Hi guys, this month I am doing a Travel Series on Lakshadweep on my Blog and YouTube channel. And, this is the 2nd post of the series. Lakshadweep is the smallest union territory of India. It is located off the west coast of India in the Arabian sea and it’s just 496 Kms from Kochi. Lakshadweep is a group of 36 islands, out of which only 10 are inhabited and tourists can stay only on 5 of these islands. When we decided to visit these islands, the budget was on the top of our mind. So, the first thing we wanted to check was the best way to reach Lakshadweep with kids. And, how much it would cost us.

Image Source – https://lakshadweep.gov.in/

Of all the trips we have done, Lakshadweep had been the most trickiest one. The biggest reason for this is that not much information (reliable and updated) is available online. Also, the tourism management on the islands is not privatized and everything is managed by the Government authority – SPORTS (The Society for Promotion of Nature Tourism and Sports).

Now coming back to the topic, I will be writing about the best way we found to reach Lakshadweep as a family with a 7 year old kid. I feel when we travel with kids, it’s a different game altogether. If you really want to enjoy the whole travel experience then focus on making the journey comfortable & less exhausting not just for the kids but also for the parents.

In most cases, kids seem to adjust well but it’s the parents who feel burnt out.

So, if you want to travel with your babies, toddlers or young children; stick to this post till the end and hopefully you will also find the best way to reach Lakshadweep with your kids.

Here is the 1st post of this series – Andaman or Lakshadweep? How to Choose the Perfect Beach Destination?

How to Reach Lakshadweep?

As we travelled to Lakshadweep from Bengaluru (South India), initially I thought of sharing all the details of bookings from Bengaluru only. But since most of our friends and family are in North India, I will give an idea how you can reach Lakshadweep from Delhi as well.

I have made a short video on the same topic, do check it out.

There are only 2 ways to reach Lakshadweep –

• By Ship – Pvt. Cruise Ship & Govt. Cruise Ship
• By Flight

First of all, let’s talk about reaching Lakshadweep by ship.

How to reach Lakshadweep by Ship?

In case you want to experience the cruise and also visit Lakshadweep, you get to choose from private and government cruise.

The private cruise is operated only by Cordelia Cruises in India.

You may choose from 3 night, 4 night and 5 night cruise itinerary which includes 1 day at Lakshadweep. You may also choose from one way trip and round trip.

Image Source – https://www.cordeliacruises.com/

The upcoming Cordelia Cruise dates in Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May and June 2024 are as follows-

Approx. Price Range as per Room Category

Kids (max 2) up to the age of 12, sail free with Cordelia when accompanied by 2 Adults.

• 5k to 20k per guest per night

This is a great choice for people who want to enjoy the luxury cruise as well experience the pristine beauty of Lakshadweep islands.

Note 1 – The price does not include island tour/excursion and any of the activities on the island. 

Note 2 – All the payments on board the ship are done in Dollars $.

To book this cruise, you may visit the Cordelia cruise website or download their app. You may also call them directly and discuss the various packages available.

There are 3 drawbacks of choosing this cruise –

1. You won’t be able to spend the night in Lakshadweep.
2. The cruise will take you to only 1 island in Lakshadweep.
3. You will get only 1 day (5-6 hours) to explore the island.

All these cons led us to ditch the Cordelia Cruises but it’s still on our bucket list, may be not for Lakshadweep.

The cruise does not operate during the monsoon months from June to September.

Now, if you need more days to explore the stunning beauty of Lakshadweep but still want to travel by ship; then you may consider taking the Govt. cruise.

Govt. Cruise to Lakshadweep – Samudram (By M.V Kavaratti)

Samudram is a 5-Day cruise package which covers the 3 different islands in Lakshadweep; Minicoy, Kavaratti, and Kalpeni. The cruise starts from Kochi and does a roundtrip back to Kochi.

The Govt. cruise is not a luxurious cruise and provides only the basic facilities on board. As per the Samudram Itinerary, they take you to 3 different islands on Day 2, Day 3 & Day 4 of your journey. However, the tourists need to return back to the ship around 4-5 pm after spending their day exploring the island. You can not spend the night at any of the visiting islands.

Image Source – https://www.lakshadweepcruise.com/

To book this cruise package, you may visit the SPORTS website to check the availability and may be do the bookings also.

But this part is a bit tiring as during the peak season, the website doesn’t show the available dates and prices directly. So, you have to put in your dates of interest and check if the cruise is available or not. Most of the times, the booking page will take you to Authorized Travel Agents page.

So, to avoid the hassles of booking and saving some time, you may choose to do the bookings with the travel agent.

Package Rate for Samudram

You get 2 types of rooms/cabins to book on M.V Kavaratti; Diamond Class and Gold Class.

Image Source – https://www.tripoto.com/

The Diamond class cabin has 1 bunk bed (2 single beds, one above the other/ 2-berths) and can accommodate 2 Adults and 1 Child (less than a year old). Whereas the Gold class cabin has 2 bunk beds (4-berths) and it can accommodate 4 Persons (including children above the age of 1).

Lakshadweep Samudram Package Source – https://www.lakshadweeptourism.com/

Please Note – The Samudram package rate includes the island sightseeing charges.

Note 1 – As per their website, child is 1 year and above up to 10 years.

Note 2 – The charges are paid per person basis so if you are 3 people including a child and you book Gold class then there’s a high chance that they will accommodate another person in your cabin. So, you may not get the privacy.

Also, the Gold class cabins are compact, some may feel claustrophobic in there.

If you want to book Samudram, I would suggest you to watch some of the latest videos on YouTube to get an idea what to expect.

