Thiruvananthapuram, also known as
Trivandrum, was the former capital of Travancore and is the State Capital
today. This sprawling beautiful city is built on seven hills, and it is
known better for its famous beach resort - at Kovalam (10 Km away) that is
recognized to be amongst the ten best in the world.
Thiruvananthapuram, "the place of the sacred
serpent", takes its name from the idol of Lord Vishnu in the magnificent
Padmanabhaswamy temple as the reclines on the world - supporting serpent,
'Anantha' or 'Adisesha'.
Today, its splendid past is to be seen in its old
buildings, most of them built in wood in the Kerala Style, with tiled roofs and
carved gables, in its botanical garden and Zoo with its quaint museum, in its
wide roads and public buildings and in its lively intellectual life. Some
of Kerala's leading film makers, poets and writers live here. Trivandrum
International Airport is well connected to Colombo, Maldives, Singapore, Middle
east, Gulf countries and rest of the world good.
Thiruvananthapuram, is situated near to the sea,
which makes its climate as tropical. This also gives Trivandrum a very
pleasant weather round the year. Monsoon comes to Trivandrum in the month
of May and remains there until November.
Access
Air: Being the capital of
Kerala state, Trivandrum international Airport is well connected to other major
cities and the neighboring countries
Rail: The city is connected to
other important cities of India and Kerala by trains.
Road: Regular buses are
available for the other important cities of Kerala and neighbours.
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELER SELECTS
KERALA AS 'ONE OF THE 50 MUST SEE DESTINATIONS OF LIFETIME'
In a special collector's issue
released just before the turn of the century. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
TRAVELER gifted the tourists of the world with a priceless treasure - a well
researched compilation of the 50 destinations of a lifetime. The only
Indian destination that featured in it was KERALA other than the Taj Mahal in
the World Wonders section.
Kerala was celebrated as a 'Paradise Found' - One
of the ten in the world. A perfect description for a land renowned as
"God's Own Country". What adds to the charm of its
backwaters, beaches, Ayurveda health holidays, hill stations, wildlife,
festivals, monuments and vibrant art forms, is its amazing social development
indices that are on par with the developed world.
Places To
See
01.
SREE PADMANABHA SWAMY TEMPLE:
Dedicated to Lord Vishnu, the temple is a blend of the Kerala
and Dravidian Styles of sculpture and architecture. The temple pond and
the traditional Kerala Style buildings surrounding the temple are the other
interesting attractions.
02.
SHREE CHITRA ART GALLERY: (Open 1000 - 1700 hrs daily
except on Mondays and Wednesdays forenoons)
This art gallery display select paintings of Raja Ravi Varma,
Svetlova and Nicholas Roerich and exquisite works from the Rajput, Mughal and
Tanjore schools of art in India. The collection also includes paintings
from China, Japan, Tibet and Bali.
03.
THE ZOOLOGICAL PARK: (Open 1000 - 1700 hrs - closed on
Mondays)
One of the first Zoos in India, it is located in a
well-planned botanical garden. With huge trees like frangipani and
jacaranda dotting the sprawling lawns and wild fowl swimming in the lake, it is
like a small jungle in the heart of the city. It houses some of the rare
wildlife.
04.
NAPIER MUSEUM: (Open 1000 - 1700 hrs daily except on
Mondays and Wednesdays forenoons)
The Indo Saracenic Structure dating back to the 19 century
boasts of a "natural" air-conditioning system, houses a rare collection
of archaeological and historical artifacts, bronze idols, ancient ornaments a
temple chariot and ivory carvings.
05.
SHANGHUMUKHAM BEACH:
Adjacent to Trivandrum Airport this beach is a favourite haunt
of sunset watchers. Day time you can see fishermen trying to pull out
long fishing nets from the sea. The other attraction of this area is the
35 m long sculpture of mermaid and a restaurant chapped like a starfish.
06.
KOVALAM BEACH:
The Kovalam beach situated 16 km, south of Trivandrum City, is
one of the best beaches in India. It's a must see destination of
India. On account of it's natural location, if affords facilities for
safe sea bath.
07.
KUMARAKOM:
The village of Kumarakom is a cluster of little islands on the
Vembanad Lake, and this small water world is part of the Kuttanand
region. The bird sanctuary here, which is spread across 14 acres, is a
favourite haunt of migratory birds and an ornithologist's paradise.
08.
