Avanthi Homestay Varkala

Avanthi homestay is centrally located near the north cliff in varkala, with just a few minutes walk to the cliff side, beach, and the cafes dotting this area. Its entrance, however, faces east, away from the cliff and has to be reached through narrow lanes and streets from the main roads from the station. Travel-ling here with a big car (say sedan) may be difficult. The better option will be to park at the helipad and walk to the homestay which takes around 5 minutes. It is not directly accessible by a vehicle on either sides. However, its roof has a beautiful view of the beach, and the rooms guarantee privacy and quiet, away from the bustling activity near the cliff side. The rooms, as such, are in excellent condition - with wifi facilities, a tv, air conditioners, adequate storage such as a cupboard, bed side tables, tea tables, stools, and a coat hanger. The double beds can comfortably accommodate three adults. The bathroom facilities are good, with an attached western commode, and a shower area. There is no adequate ventilation in the toilet but this compensated with an exhaust fan, which needs to be switched on most of the times to dry the area. The rooms are sufficient to accommodate the needs of three adults. One of the rooms we stayed in (room no. 2) was a big space and extremely comfortable. There is a restaurant (satvik restaurant) located right above the homestay which provides tasty, and good quality vegetarian food. We ate most of the times from here as the food was affordable and agreeable, even for people who were sensitive to outside food. The only drawback was the service, which took a lot of time in some instances, as the kitchen had limited staff and servers. Payment was accepted in upi/gpay or cash. No cards were accepted. However, there were a few things that we, as women travellers in a group, found wanting and thought the owners must take into account from the perspective of safety. The homestay, as noted, was facing a quieter part of the town, and its entrance was similar to a shop front. We had to enter it, climb a flight of stairs and reach our rooms on the first floor. In terms of security, there were no doors or grills to separate the rooms from the other facilities available in the building (such as the cafe on the roof, or the tattoo and massage parlour located in the same floor as our rooms. There was a continuous stream of visitors and tourists coming to the cafes and other facilities and they could have easily accessed the rooms. A grill of some sort to separate the lodging facilities, which can be locked, is essential. We were also not sure if the shutters at the entrance were actually pulled down at the end of the day. Therefore, our rooms could have been accessible to any stray person who could walk in through the shop front. During our stay they installed a cctv camera near the entrance to the rooms, which was helpful but not assuring in itself. Another issue we were concerned about were the doors of the rooms. While there were strong main locks accessed through a key, the dead locks (such as bolts and latches) were not functional. They were misaligned and we could only use the keys to lock the main door. The keys were also not fitting perfectly into the locks. This was a serious concern and was an uneasy situation for us from the point of safety. While the entire stay was pleasant, and without any untoward incidents, these factors must be considered while making rooms available for tourists, especially for women travellers. There were other minor niggles such as the homestay did not provide us additional water (except the two bottles given for our welcome) or provide tissue rolls in the bathroom or do regular cleaning unless requested for. They could have also provided facilities to dry our clothes in the balcony. The in-residence caretaker was young and extremely helpful. He helped us with our luggage and finding transportation to the station while leaving. Overall, we will recommend avanthi for the comfortable and good stay during our vacation in varkala, provided these recommendations related to safety are prioritised by the owners and looked into.

Location: Centrally located near the North Cliff in Varkala. A few minutes’ walk to the cliffside, beach, and cafes. Entrance faces east, away from the cliff, accessed via narrow lanes. Difficult to reach by large vehicles; parking at the Helipad and walking (~5 minutes) is a better option. Not directly accessible by vehicles. Rooftop offers a beautiful beach view. Room Facilities: Excellent condition with amenities like Wi-Fi, TV, air conditioning, and storage (cupboard, tables, stools, coat hanger). Double beds comfortably accommodate three adults. Bathrooms have western commode and shower area but lack adequate ventilation, compensated by an exhaust fan. Spacious and comfortable rooms (e.g., Room No. 2). Dining: Satvik Restaurant above the homestay offers tasty and affordable vegetarian food. Accepts UPI/GPay and cash; no card payments. Service can be slow due to limited staff. Safety Concerns: Homestay entrance resembles a shopfront; access to rooms is via stairs. No doors or grills separate the rooms from other facilities in the building (café, tattoo, and massage parlour). Visitors to these facilities could potentially access the rooms. Entrance shutters may not always be secured at night. A CCTV camera was installed during the stay, but additional safety measures are needed. Room doors have strong main locks but misaligned deadlocks and ill-fitting keys. Other Issues: No additional water provided beyond the welcome bottles. Bathrooms lacked tissue rolls. Regular cleaning not done unless requested. No clothes-drying facilities on the balcony. Staff: Young and helpful caretaker assisted with luggage and transportation. Recommendation: Avanthi Homestay is recommended for its comfort, location, and facilities, provided the safety concerns (secure entrances, functioning locks, etc.) are addressed, especially for women travellers.