Kannur Travel

There are several tourist attractions in Kannur. The St. Angelos Fort in the Kannur Cantonment, which was constructed in 1505, is a symbol of Portuguese architecture and attracts plenty of tourists. The Thalassery Fort is an important tourist center in Kannur. Kannur beach and Ezhimala are known for scenic beauty. Places of Historic importance, like the house of Gundert, who composed the first Malayalam-English Dictionary and the mosque at Madayi constructed in 1124, using marble brought from Mecca attract many tourists to Kannur.

Fort St. Angelos is in the West of Kannur town. It was built in 1505 by the first Portuguese Viceroy, Don Francisco De Almeida, with the permission of the Kolathiris, on the promontory jutting into the Lakshadweep sea. The Dutch captured the fort in 1663 and sold it to the Ali Raja of Kannur in 1772, and in 1790 it came into the possession of the British. The British rebuilt it and made it their most important station in Malabar. This fort is in a fairly good state of preservation, though parts of it have collapsed. A few ancient cannons are on display inside the fort. The fort is a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India.

The British arrived in Thalassery in 1683 and erected a trading shed there. They shifted their commercial capital to Thalassery from Kozhikode, following obstruction from the Dutch. In 1700, the British built the Thalassery fort on a small hill called Tiruvellapadakunnu and in 1708, it was strengthened by increasing its height and with bastions. The fort is a square structure built of laterite and is distinguished by its massive ventilated walls and strong flanking bastions. It was here that Haider's captain was imprisoned. The famous St. Johns Anglican Church is behind this fort. It is another tourist attraction in Kannur.

The snake park at Parassinikadavu is 18 kms. away from Kannur town. It is one of the known snake parks in the state. The park is dedicated to the preservation and conservation of snakes, most of which are becoming extinct gradually. There is a large collection of poisonous and non-poisonous snakes. Snake demonstrations conducted every hour draw large crowds to Kannur.

The Payyambalam beach is one of the beautiful beaches in Kerala and is an ideal place to spend evenings, irrespective of seasons. It is near Kannur town.

Moppila Bay is a natural fishing harbour, lying near Fort St. Angelos in Kannur. A sea wall projecting from the fort separates the rough sea and inland water. The bay was famous during the Kolathiri's regime as a commercial harbour that linked Kolathunadu with Lakshadweep and foreign countries, in imports. Today, Mopila bay has turned into a modernised fishing harbour, developed under the Indo-Norwegian pact.