Payyoli, Kozhikode: Where It Is & Best Places to Visit

Payyoli at a glance

Where is Payyoli? Which district is it in?

Payyoli is in Kozhikode district, on the North Malabar coast between Koyilandy to the south and Vadakara to the north. Administratively it falls in Koyilandy taluk and is run as Payyoli Municipality; for elections it sits in the Vatakara Lok Sabha constituency. You will also see it spelt "Payoli". Payyoli Angadi, the old market area, is part of the same town but has its own post office, so check the PIN before you post anything there.

Coming from Kozhikode city, you drive north on NH 66 through Elathur, Koyilandy and Thikkodi. The highway runs right through town, and the beach is a 2 km turn-off toward the sea. Kerala Tourism's route listing puts it at 38 km from Kozhikode, 10.5 km from Vadakara and 18 km from Perambra (Kerala Tourism, Routes and Locations).

Top places to visit in and around Payyoli

A small municipality town on the Malabar coast, Payyoli is mostly about its shoreline, plus a handful of history and craft stops within 10 km. The table ranks them roughly by distance from the town centre. Details for each follow.

1. Payyoli Beach and Velliyamkallu

Payyoli Beach is a long, plain stretch of sand backed by coconut palms and fishing boats, with water that stays shallow well out from the shore. On weekday afternoons you may share it with a few fishermen mending nets and not much else. The dark hump on the horizon is Velliyamkallu, a rock island that DTPC Kozhikode describes as bordering this beach; and at sunset it turns into a black silhouette against the sea. The beach is 1.9 km from Payyoli railway station and 2.1 km from the bus stand (DTPC Kozhikode). For swimming spots, stay options and photos of the beach itself, read our Payyoli Beach guide.

2. Kolavi Palam Beach and the Theeram turtle centre

Kolavi Palam Beach is a long stretch of golden sand and shallow water that Kerala Tourism calls "Turtle Beach", running for roughly 4 km between Payyoli and Vadakara. In November and December, endangered Olive Ridley turtles come ashore here at night to lay eggs. A group of local fishermen started Theeram, a nature conservation centre that moves the eggs to a guarded hatchery and releases the hatchlings to the sea once they hatch. Nesting has become much rarer in recent seasons, and some months pass without a single sighting, so ask at Theeram whether any releases are planned before you make the trip. If one is, arrive early in the morning and switch off your phone flash. Lights confuse hatchlings heading for the water.

3. Moorad river estuary

About 1.5 km north of Payyoli Beach, the Moorad river meets the sea in a wide, shallow mouth. DTPC lists it as a spot for domestic and migratory birds, and the mudflats are busiest in the first two hours after sunrise, when egrets and terns work the low tide. Bring binoculars. There is no hide or ticket counter, just the riverbank.

4. Kunhali Marakkar Memorial Museum, Kottakkal (Iringal)

The Kunhali Marakkars were admirals of the Zamorin of Calicut who fought the Portuguese at sea through the 16th century, and this museum stands on the site of their ancestral home at Kottakkal, Iringal, 6.7 km from Payyoli. Inside are old swords, cannonballs, wooden artefacts and panels on the sea battles. The Kerala State Archaeology Department runs it from 9 am to 5 pm, closed on Mondays; entry is INR 5 for visitors above 12 and INR 2 for children aged 5 to 12 (Kerala State Archaeology Department).

5. Sargaalaya Kerala Arts and Crafts Village, Iringal

Sargaalaya sits on the banks of the Moorad river at Iringal, about 7 km from town. Artisans work in open huts in coir, bamboo, pottery, bell metal, wood and handloom, and you buy straight from the person who made the piece. The big draw is the Sargaalaya International Arts and Crafts Festival, which usually runs from late December into the first half of January. The 2025 to 2026 edition brought about 200 artisans from 18 Indian states and more than 15 countries. If your trip falls in late December or early January, build the day around it and go on a weekday; weekends get very crowded.

6. Thikkodi Drive-in Beach and Kadalur Point Lighthouse

South of Payyoli, Thikkodi is one of the few Kerala beaches where you can drive a car along firm, packed sand at low tide. Just beyond it, the Kadalur Point Lighthouse (also called Thikkodi Lighthouse) stands on the rocky headland, and Velliyamkallu is clearer from here than from Payyoli. Look, drive and take photos, but stay out of the water. The current off Thikkodi is strong, and four members of a group visiting from Kalpetta drowned here in January 2025. Keep your car away from the waterline as the tide turns.

7. Akalapuzha backwaters

About 6 km south-east of town, close to NH 66, the Akalapuzha backwaters are a quieter alternative to Alleppey. Local boatmen take country boats and small shikaras through coconut groves and past toddy shops for an hour or two. There is no fixed jetty timetable, so fix the price before you get in.

8. Temples of Payyoli

The Kizhur Maha Shiva Temple is the best known shrine in town, and its annual festival draws people from across the taluk. Trikkottur Perumalpuram Temple and the Payyoli Sree Kurumba Bhagavathi Temple are the other two worth a stop. Dress modestly, and expect men to be asked to remove their shirts inside some temple precincts, as is common in north Kerala.

