Venice of the East
Kerala is renowned for its emerald backwaters that sing of tranquility and rejuvination like Backwaters in Kerala is a network of 1500 km of canals both man-made and natural, 38 rivers and 5 big lakes extending from one end of Kerala to the other. While hill resorts and beaches can be found in other parts of India, the backwaters are unique to Kerala. Meandering through the coastal areas of Kerala is a 900 kilometers (560 miles) long intricate network of lagoons, lakes, canals, estuaries and deltas of several rivers that flow into the Arabian Sea. This is a natural phenomenon, as major rivers and streams that flows within Kerala drain themselves into backwaters regions, resulting in creation of several small land strips, lagoons, islands etc, which opens to sea at few areas. Thus backwaters are one of the largest fresh-water sources and rich in marine habitat as well as adds to natural beauty.