The five best rides from Varkala are Kappil Beach and the backwaters (about 9 km north), Ponnumthuruthu island (about 9 km, plus a short boat), Anchuthengu fort (about 13 km south), the Edava–Odayam coastal loop (under 10 km round trip) and the Sivagiri and town circuit (about 3 km). All five are comfortable on a gearless scooter, and none takes a full day.
Distances are approximate and the roads change, so treat the timings as a guide rather than a schedule. Everything here assumes you're starting from the north cliff.
How far is Kappil Beach from Varkala?
About 9 km north, roughly 25 minutes on a scooter. It's the obvious first ride and it deserves the reputation: you follow the coast north and arrive where the Kappil backwaters run parallel to the sea with a narrow strip of road between the two. Standing on the bridge with lake on one side and surf on the other is the picture everyone comes for.
Go early. By late morning in season there are enough tour vans that the bridge stops being peaceful. The road is decent but narrow in places, with sand blown across it near the beach access points — brake gently there.
Boats run on the backwater if you want an hour on the water. Agree the price before you get in.
How do you get to Ponnumthuruthu island?
Ride about 9 km to the jetty, then take a short country boat across. Also called Golden Island, it's a small wooded island in Anjengo lake with a Shiva–Parvathy temple on it.
It's the quietest thing on this list by a distance. Ten minutes of paddling and the road noise is entirely gone. Check the boat timings locally before you set off — it isn't a continuous service, and turning up at the wrong hour means waiting.
Anchuthengu fort — about 13 km south, 30 minutes
An early English trading fort on the coast, right by the sea, with a lighthouse nearby and a long stretch of fishing beach. There's more history here than the site's condition suggests, and almost nobody visits.
This is the ride where a geared bike starts to make sense. You'll be on faster road for part of it, and the traffic behaves differently from Varkala's. Comfortable on a scooter if you're confident; slightly more work if you're not.
The Edava–Odayam loop — under 10 km round trip
The short one, and the one we'd send you on first if you've just picked up the bike. Head north through Odayam, keep going to Edava, come back on the inland road. Palms, backwater edges, villages, almost no tourists.
It's twenty-five minutes of riding and it's the best way to work out how the traffic here actually behaves before you commit to a longer day. Do it in the morning.
Sivagiri and the town circuit — about 3 km
Barely a ride, but worth doing. Sivagiri Mutt sits above the town and is a genuinely important place in Kerala's social history, not just a viewpoint. From there you can loop down through Varkala town, which is an ordinary working Kerala town and a useful antidote if you've only seen the cliff.
Ten minutes each way. Good for an hour you didn't know what to do with.
How far can you go on a day's rental?
Further than most people do. Every vehicle comes with a daily kilometre allowance and a per-kilometre charge beyond it, both listed on the pricing page. All five rides here together come to well under a hundred kilometres, so a single day's allowance covers a lot of ground.
If you're planning something bigger — Kollam to the north, Trivandrum or Kovalam to the south — tell us when you book. It changes which bike we'd give you, and we'd rather sort that out beforehand than have you on a scooter on a highway.
A few things worth knowing before you set off
- Fuel up in town. Pumps thin out quickly once you leave Varkala.
- Sand on tarmac near every beach access. It's the most common way people come off here.
- Don't ride unfamiliar roads after dark. Lighting outside town is close to nonexistent.
- Carry your licence and ID on you, not in the room.
- Google Maps is broadly right about these roads and occasionally very wrong about surface. If a shortcut looks improbable, it is.
Pick something to ride on the fleet page, or read scooter or motorcycle if you're deciding between the two.