9. Worth the detour: Kappad and Lokanarkavu

Kappad Beach, where Vasco da Gama landed in 1498, is about 21 km south on the way back to Kozhikode; our Kappad Beach guide covers it in detail. North of Vadakara, Lokanarkavu Temple at Memunda is tied to the ballads of the Kalaripayattu hero Thacholi Othenan. Closer to Calicut you can add Kadalundi Bird Sanctuary, Beypore and the waterfall trails of Kakkayam.

Things to do in Payyoli

Visit the Theeram turtle hatchery in nesting season and ask whether any hatchling releases are planned.

Drive onto the sand at Thikkodi at low tide, then climb the rocks by the Kadalur Point Lighthouse.

Walk the Moorad estuary at sunrise with binoculars.

Spend a morning at Sargaalaya and watch a potter or bell-metal worker at the wheel.

See the 16th-century weapons at the Kunhali Marakkar museum (closed Mondays).

Take a country boat through the Akalapuzha backwaters.

Paddle in the calm shallows at Kolavi Palam between October and May, and end the day watching the sun drop behind Velliyamkallu.

PT Usha and the "Payyoli Express"

India's best-known sprinter, PT Usha, was born in 1964 in Koothali near Perambra and grew up in Payyoli, which is how the town's name became her nickname. At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics she finished fourth in the 400 m hurdles, missing bronze by 1/100th of a second, and across her career she won four golds and seven silvers at the Asian Games. In 2022 she became the first woman to head the Indian Olympic Association. One thing to get right. Her training academy, the Usha School of Athletics, is at Kinaloor near Balussery, not in Payyoli itself, so don't expect to find it in town.

How to reach Payyoli

Road is the simplest way in, since NH 66 runs through the middle of town. Trains help if you are coming along the coast, and two airports sit about an hour away.

By train. Payyoli railway station (PYOL) is on the Shoranur to Mangaluru line and has two platforms. Passenger and some express trains stop here, including the Ernad Express (16606) and the Coimbatore to Mangaluru Express (16323). Most long-distance trains skip it, so book to Vadakara (10.5 km) or Kozhikode (38 km) and take a bus or auto from there.

By air. Kannur International Airport is 57.8 km from Payyoli Beach per DTPC, and Calicut International Airport at Karipur is about 65 km away. A taxi takes 1.5 to 2 hours from either.

By road. KSRTC and private buses on the Kozhikode to Vadakara and Kannur route stop at Payyoli bus stand through the day. A car from Kozhikode takes about an hour outside rush hour; allow longer on weekday evenings around Koyilandy town.

Coming from further away? Our Calicut sightseeing guide covers the city, and tour packages from Calicut start right where your train or flight lands.

Best time to visit Payyoli

October to March is the best time to visit Payyoli, with dry days around 23 to 32 °C, calm shallow sea and the turtle season in the middle of it. The monsoon from June to September is green and dramatic, but the sea is off-limits.

If you are also planning other stretches of the coast, our roundup of beaches in Kerala compares the seasons across the state.

One-day Payyoli itinerary from Kozhikode

8:00 am. Leave Kozhikode on NH 66 and stop for appam and egg curry in Koyilandy.

9:30 am. Kolavi Palam Beach and the Theeram centre (in season, ask about releases).

11:00 am. Kunhali Marakkar museum, then Sargaalaya craft village at Iringal (skip the museum on Mondays).

1:30 pm. Lunch in Payyoli town. Order the chicken fry.

3:00 pm. Thikkodi Drive-in Beach and the Kadalur Point Lighthouse.

5:30 pm. Sunset at Payyoli Beach with Velliyamkallu on the horizon, then drive back, stopping at Kappad if light allows.

With a second day, add Wayanad. Our Wayanad trip from Kozhikode starts from the same city. For more short breaks, see weekend getaways from Calicut.

What to eat and where to stay in Payyoli

Two dishes carry the town's name, and you can eat both in Payyoli itself. Payyoli chicken fry is chicken fried hard in coconut oil with a coarse mash of shallots, chilli and curry leaves, sold under that name in restaurants across Malabar. Payyoli mixture is a crunchy savoury snack that makes an easy gift to carry home. For the rest of the Malabar menu (Kozhikode biryani, pathiri with fish curry, kallummakkaya mussels and Calicut halwa) the choice is wider back in the city.

Payyoli itself has only a few budget lodges and homestays near the highway. Most visitors sleep in Kozhikode, which has the widest range, or in Vadakara for something closer, and treat Payyoli as a day out. If you'd rather have stays and transfers sorted, our Kozhikode tour packages cover the Malabar coast, and the 3N/4D Kozhikode tour leaves room for a Payyoli day.

Travel tips for Payyoli

Carry cash. Beach stalls and boatmen rarely take cards, and there are few ATMs near the shore.

Swim only in calm shallows between October and May, and never at Thikkodi or during the monsoon.

In turtle season, don't touch eggs or hatchlings and keep torches and phone lights off on the beach at night.

Check the day before you go, because the Kunhali Marakkar museum is shut on Mondays.

Dress modestly in town and at temples.

Sources: Kerala Tourism (Routes and Locations; Kolavi Palam Beach), DTPC Kozhikode, Kerala State Archaeology Department, Census of India 2011, Indian Railways.

Edited by TravelTriangle