This island is situated across
the backwaters from the mainland Ernakulam. The Bolghatty
palace here, was built by the Dutch in 1745 and later became
the seat of the British resident at the court of the Raja
of Kochi after 1799. It has now been converted into a hotel
by KTDC. Now some 'honeymoon' cottages have been constructed
at the water's edge on the palace grounds. There is a ferry
from Ernakulam to Bolghatty.
Willingdon Island
It is a man-made island, created from the material dredged
while deepening the Kochi Port named after Lord Willingdon,
the British Viceroy of India.It is the hub of the Kochi Port.
Vypeen Island
It is one of the most densely populated islands in the world,
situated south west across the backwaters of Ernakulam. The
Portuguese Azhikotta (Pallipuram) fort, claiming to be the
oldest European Fort in India built around 1503 is situated
here. There is a light house at Ochanthuruthu in Vypeen open
from 3pm to 5am on all days.
Gundu Island
Located close to Vypeen, Gundu is the smallest island around
Cochin with an area of 5 acres completely surrounded by coconut
trees. There is a coir factory run by a co-operative society,
and the process of manufacturing coir from coconut fibre,
can be observed here. The island can be reached from Vypeen
Island only by boat.
Cherrai Beach
25 Kms from the mainland Ernakulam, it is a long stretch
with beautiful sand and coconut trees. It takes 40 minutes
from Vypeen to the beach.
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