Situated near the Western Ghats and bordered by hills, Pathanamthitta district is a visual feast with its vast unending stretches of forests, rivers and rural landscape.  Blessed by nature, the district is famous for its scenic beauty, fairs and festivals

Pathanamthitta is a true tropivcal diversity adorned with fertile agricultural land, plantations and forest.  A hilly terrain of pristine beauty, this is the land of temples, rivers, mountain ranges and coconut groves, Paddy, tapioca, various kinds of vegetables and spices like cardamom and pepper are extensively cultivated.  The district also abounds in extensive rubber plantations.  Pathanamthitta is bordered by the Western Ghats on the east, Kollam district on the south, Alappuzha district on the west and Kottayam and Idikki districts on the north

It is presumed that the regions presently under the district were formerly under the Pandalam reign which had connections with the Pandya Kingdon.  Pathanamthitta now includes portions of the erstwhile Kollam, Alappuzha and Idukki districts.  Pathanamthitta, Adoor, Ranny, Konni and Kozhencherry are some of the important places taken from Kollam district, whereas Thiruvalla and Mallappally are the major places taken from Alappuzha district

Popular as the headquarters of pilgrim worship in Kerala, the district is frequented by visitors from India and abroad, often for its water fiestas, important shrines and centres of  culture.  Sabarimala, the famous temple of Lord Ayyappa situated atop a hill near River Pampa is the most famous pilgrim centre of the Hindus in Kerala

Pathanamthitta is a combination of two words ‘Pathanam’ and ‘Thitta’ which mean ‘an array of houses on the river side’.  This district was formed on November 1, 1982 with the objective of hastening the process of development.  Plaves of interest include Perunthenaruvi, Kaviyoor, Aranmula, Niranam, Malayalapuzha, Sabarimala, Thiruvalla, Mannadi, Cherukolpuzha, Manjanikara Church, Maramon, Omallur, Kadammanitta, Konni, Muloor Smarakam, Kodum Chilanthiyambalam, Pamba, Parumala, Vasthuvidya Gurukulam, etc

The district consists of three natural divisions, viz, the lowland, the midland and the highland.  The highland stretches through the Western Ghats and descends to the midland in the centre, down to the lowland and coconut gardens on the westen borders of Akappuzha district.  The topography of the district is highly undulating.  It starts from the tall hillslopes covered with thick forests in the east along the mountains, down to the valleys and small hills to the flatland of coconut trees in the west

The district has more or less the same climatic conditions as prevalent elsewhere in the state, viz., a dry season from December to February and a hot season from March to May

Timber is the most important forest produce in the district.  In fact, the forests are the main source of raw material for wood-based industrial units.  Teak, rosewood, jack tree, manjakadambu, anjili, pala, etc. are some of the important varieties of timber seen here.  Apart form providing raw materials for rayon, newsprint, plywood etc., these forests are the source of other useful products like herbs

The Aranmula Boat Race takes place at Aranmula, India near a temple dedicated to Lord Krishna and Arjuna. Thousands of people gather on the banks of the river Pampa to watch the snake boat races. Nearly 30 snake boats or "chundan vallams" participate in the festival. The oarsmen sing traditional boat songs and wear white dhotis and turbans. The golden lace at the head of the boat, the flag and the ornamental umbrella at the center make it a show of pageantry too

Each snake boat belongs to a village along the banks of the river Pampa. Every year the boats are oiled mainly with fish oil, coconut shell, and carbon, mixed with eggs to keep the wood strong and the boat slippery in the water. The village carpenter carries out annual repairs and people take pride in their boat, which is named after and represents their village