AYURVEDA TREATMENT CENTERS:
Classical therapies especially effective for diseases such as
rheumatism, arthritis, spondylosis etc are made available by various
institutions. The classical therapies are also made use of for devising new
treatment modalities to deal with several ailments of the modern man.
To deal effectively with serious
situation involving saving of human lives and valuable property, all agencies,
organisation involved / established for providing rescue, fire fighting,
Medical aid, salvage services etc are available to render assistance with
minimum delay. Category - 8 Fire Services as stipulated by International
Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) with all equipment & manpower for rescue
and handling emergencies are available at the Airport
Rescue and fire fighting Services - AAI
Medical Services - AAI
Police and / or security services , CISF
Airports Administration - AAI
Air Traffic Services - AAI
Aircraft Operators.
Medical Team with Duty Doctor and Medical Inspection Team
Off The
Airport
Mutual Aid Local Fire Departments - Kerala Fire Force
Medical Services
Hospitals
Military - IAF , Army , Navy and Coast Guard
All Other participating Agencies
There are five Hospitals providing
ambulance services and 13 (Thirteen) Hospitals enlisted for attending cases in
the event of any emergencies. Six doctors are included in the Emergency panel
at the Trivandrum Airport.
Fire vehicle / Ambulance shall be directed to the
site / Casualty can be as per the requirement of communication from the Command
post.
Airport Facilities
PROCEDURE TO BE FOLLOWED
FOR THE FOLLOWING PASSENGER FACILITIES
Unaccompanied children(Unaccompanied minor) travelling by
Flight:
0 - 2 years but not including
2nd Birthday ® Not an unaccompanied minor & no
individual escort service is provided for this age group.
2 - 4 years inclusive ®
Below normal unaccompanied minor age. Provision for exists for individual
escort services to be supplied by concerned airlines on payment.
5 - 11 years but not including
12thBirthday ® Unaccompanied Minor(UM)
12 - 15 years inclusive ®
May travel as adult without UM regulations applying.
The parent / guardian should complete
"young passenger form"when reservation is made at the booking office of
the concerned airlines. The parent / guardian are requested to fill in the
complete contact address, age telephone contact and the other details in the
form.
The unaccompanied minor (UM) will be taken from
the Terminal building to the Aircraft by the ground staff of the airlines and
the UM shall be handed over to the flight supervisor including the documents.
The parent / guardian at the Airport to receive the UM on arrival shall contact
the concerned airlines office/ Airport Manager at the arrival of Terminal
building. The UM shall be handed over by the flight supervisor to the ground
staff who in turn will do all the document work and shall hand over to the
parents/ guardians. Parents/ guardians are requested to remain at the airport
until the aircraft has taken off.
Procedure
for handling stranded passenger in case of flight cancellation:
Availability of alternative flights, including carriers or other pool
partners would be explored to accommodate the stranded passengers subject to
seat availability by the concerned airline staff on duty.
Passengers with onward connection shall be re-route as soon as
possible.
Light refreshments shall be served immediately by the airline staff.
Coach operators would transfer the stranded passengers to the nearby
hotel for stay and shall be brought back to the Airport for the
next flight.
Other
Facilities for Stranded Passengers:
Telephone calls/ facsimile access
would be made available to the first and business class passengers by the
airlines staff on duty.
If necessary, on passenger request,
station manager shall issue a written certificate confirming the delay of the
flight so that the passenger may provide evidence to their employees that their
late return was beyond their control.
Certificates shall not be issued to passengers who
had no confirmed booking, failed to report for check in time & had
incorrect travel documents such as tickets etc.
Unaccompanied woman passenger landed in the Airport late
night:
The unaccompanied woman passenger who
lands in the Airport late night on her request would be rendered all possible
help by the Airport Manager on duty (24Hrs) at the International Terminal
Entrance side. Retiring Rooms are available at the International terminal with
telephone facility and the same can be used for night stay.
Procedure to
handle dead Bodies by flight:
The relatives of the deceased person
can contact the Airport Manager (24Hrs) who shall co-ordinate with the
concerned airlines to receive the body at the Entry Gate No-1 located in
between the Domestic & International Terminal. The Airway bill number of
the dead body booked as Cargo may be intimated to the Airport Manger along with
all other details. The concerned airlines shall depute special staff to handle
the speedy clearance of the dead body. The relative coming to receive the body
shall also bring the duly attested authorisation letter from the near relative/
dependant of the deceased.
