). Spare parts and accessories may be of different sizes and standards in Kerala, though, and you may have to improvise. Bring basic spares and tools and a pump. Panniers are the obvious thing for carrying your gear, but fiendishly inconvenient when not attached to your bike and you might consider sacrificing ideal load-bearing and streamlining technology for a backpack you can lash down on the rear carrier.

City Transport

City transport takes various forms, with buses the most obvious. These are usually single-decker, and can get unbelievable crowded.

If you're visiting a variety of places around town, consider hiring a taxi, rickshaw or auto-rickshaw for the day. Find a driver who speaks English reasonably well, and agree a price beforehand.

Taxis

With any luck, the driver will agree to use the meter; in theory you're within your rights to call the police if he doesn't, but the usual compromise is to agree a fare for the journey before you get in. Naturally, it helps to have an idea in advance of what the fare should be, though any figures quoted in this or any other book 'should be treated as being the broadest of guidelines only. From places such as main stations, you may be able to find other passengers to share a taxi to the town centre; many stations, and certainly most airports, operate prepaid taxi schemes with set fares that you pay before departure: more expensive prepaid limou¬sines are also available.

Auto-rickshaw

The auto-rickshaw, that most Indian of vehicles, is the front half of a motor-scooter with a double seat mounted on the back. Cheaper than taxis, better at nipping in and out of traffic, and theoretically metered (again, in most places they probably won't use them and you should agree a fare before setting off), auto-rickshaws are a little unstable and their drivers often rather reckless, but that's all part of the fun. In Kerala, rickshaw-drivers recognizable by their official khaki shirts - are strictly unionized, which means they tend not to overcharge tourists who don't know what the correct fares should be - although don't bank on this.