Visitor Information -- The official authority responsible for dishing out information to visitors is the District Tourism Promotion Council, which has various offices in the different backwaters towns. The main office is in Alappuzha, on Boat Jetty Road (tel. 0477/225-3308; daily 9am-5:30pm).

Getting There -- By Road -- Taxis are easily available in all major towns and cities. From Kochi a taxi should cost at most Rs 950 ($23/£12) and get you to Kottayam in about 1 1/2 hours; farther south, Alappuzha is better connected (better road) and should take around 1 hour. It is a 5-hour journey from Idukki/Periyar, the same from Munnar. Trivandrum lies 4 hours away.

By Air -- For the northern backwater towns, the nearest airport is at Kochi; around 76km (47 miles) by road by car to Kottayam/Kumarakom, or 85km (53 miles) to Alappuzha.

By Train -- Though there are railheads in Kottayam (15 min. from the Kumarakom resorts), Alappuzha, and Kollam, your best bet is to get to Trivandrum or Kochi and then head out by road; all resorts offer transfers.

Getting Around -- By Water-Taxi & Ferry -- Kottayam, Alappuzha, and Kollam are all connected by ferries that ply the route, with six departures to Kottayam daily. State Water Transport Department ferries between Alappuzha and Kottayam (a 3-hr. round-trip) depart from the tourist boat jetty near the bus station. Ferries between Alappuzha and Kollam take 8 hours, departing from both the Alleppey and Kollam boat jetties at 10:30am and arriving in Kollam/Alappuzha around 6:30pm (cost is Rs 300/$7/£4); after this you can catch a road taxi back. If you're in a hurry you can ask about speedboats, which more than halve the journey time.

Guided Tours & Cruises -- Alappuzha's well-meaning District Tourism Promotion Council (Boat Jetty, Alappuzha; tel. 0477/225-3308) organizes tickets for the daily backwater ferry between Kollam, Kottayam, and Alappuzha . DTPC also offers private cruises that work out to about Rs 250 ($5.70/£2.90) per hour on a motorboat, and around Rs 150 ($3.40/£1.70) per hour on a "country boat"; an overnight trip (22 hr.) on a kettuvallam houseboat will run you Rs 3,500 ($85/£43). Alternatively, any of the accommodations listed below can organize backwaters cruises -- for many it's part of the package, though this is definitely not the same as having a houseboat to call your own.