I have posted somewhere else, but it was a while ago so you may have missed it.

Basically our experience was horrific. We spent all day on the houseboat cruising Lake Allepey which was very pleasant. Before sunset we anchored about a mile from the shore, meal was cooked which was excellent then we went to bed.

At about midnight the boat was attacked by local fisherman. The got on board and started demanding cameras and money from our crew. Luckily they didn't get in our cabin (or try to).

We asked to return to the hotel on shore, but they wouldn't move the boat as it would have fouled the fishermans nets. From my experience do not go on such a trip unless there are a number of boats on the same trip - we were told there would be a few of us, but we ended up alone. My wife still has mild panic attacks if she awoken from sleep by loud noises and this happened a few years ago.

Thanks for your info, daveyjp. What a horrific experience for you both.
If I ever manage to get on Houseboats, I will make sure there is more than one boat going.
I have been on small boats down Ganges from Varanassi. It was a wonderful experience. There were about 6 boats then and 2 crew to each boat.
I am informed that the houseboats operate from Kandahar too, but it is too dangerous to go there just now...carry on dreaming Jopa

JOPya We had a wonderful time we cruised down the backwaters of allepy in April. We had the boat to ourselves with the crew and had a meal cooked for us it was wonderful would highly recommend this trip.

Hi Nessa. Your trip sounds wonderful. Which Company did you go with and for how long?
Thanks, Jopa.

We went on an overnight trip from Allepey...fabulous. Our boat had 3 cabins, all had a shower but no air-con. We slept with the window flaps open and watched as the dawn broke and the waterways came alive again. A magical experience. The food cooked on the boat was incredible considering the cook only had two gas burners.
We were a boat on our own and at no time was there any thing to threaten us. I would not want to be part of a flottila or go on an air conditioned boat as the magic would be lost as you are sealed in your room !

Hi Dave, Your Houseboat Cruise sounds fabulous. Only one problem...I would want to stay on board longer!
Have you tried the Gulets in Turkey...they are traditional wooden boats with brill food.I see there is a good offer on at teletext just now...£139 for a week on Gulet full board inc. flights from First Choice. If I hadn't been booked on a cruise shortly, I would jump at the offer!
Happy Cruising,
Yours Aye,
Jopa.

The gulet sounds good, but I couldn't find any offers !

Hi Dave. Go to teletext tv pages, find Turkey, 3rd offer down page, First Choice...7nts, FB, £139. Phone 08009165174.
Might just be offered from Scotland???
Good Luck...send me a postcard!!!
Yours Aye,
Jopa.

We have been on a houseboat a couple of times now and think it is absolutely fantastic. We had a guide with us the second time and he was invaluable - we met some of the people who lived on the backwaters and had a drink with them, and visited local churches that you would never have known had existed.

As previously mentioned, the food is incredible. We managed to persuade the crew to eat with us and spent the evening chatting freely about the differences between our two lands, politics, religion etc.

I have not found anything to beat the experience of watching and listening to the dawn through a window 'flap' whilst lying on a bed.

The only downside is that the beds are barely big enough for one person, let alone 2, and if you have any part of your flesh up against the mozzie net you know it's going to get it!

Both myself and my OH go on holiday for experiences and 'moments' that flash back into our memories and the most frequent ones are of the houseboat trips.

Enjoy!

Hi Blondepuff. Thanks for your info on Houseboats.
Did you just have the one night aboard?
Can you give me any info on the cost?
Anything to see other than Churches?
Can you walk in Villages?
I was really looking for a trip of at least one week.
I can appreciate your experience of watching the Dawn.
When I go on the Turkish Gulets, I try to get the Cabin at back of the boat as the window is large enough to slide through into the water before the other guys waken...Brill!!!
I always say that the Gulets are my idea of "Heaven"
Yours Aye,
Jopa.

Hi jopa, sorry for the delay. I forgot to check back on this one!

There is more to see on the backwaters, not just churches. We visited some local villages and some toddy shops too. I think a week would be too long and very costly. I can't remember the cost but it was over £100 for the afternoon/night/morning.

If you wanted to go for more than one night then probably two or three would be enough. Although there are things to see,the majority of the experience is cruising on the boat which I would imagine would get very 'samey' after a while.

Whatever you decide, I would really recommend the trip.

you may not have noticed the "watch this topic" at the bottom of the reply box. If you click on that you will get an email alert when there is a reply. It is quite handy.

Thanks for reply Blondepuff.
Was that £100 for single person?
Expensive!!!
Yours Aye,
Jopa