User:Ashsmiles/Kumarakom Lake Resort

Kumarakom Lake Resort
A premium heritage retreat by the banks of the famed backwaters of Kumarakom in Kerala, Kumarakom Lake Resort has 59 ethnic luxury rooms and villas. A member of the Small Luxury Hotels of The World and owned by Indian entrepreneur, Paul P John, it is the first of his two premium properties, the second being the all suite luxury hotel, The Paul Bangalore, at Bangalore city. Kumarakom Lake Resort was launched in 2000.

History
During the construction of Kumarakom Lake Resort, the entirety of Kerala had been searched for ancestral homes and over a hundred such homes were purchased, each over a 100 years old.

The well-maintained portions of each home have been adapted at the resort, such as the doors, windows, the carved belt across each villa, the latticed gable on the roof, the wood paneling on the walls etc.

The entire resort is themed on Kerala's age-old architecture and the villas represent the homes of yesteryear Kerala.

The open-air bathrooms of the heritage villas carry forth the feel of bathing areas in ancient homes where the bathroom was detached from the main house and was mainly a structure with 4 walls and no roof.

Doors with ancient bell-shaped locks or manichithrathazhu, light switches that had been popular during the olden days etc help to reconstruct the entire feel of ancient Kerala architecture.

Two main ancestral homes have been retained in their original structures, that is, the 200-year-old Ayurmana, which had once been the home of the Chathamangalathu Mana, a family of renowned Ayurvedic practitioners. This exquisite Nalukettu or four-sided mansion had been transported in its entirety from its original location to the Kumarakom Lake Resort, and had been recreated with careful detail and expertise and stands in pride as the Ayurveda center of the resort.

The second ancient structure at Kumarakom Lake Resort, the Ettukettu, had been commissioned to be built by the King of Travancore. This two hundred year old Ettukettu or Eight – sided Mansion was built at Karackal Peringara near Kavumbhagam, Thiruvalla and had been gifted to the martial arts Master, Edamana Kallamthat Gurukkal, in recognition of the revered position the Gurukkal held in the King’s court. According to the Aithihyamala (Chapter 12, page 82) Raja Marthanda Varma, the King of Travancore, had been in desperate need of a tutor in martial arts to train Rama Varma, the heir to the throne, and had been impressed by the Gurukkal who had been at attendance at the court of the King of Kayamkulam at the time. The Gurukkal was appointed by Raja Marthanda Varma and was soon conferred with the title of ‘Royal Master of the King’, and this honor had been held by the Gurukkal’s descendents till the end of monarchy in Kerala. This ancestral home, with eight sides and 2 central courtyards bespeaks the grandeur of Kerala’s historic and regal architecture, and had been acquired from the present Gurukkal, Sri. Krishnan Namboothiri. Carefully dismantled, transported to Kumarakom Lake Resort and painstakingly reassembled by a dedicated team of expert traditional carpenters and engineers, the Ettukettu stands in all its glory at the resort as its multi-cuisine restaurant and is today dedicated to culinary arts as it once was to martial arts.

Though Kumarakom Lake Resort has been styled as per Kerala’s traditional architectural norms ultimate modern luxury and comfort is maintained and provided to guests.

Salient features
The 25 acres of the resort is crisscrossed with canals with footbridges giving guests the natural feel of residing at Kerala's rustic village of Kumarakom which is criss-crossed with canals and where each home is set by the banks of the canals.

The most recent feature at Kumarakom Lake Resort is its recently launched category of spacious luxury rooms.

Twenty-six heritage villas are set by a 250 meter long meandering pool with private alcoves and entrances to the pool directly from each villa. Twenty-two heritage villas with private plunge pools and Jacuzzi enjoy views of the lake or of the gardens. The two Presidential Suites with private pools and courtyards are set in private seclusion by the lake.

Each villa and room at Kumarakom Lake Resort features hand painted authentic traditional murals, each different from the other and each depicting scenarios from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and the other ancient scriptures. This feature honors the traditional mural arts of Kerala can be seen in innumerable temples, churches and palaces across the state.

Awards and Accolades
Kumarakom Lake Resort has been awarded three times in a row as India's Leading Resort by the World Travel Awards (2006, 07 and 08).

Voted as one of the top 25 resorts in Asia at the Conde Nast Reader's choice polls.

Featured by Travel & Leisure as one of the 50 Best Romantic Getaways.

Member of the Small Luxury Hotels of World.

Featured as a sophisticated luxury resort in the New York Times.

Acclaimed as 'the place for a holiday pamper' by the Wall Street Journal.