Attractions

The Napier Museum: Built in the 19th century, the Indo - saracenic structure boasts a "natural" air conditioning system and houses a rare collection of archaeological and historic artifacts, bronze idols, ancient ornaments, a temple chariot and ivory carvings.

Sree Chithra Art Gallery: Located near the Napier Museum, this art gallery displays select paintings of Raja Ravi Varma, Svetlova and Nicholas Roerich and exquisite works from the Rajput, Mughal and Tanjore schools of art in India. The collection also includes paintings from China, Japan, Tibet and Bali.

The Zoological Park : One of the first zoos in India, it is located in a well-planned botanical garden.

The Kanakakunnu Palace. Venue for many cultural meets and exhibitions.

Science and Technology Museum : There is a Planetarium within the campus. There are several galleries on Electrical Engineering, Biomedical, Mechanical Engineering, etc.

Observatory Located at the highest point in the city, near the Museum complex 60 metres above sea level, one can have a bird's eye view of the city from here.

Secretariat Built in the Roman architectural style, this is the centre of government administration in Kerala and houses the offices of ministers and the bureaucracy.

Palayam Juma Masjid : The Palayam Mosque is the most important mosque in Thiruvananthapuram. Situated at Palayam, the mosque has a temple and a Christian church as its neighbours, establishing the communal harmony of Keralites. P K Ahmed Kutty Moulavi, imam of the Palayam mosque, opened the doors of the mosque for women for the first time in south Kerala. More than 250 women attend the prayers at the Palayam Mosque on ordinary days, whereas on Fridays their numbers increase to around 1,000. The imam is of the opinion that there is nothing unIslamic in women offering prayers in mosques.

Beemapalli 5 km south-west of Thiruvananthapuram, is an important Muslim pilgrim centre. The Beemappalli Dargah Shareef is dedicated to Beema Beevi, a pious Muslim lady believed to have possessed divine powers. She came to Kerala from Arabia and settled down at this place with her son Mahin Abubacker. Beema Beevi and her son are are laid to rest here. The mosque is visited by devotees of all religions. The Chandanakudam Mahotsavam or Beemapalli Uroos is one of the most colourful Muslim festivals in Thiruvananthapuram.