Kannur is a beautiful district of the Indian state of Kerala. This district is surrounded by various wonderful places and there are also good place to visit within Kannur. Some of these are given here:
Sri Sundareswara Swamy Temple
This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The annual festival of the temple is attended by a number of devotees.
Sri Krishna Temple
This temple is located at Kadalayi about 6 km from Kannur. It is dedicated to Lord Krishna. An eight day annual festival is celebrated here. Traditional art performances like the Kathakali, the Ottamthullal, etc., are performed during the festival.
Sri Jagannatha Temple
It is situated about 3 km from Thalassery. This temple is dedicated to Lord Siva. The famous reformer Sri Narayana Guru deity installed the deity here. An eight day festival is celebrated every year.
Malliyottu Kurumba Bhagavathy Temple
This temple is located at Kunjimangalam, 4 km from Payyanur. It is dedicated to Goddess Kurumba. A five day annual festival is very popular here.
Muchilottu Bhagavathy Temple
It is about 36 km from Kannur and is dedicated to Goddess Bhagavathy. It is situated at Kadanapally, Payyanur. The annual festival here lasts for 4 days.
Paralessery Temple
This temple is situated at Mundalur. Lord Muruga is the presiding deity here. He is the son of divine couple Lord Siva and Goddess Parvathy. The annual festival of this temple continues for eight days.
Sri Krishnaswamy Temple
This is an ancient temple, which attracts both the archaeologists and the layman. It is situated at Thrichambaram, 2 km from Thaliparamba. It is believed that Lord Parasurama installed the deity.
Sri Annapoorneswari Temple
It is situated about 14 km from Kannur. It is one of the temples where the grand Kerala architecture can be seen in its best form. The idols of Lord Krishna and Goddess Annapoorneswari are installed here. The annual festival here lasts for 14 days.
Kalarivathukkal Sri Bhagavathy Temple
It is situated at Chirakkal about 6 km from Kannur. This temple is dedicated to Goddess Bhadrakali, the Goddess of `bravery`.
Payyambalam Beach
This is a beautiful beach and is the favourite destination of a number of visitors. It is situated about 2 km from Kannur.
St. Angelo Fort
This beautiful fort is situated on the seaside. It is a 16th century monument of the Portuguese. This fort was erected in 1505 AD by Francisco De Almeda, the first Portuguese Viceroy to India. Now, the fort is under the care of Archaeological Survey of India. Mappila bay fishing harbour is an entertaining sight from the fort.
Arakkal Kettu
It used to be the residence of the Arakkal Ali Rajas, the only Muslim rulers of Kerala. It is situated about 3 km from Kannur.
Kizhunna Ezhara and Meenkunnu Beaches
These are situated about 11kms and 12 kms from the town respectively. These beaches attract huge number of tourists as well as locals for their beauty and solitude.
Parassinikadavu
It is situated about 16 km from Kannur. The charm of this place is added by the serene `Valapattanam River`. The famous Sri Muthappan temple is situated on the beautiful banks, which makes the place a popular pilgrim centre. Boating facility and accommodations are available. An entertaining snake park is situated nearby, with 3 snake pits, 15 glass cases and 2 glass houses exclusively for King Cobras. A fascinating variety of the reptile species are available here. Hourly snake shows are organized here. The visitors are allowed from 9:00 to 17:30 hrs.
Muzhapilangad Beach
This beach is situated about 15 km from Kannur. It has a stretch of about 4 km along the shallow waters, which is probably the only drive-in beach in Kerala. The clean waters here are the characteristic of this beautiful beach, which is well suited for swimming.
Gundert Bungalow
It is located 20 km from Kannur. It plays an important role in the recent bibliography of Malayalam, the language of the state. The great German missionary, scholar and lexicographer Dr. Herman Gundert had lived here for 20 years from 1839.
Thalassery Fort
This for was constructed around 1708. This grand fort served as the centre of military proceedings for the British. The Mosque, Jagannatha Temple; Sri Rama Temple and the Gym are the other tourist places near this fort.
Sri Ramaswamy Temple
This temple is dedicated to Lord Rama, the divine Hero of the great Hindu epic `The Ramayana`. Several magnificent carvings of centuries back can be seen here. It is situated 23 km from Kannur.
Madayi Para
Here, one can see a mosque here built in the 12th century by Malik Ibn Dinar. Even now, it shines with white marbles imported from Arabia, the birth place of Islam. The importance of this place was increased by the Madayi Kavu Temple and Vadakunnu Temple found here. Tipu Sultan is said have built this fort.
Malayala Kalagramam
It is situated at New Mahe, 29 km from Kannur. Painting, music, dance, sculpture, etc., are taught here.
Thodeekulam Siva Temple
As per the historical evidences, this ancient Shiva temple is said to have existed over 2000 years ago. The Pazhassi Raja family is said to have had close associations with this temple. It is situated about 34 km southeast of Kannur.
Pazhassi Dam
This dam is situated about 37 km on the East of Kannur. It has picturesque region around it with the beautiful `Pazhassi Dam`, which draws lots of tourists. This calm reservoir has the facility of boating for the visitors. The tourists can get accommodation in the project inspection bungalow and its dormitories.
Ezhimala
This wonderful place is situated about 55 km from Kannur. The magical beauty of the elephant beach and the extravagant hill of about 286 meter above the sea level make it a favourite tourist destination. Rare medicinal herbs with amazing curative property can be found here. The exquisitely carved stone pillars of ancient times developed here majestically from the ground at the hill foot. An ancient burial chamber can also be seen here. This is a restricted area and can be visited only after taking proper permission.
Pythal Mala
This is a hill resort, which is situated about 4,500 ft. above the sea level. It lies near the Kerala-Karnataka border. Several species of flora and fauna can be seen here. One needs to trek about 6 km on the challenging landscape to get to the top of the hills.
Aralam wildlife sanctuary
This is a fascinating sanctuary, which spreads over beautiful landscape of 55 sq. km. Elephants, bears, sambars, mouse deer and a number of other animals can be seen here.
Kottiyoor
The beautiful river Bavali flows here. An ancient famous temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is also found here. Every year, during the months of May-June, a long festival of 27 days is celebrated here.
Dharmadom
The small island of Dharmadom is situated about 3 km from Thalassery. It can be reached by bus from Thalassery. The place was earlier known as Dharmapattanam. It got the name from the popular belief that it was a Buddhist monastery as Buddha`s images are said to have been excavated from this place.
