Can’t really describe how good a time we had last month riding with Mike at Mountain Bike Kerala. Trails were awesome, as was the weather, but to be honest, I think the people and the place topped the riding. Hope the pictures do it a little bit of justice

That looks fantastic. How much did it cost if you don’t mind me asking?

We got really cheap flights with Emirates, and MTB Kerala is not expensive <http://www.mountainbikekerala.com/&gt; Can’t think of a better value long haul guided mtb holiday

Looks amazing, I have to get back to India soon its such a great place full of amazing people!

SSP

Am thinking about this trip. What did you think about the accomodation, how was it? Cheers, Steve

now thats awesome!!!!

looks amazing, was tempted to try and sort some biking out when i was in ladakh but didnt have the time (had an amazing trek/climbing experience instead to make up for it!) 😀 really want to go to kerala now!

i was looking into this particular MTB holiday the other night.

they seem to be competive price wise and their 10 day itinerary looks good.

One thing that put me off was that the pickup and drop-off point is Kochin. There appears no airlines that fly there directly and you have to do a transfer.

Sheck – where did you fly from?

gazc – what biking did you have in mind in ladakh? It wasn't that 'ride up to 5500m!!!!' day trip was it? I would love to do something nuts like ride Srinagar to Leh, but it doesn't really lend itself to that unless you really like roughing it. Shimla/ Manali would both be good tho.

Those photos look amazing; I loved Kerala when I was there but didn't think of biking there. Did you take your own bike?

I am so glad that this original post is getting some coverage, even if it is 9 months on!

I cannot speak highly enough about it, and am currently struggling to come up with a better holiday for 2010 – so will probably return.

The thing about the holiday is (assuming you haven't been before?) you have to get your head round India as well as the biking. To be honest, I don't think I made as much of the biking as I could, because there was so much else to take in. There is all sorts of terrain out there, with guaranteed weather, great scenery, the friedliest people I've ever encountered and fabulous food.

Mike runs the trips on a fairly authentic basis. For example, you eat where the locals eat (where the food is best) rather than where you might be offered a knife and fork!

The accommodation is bed and breakfast Indian style. Typically we were staying in people's homes or basic hotels. We had western WCs and showers, clean beds and bedclothes, but no particular luxury. The pricing is very competitive, and with the exception of the old colonial hunting lodge (where we were lucky enough to spend 4 days) – http://www.nickheckscher.fotopic.net/p56006343.html – the standard of accommodation reflects this. Having said all of that, if you can afford the time, spending a few quid extra for a night on a houseboat in the backwaters is worth it for a bit of post-ride pamper.

Regarding flights – we flew Emirates from LHR via Dubai. Although flight times were a bit awkward (3am arrival in Kochi) the fares were very competitive – about £410 return. The transfer to the Mountains from Kochi is probably a 4 hour minibus ride, but to be honest, there's so much to see that it's not as bad as it might sound.

As you can tell, I think this is the best possible way to spend 2 January weeks, and am wrestling with the part of me that wants to see new things, so that I can go back

Nicko74 – yes I took my bike – and I would again (even though Emirate are miserable about baggage allowances!)

Cheers Sheck, very tempting. Have asked if the trip's running on 20th Dec and if there's space, your pix and impressions sound really good. Cheers, Steve