The hotel occupies a clifftop headland above Kovalam's beaches — about sixty-seven acres with the Arabian Sea on three sides. The main building is a documented work of the architect Charles Correa, designed to cascade down the cliff face so the rooms look out over open water.
In the grounds stands Halcyon Castle, the Kovalam Palace, commissioned in 1932 by MaharaniMaharajaA ruling Indian prince — literally 'great king'; a maharani is his queen, or a princess ruling in her own right.Read in the glossary Sethu Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore as a royal summer retreat. Four Palace Suites — Sri Parvathy, Sri Lakshmi, Sri Sharada, Sri Swathi — are inside it.
Why We Place Guests Here
- The Correa building is the reason — few hotels in India are serious architecture, and this one steps down a headland rather than sitting on it.
- Halcyon Castle gives four palace suites with genuine Travancore history, inside a resort that otherwise reads as modern.
- Aaramam, the hotel's five-acre organic vegetable garden, supplies its own kitchens.
The Table
- The Tides
- The Terrace
- The Café
- The Bistro
- Jazz & Blues — bar
- The Sky Bar
The Elevated India Signature
Sundowners on the headland, where the cliff gives the whole western horizon at once.
Questions, Answered
Is this hotel still called The Leela Kovalam?
Yes, in full: The Leela Kovalam, a Raviz Hotel. It ran for about three years as The Raviz Kovalam after the RP Group acquired it, and the Leela name returned under a management agreement signed in March 2022. The Raviz group owns it; The Leela manages it.
What is Halcyon Castle at Kovalam?
The Kovalam Palace, commissioned in 1932 by Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore as a summer retreat. It stands within the hotel's grounds and holds four named Palace Suites.
Journeys That Take You There
Photography: Photograph courtesy The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts