Kollam

Kollam was Quilon to Arab, Chinese, and European traders for over a thousand years, a spice and cashew port on the Kerala coast that still processes more raw cashews than almost anywhere else in India. Ashtamudi Lake, the eight-armed backwater that gives the city its setting, is where most houseboat cruises into the Kerala backwaters now begin, quieter than the routes out of Alappuzha further north. Thangassery, the old colonial quarter, keeps a Portuguese-era lighthouse and the ruins of a Dutch fort along a stretch of black-sand beach. Coir, woven from coconut husk fiber, remains a household industry in villages around the lake. Browse talent in Kollam on this page; subscription tiers set visibility, and the platform manages the booking and the payment.