We did not book the Samudram package as we were not sure if we would be comfortable enough to spend 5 days on the ship.

If I have to decide between the Cordelia Cruises and Samudram, I feel traveling with Cordelia is the best way to reach Lakshadweep with kids.

How to reach Lakshadweep by Flight?

Reaching Lakshadweep by flight is the fastest and easiest way if you are travelling from Kochi, Bengaluru or somewhere nearby. However, if you are flying in from Delhi, or any other part of the country then it may take a bit of planning; as there are no direct flights available.

But still taking a flight can be considered the best way to reach Lakshadweep with kids.

There is only single direct flight (Alliance Air) that operates from Kochi to Agatti and back to Kochi that too once a day. The flight duration is 1 hour and 20 mins.

At Agatti Airport, Lakshadweep

It departs from Cochin International Airport (COK) at 8:55 AM and reaches Agatti Airport (AGX) in Lakshadweep at 10:15 AM.

The same flight then departs from AGX at 10:45 AM and arrives back at COK at 12:05 PM.

One way flight charges from Kochi per person are INR 5,647 approx.

How to Reach Lakshadweep by Flight from Bengaluru?

Now, if you are travelling from Bengaluru, you have an option to book the same Alliance Air flight from Bengaluru to Agatti. Yes, it’s a connecting flight!

The flight departs from Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR) at 7:15 AM and reaches Agatti Airport (AGX) in Lakshadweep at 10:35 AM with 1 Stop at COK.

One way flight charges from Bengaluru per person are INR 20k to 21k approx.

The only issue here is the price, which is too high.

Because instead of booking this direct flight if we book a separate flight from BLR to COK, the charges are from 1.5 k to 2.5 k depending on the time of flight. So, you get to save a lot.

The only catch here is you need to book an early morning flight from BLR, keeping in mind that the flight may get delayed. In that case, you will miss your another flight to Lakshadweep from Kochi.

And, there are very slim chances that you will get another flight the next day as the flight is usually full. And, if this happens your whole vacation plan will go for a toss.

So, although this whole arrangement sounds okay but considering the logistics and keeping in mind that you are travelling with kids, it seems like a total flop idea.

Then what can we do if we still want to save some bucks and not make it an exhausting journey?

Now, you may consider these 2 options for which you need to add 1 extra day to your travel-

1- Catch a flight from BLR to COK a day prior to your actual travel date. Reach Kochi & stay at a hotel nearby airport for the night. And, the next day easily take your 8:55 AM flight to Lakshadweep.

• BLR to COK Flight – Approx. INR 2k to 3k
• Stay at Kochi – Approx. INR 3k to 5k
• COK to AGX Flight – Approx. INR 6k

Total cost – INR 7.5k to INR 8.5k (plus 3k-5k for stay)

2- Take an overnight train from Bengaluru to Kochi. Stay 1 night in Kochi and catch your Lakshadweep flight the next day. This way you will be able to save your whole day in Kochi and may use it to explore the city.

Here’s a Vlog of our Overnight Train Journey from Bengaluru to Kochi.

• KSR Bengaluru to Ernakulam ERN Train – Approx. INR 2.5k (AC First Class, 1A)
• Stay at Kochi – Approx. INR 3k to 5k
• COK to AGX Flight – Approx. INR 6k

Total cost – Approx. INR 8k-9k (plus 3k-5k for stay)

Kanyakumari Express (16526) departs at 8:00 PM from KSR Bengaluru and reaches Ernakulam Town ERN at 7:30 AM.

And, this is what we did as we wanted to travel comfortably. This way we were able to experience the train journey as well. Moreover, we were able to save around 10k per person.

If you are travelling with a child under the age of 5, you may further save the charges for 1 berth if child can sleep with you on the same berth. I feel this is one of the best ways to reach Lakshadweep with kids.

Pro Tip – If you choose to travel by train, instead of getting down at ERN, get down at Angamaly (AFK) at 6:41 AM which is just 10 mins from the COK airport.

Our travel agent in Lakshadweep suggested that we take the flight on the same day after getting down from the train. He said even if the train gets delayed, it won’t be more than 30 mins.

But we still didn’t want to take any risks so we decided to stay 1 night at Kochi.

So, these are all the ways by which you can reach Lakshadweep from Bengaluru.

How to Reach Lakshadweep by Flight from Delhi?

Lastly, let’s talk about reaching Kochi by flight from Delhi. There is no other way except to book a flight a day prior to Kochi. Then stay at Kochi overnight and next day take your morning flight to Lakshadweep.

The nonstop flight charges from DEL to COK starts from INR 7k and may go up to INR 10,000.

So, total charges would be-

• DEL to COK – Approx. INR 7k to 9k
• Stay at Kochi – Approx. INR 3k to 5k
• COK to AGX – Approx. INR 6k

Total cost – INR 16k to INR 20k

So, with this we come to the end of our post. There are 2 different ways of travelling to Lakshadweep, one is by ship and another is by flight. Now, it’s up to you to decide what would be the best way to reach Lakshadweep with kids. It all depends on your preferences and budget. Also, you are the right judge of what would be the best for your kids. I have tried my best to cover all the available options with price details to make your job a little easy.

I hope you found it helpful, please do share the post with your friends and family! We will meet again very soon with another interesting post on Lakshadweep Travel. Till then, Bye Bye and Take Care.

You may read the other posts of this series here – Lakshadweep Travel Series!

You may also check out: Lakshadweep Travel Guide for Families!

The post What is the Best Way to Reach Lakshadweep with Kids? With Price Details appeared first on Growing With Nemit.