A one-day Kanyakumari drive, with honest timings

The sights around Kanyakumari are close together, which makes a one-day plan look easier on a map than it is. The distances are short; the queues, the temple hours and the parking are what fill the day. Here is a route that fits, with the timings that make it fit.

Before sunrise — leave Nagercoil by 5:15

It is about twenty kilometres from Nagercoil to Kanyakumari, and at that hour it takes half an hour. Leaving at a quarter past five gets you parked and walking with time to spare. If you are staying in Kanyakumari itself, ten minutes is enough, which is the main argument for staying the night.

The point, and the ferry

Sunrise from the shore is free and takes as long as you want. The ferry to the Vivekananda Rock is the decision: in season the queue can be an hour each way, and that is the single thing most likely to break the rest of the day. If you want the Rock, do it first and accept that the afternoon will be shorter. If you would rather see more, skip it and come back another morning.

Vattakottai — 6 km up the coast

Fifteen minutes' drive north along the coast road, and one of the better short drives in the district with the sea on your right the whole way. The fort itself needs half an hour. It is quieter early, and the wind picks up as the morning goes on.

Suchindram — 13 km inland

The Thanumalayan temple, about twenty-five minutes from Vattakottai. The important thing here is the timing: like most temples in the district it closes in the middle of the day and opens again in the late afternoon. Aim to arrive before noon or plan to come back at four — driving there at one o'clock means looking at a closed gate.

Padmanabhapuram Palace — 35 km on

The wooden palace at Thuckalay, roughly an hour from Suchindram allowing for traffic through Nagercoil. It closes earlier than people expect and it does not admit anyone in the last part of the afternoon, so this is the stop to check the hours for on the day rather than to assume. An hour and a half inside is about right; it is bigger than it looks.

What the day adds up to

• About 80 to 90 km of driving in total
• Roughly three hours behind the wheel, spread across the day
• The rest is walking, queuing and looking at things
• Sunset back at Kanyakumari if you have the energy; most people do not

Doing it yourself, or with a driver

Self-drive suits this day if you like setting your own pace and you do not mind parking. Every stop involves leaving the car somewhere crowded and walking back to it afterwards, which is the honest argument for taking a driver instead — the driving is the easy part and the parking is not. Either works; it depends which of those bothers you more.