Spice Village was built, as CGH Earth put it, the way you would build a village — local materials, native artisans, cottages dispersed through twelve acres of working spice garden rather than arranged around a block. The roofs are thatched in dry elephant grass using a technique of the local Mannan people, and the cottage form follows Mannan dwellings.
It sits in the cool Thekkady highlands immediately adjoining the Periyar Tiger Reserve, with pepper and cardamom growing between the cottages. Fifty-two cottages, no air-conditioning in the garden category, coir mats on stone floors.
Why We Place Guests Here
- The 50 Mile Diet restaurant sources every ingredient within fifty miles — not a slogan here but a working constraint, and the food is better for it.
- Periyar is on the other side of the fence, with forest treks led by tribal guides and bamboo rafting on the lake.
- CGH Earth's environmental practice is real: the resort's own paper-making centre turns its waste into the notepads, menus and luggage tags in your room.
The Table
- The 50 Mile Diet — everything sourced within fifty miles
- Tamarind — all-day regional and international
- Woodhouse Lounge — the bar, with a 150-year-old billiards table
The Elevated India Signature
The dawn forest trek into Periyar with a tribal guide, before the lake boats start.
Questions, Answered
What is the 50 Mile Diet at Spice Village?
A restaurant that sources every ingredient within fifty miles of Thekkady, which shapes the menu around what the season and the surrounding farms actually produce.
Can you see wildlife at Thekkady?
Spice Village adjoins the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Guided forest treks with tribal guides and bamboo rafting are the serious ways in; the lake boat is the crowded one. Elephant, gaur and sambar are regular, tiger very rarely seen.
Journeys That Take You There
Explore the destination guide: Thekkady, Kerala ↗
Photography: Photograph courtesy CGH Earth