Kerala Houseboats (Riceboats) or kettuvallam are country boats that were used in the early days for the transport of goods from the isolated interior villages of Kerala Backwater area to the towns like Alleppey, Kollam, Cochin and Kottayam. With the advent of roads, bridges and ferry services, gradually the kettuvalloms went off the scene. Now these kettuvalloms are back again as a major tourist attraction as a modern moving boat house that is kerala houseboats . kerala houseboats size vary from, about to 95 feet feet in length and a width of around 13 feet to in the middle for one bedroom houseboat and , big houseboats with up 107 feet long and up to 19 feet wide. The materials that go into the making are all local and Eco friendly bamboo poles, coconut fiber ropes, bamboo mats, coir carpets etc. The main wood used is "Anjili".

Kerala house boats have fully furnished single double triple and five bedrooms with sundeck, private balcony with comfortable chairs, kitchen and toilet with WC. In addition there is also separate rest room.

houseboats in Kerala have a three member crew - a chef, driver & cabin assistants. The cuisine is traditional Kerala flavor with the local specialties; delicious local fish. There are single bedroom houseboats for two people and two bedroom houseboats for four people.and 3 bedroom houseboat for 6 , and 5 bedroom houseboat for 10 People.
The spectacular beauty of Kerala's backwaters needs no introduction. A Kerala Houseboats cruise along the palm-fringed waterways of Kerala in luxury houseboats is the most enchanting holiday experience in India today. In this world of simple pleasures, you will skim past ancient Chinese fishing nets, water lilies, lush paddy fields, coir villages, rustic homes, temples and coconut groves. A guided tour down the backwaters would provide you with a complete and most enchanting experience on the back waters of Kerala and will also reveal to you some interesting facts about the life of local village people. This month's lens view takes you to the backwater stretch of the Vembanad, where one can go for a leisurely cruise on a multi deck boat, allowing you enjoy the scenic backwater life.