A haven for all beach and sun lovers, Varkala is a coastal town and municipality located in the suburbs of Thiruvananthapuram. It is located at a distance of 50 kilometers northwest from Thiruvananthapuram and 37 kilometers south-west of Kollam. It is the only place in southern Kerala where cliffs are found adjacent to the sea (Arabian Sea). These cliffs are Cenozoic sedimentary formation cliffs and are known among the geologists as Varkala Formation. It is declared as a geological monument by the Geological Survey of India. The Varkala Cliff is also declared as a Geo-heritage site in the year 2015 by the Ministry of Mines, Government of India and Geological Survey of India.

According to certain legends, Varkala came into existence when some pilgrims approached Sage Narada and told him that they had sinned and then Narada threw into the vacuum his loin cloth made from the bark of a tree. The scenic place where it landed hence came to be known as Varkala. In order to free the pilgrims from their sins Sage Narada told them to take a dip at the Papanasam and be redeemed.

The Varkala Beach or the Papanasam Beach is one of the famous beaches of Varkala. It is one of the most well known tourist destinations of Kerala. The Papanasam beach is notable for the natural spring, considered to have medicinal and healing properties. A dip in the holy waters at this beach is believed to free the human body of all impurities and the human soul of all its sins, hence the name Papanasam or free of sins.

Varkala is also famous for the two temples- Janardhana Swami Temple and the Sivagiri Mutt. The 2000 year old Vaishnavaite Temple of Janardhanaswamy (Lord Vishnu) is often referred to as Dakshin Kashi or the Benares of the South. This is located close by to the Papanasam Beach. The Sivagiri Mutt was founded by the great Hindu reformer and philosopher Sree Narayana Guru. It is also the Samadhi or the final resting place, of the Guru and it is visited by thousands of devotees every year during the Sivagiri Pilgrimage days (Dec 30 – Jan 1).