SIGNATURE MOMENT

Luxuriate in exceptional accommodation in heritage hotels and deluxe resorts

SIGNATURE MOMENT

Delight in the lush green landscapes

SIGNATURE MOMENT

Feast your eyes on World Heritage Site temples and monuments

SIGNATURE MOMENT

Connect with chefs at a cooking class featuring Kerala spices

South India: Temples and Tropical Landscapes

Nov 06-17, 2026

12 days | India | Alumni Expeditions

This tour is presented by the alumni associations of the University of Alberta, Western University, the University of British Columbia, and the University of Guelph. All are welcome!

Experience the rich culture of scenic South India through its fascinating art, architecture, and rituals in a slew of World Heritage Sites. Feast your eyes on lush, tropical landscapes, rice paddies, sugar cane, coconut groves, and colourful villages as you travel along the shores of the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea.

Discover grand temples, testaments to the great cultural opulence left behind by vanished dynasties. Delight in the French colonial vibe of Pondicherry and marvel at the restored courtyard mansions of Chettinad. Immerse yourself in the lush plantations of Periyar and learn to prepare a meal with the freshest of spices.

Savour the culinary traditions of the south; aromatic cuisines with an abundance of fresh vegetables and lightly spiced with influences of the merchants from around the word who came here to trade and left their mark on the regional cuisines.

Delight in luxurious accommodation: a picture-perfect French colonial inn on the Coromandel Coast; a restored heritage mansion deep in the interior; and a resort set in emerald-green rolling hills covered with spice plantations.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SOUTH INDIA! WATCH A WEBINAR:
Madurai’s Meenakshi: Poetics and Space in a South Indian Goddess Temple
Hosted by Adjunct Professor at the University of Saskatchewan’s St. More College and Study Leader Meera Kachroo
Watch it here. (42 min. + Q&A)

Tour Cost (per person):

US$7685 including taxes and gratuities

Group Size:

12 - 16 participants

What’s included: Airport transfers for passengers arriving and departing as per the group itinerary; accommodation based on double occupancy in hotels listed or similar; meals as indicated in the itinerary; all internal transportation by private coach; sightseeing with qualified English-speaking guides; all activities and entrance fees; one cooking class; two performances; taxes and gratuities (for guides, drivers, hotels, restaurants); fully escorted by your Worldwide Quest tour leader

FEATURED ON THE BLOG

Hotels in South India You May Never Want to Leave

I loved all the opportunities we had to cook and learn alongside the many professional and home chefs. I want to go back! - Quest Traveller

Itinerary at a Glance

Day	Activity
1	Arrive Chennai, Transfer to Mahabalipuram
2	Shore Temple of Mahabalipuram
3	Chennai
4	Along the Coromandel Coast to Pondicherry
5	Explore Pondicherry - the capital of French India
6	Temple town of Kumbakonam
7	Chettinad via Tanjore
8	Cooking class in Chettinad
9	Madurai
10	Across the Western Ghats to Periyar
11	Periyar’s spice gardens
12	Kochi: The Venice of the East
13	Fishing nets and Kerala cuisine

Download Itinerary

Your Tour Leader

Meera Kachroo is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Religion and Culture at St. Thomas More College in Saskatoon (Treaty 6). In both research and teaching, she highlights the perennial texts and teachings of Asian religions and how they flourish in modern lives.

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