Guide · On the water
Backwater Boat Trips Around Udupi — Kemmannu, Kodi Bengre and the Islands
Boat rides and houseboat-style trips on the Suvarna and Seetha rivers — where they leave from, what they cost, when to go, and which one to pick.
Behind the beaches of Udupi there is a second coastline that almost nobody photographs: a network of tidal rivers, mangrove channels and low green islands where the Suvarna and the Seetha spread out before reaching the sea.
You can be on it within twenty minutes of the coast, and outside a couple of famous spots you will have it to yourself.
The three ways onto the water
1. Kayak — the quiet one
Sit-on-top kayaks, guided trails through the mangroves, one to two hours. This is the most intimate way to do it: you get under the mangrove arches where a motorboat cannot follow, and you hear things.
Launches operate at Parampalli (two minutes from us), Kemmannu, Mattu, Hejamadi and Kodi near Kundapura. Ours is the original and the least busy.
Full detail in our mangrove kayaking guide.
2. Motorboat — the easy one
A boatman, a fibreglass boat, and an hour or so on the wider channels. No effort required, which makes it the right choice with small children, older parents, or anyone who does not fancy paddling in the heat.
Trips typically include the boatman, life jackets and water. Sunset departures are the ones worth booking, and they are also the ones that sell out.
3. Houseboat-style — the slow one
Larger covered boats running longer, slower circuits, sometimes with food. Kerala this is not — the scale is much smaller and the operators are local families rather than resort chains. That is either the appeal or the disappointment, depending on what you expected.
Where the boats leave from
Kemmannu hanging bridge — about 11 km from Udupi, roughly 25 minutes from us. A 280-foot suspension footbridge built in 1991, crossing to the islands of Padukudru and Timmanakudru. It is the best-known launch point on this stretch and several operators work from it. The bridge itself is worth the stop even without a boat.
Kodi Bengre / Delta — where the Suvarna meets the sea, about 9 km from Udupi. Boats run on the sheltered river side. The sea side here is dangerous — do not swim at Delta. Shifting sand and confluence currents have killed people.
Parampalli bridge — our end of the system, about 2 km off NH 66. Primarily kayaks.
Mattu, Hejamadi, Padubidri — further south, more kayak-focused.
When to go
Time of day matters more than the date. Early morning is flat, cool and full of birds. Late afternoon into sunset gives you the light. The middle of the day is hot, bright and worth skipping.
Tide matters too. The channels are shallow and at low tide the narrower ones turn to mud. Operators know the table — call rather than turning up.
Season: October to May. Through the monsoon the rivers run high and fast and the operators close.
What it costs
Expect a few hundred rupees per person for a standard shared boat ride, more for a private boat or a longer sunset circuit. Kayaking sits in a similar range. Prices vary between operators and move with the season, so confirm when you book rather than trusting any number you read online — including this one.
What you will actually see
Kingfishers, egrets, herons. Mudskippers on the banks. Cormorants drying their wings on stakes. If you are lucky and quiet, an otter.
Fishermen work the same water in wooden canoes, setting and hauling nets. Oyster beds on the shallows. Coconut plantations coming right down to the waterline, and the occasional house on stilts.
It is not dramatic scenery. It is calm, green, slow water with a lot going on in it — which is a different and in some ways better thing.
Booking notes
- Book a day or two ahead for sunset trips, which are the popular slot.
- Bring a hat, water, sunscreen and insect repellent. Dusk brings mosquitoes.
- Life jackets should be provided and worn. If they are not offered, ask.
- Children are generally fine on motorboats; ask about minimum ages for kayaks.
- Phones in a waterproof pouch, or left in the car.
Combining it with the rest of the day
The classic shape: boat or kayak early, breakfast after, beach for the middle of the day, then the coast road for sunset. The backwaters and the sea are ten minutes apart here, which is the unusual thing about this stretch.
If you are staying with us, the kayak launch is at the end of the lane and we will arrange the boat trips further down the coast, at the right tide, without a mark-up.
