Matha Amrithanandamayi Mission

Lonely Planet review

The ashram of Matha Amrithanandamayi, one of India's very few female gurus, Amrithanandamayi is known as Amma (Mother) and is called 'The Hugging Mother' because of the darshan (blessing) she practises, often hugging thousands of people in marathon all-night sessions. The ashram runs official tours at 17:00 each day, or you may be able to get someone to show you around when you arrive off the boat.

It's a huge complex, with around 2000 people living here permanently - monks and nuns, students, Indian families and Westerners. There's food available, Ayurvedic treatments, yoga and meditation, as well as souvenirs from the cult of Amma, everything from books to postcards of her toes.

Amma travels around for much of the year, so you might be out of luck if you're after a cuddle. Visitors should dress conservatively and there is a strict code of behaviour. You can stay at the ashram for around Rs150 per day (including simple vegetarian meals) and pick up an onward or return cruise a day or two later. Alternatively, you can take a (free) ferry to the other side of the canal anytime. From here a rickshaw will take you the 10km to Karunagappally (around Rs100 ) and you can take one of the frequent buses from there to Alleppey ( Rs30 , 1½ hours).