ThiruvananthapuramThe capital where Padmanabhaswamy’s vaults, Technopark’s campuses and Kovalam’s crescent share one skyline
Step Ahead — IELTS & Study Abroad Coaching
Certified trainer, small batches and honest band-score guidance — the Bharat DN network’s founding sponsor. Online + classroom cohorts, Mon–Sat.
Thiruvananthapuram in one minute
Thiruvananthapuram — live weather, population, hidden places and cost of living, auto-updated.
Thiruvananthapuram — the city of the serpent-god Anantha — is Kerala’s capital, the seat of the Travancore kings, and home to Sree Padmanabhaswamy, the temple whose 2011 vaults revealed history’s greatest treasure. Gandhi called it the evergreen city of India — seven hills, coconut fringes and the Kovalam crescent at its door. Census 2011 counted 9.6 lakh in the city, 16.8 lakh in the UA.
This is where India reached space — VSSC/ISRO launched the first rocket from Thumba’s beaches in 1963 — and where Technopark (1990) became the country’s first IT park. The Napier museums, the Sri Chitra gallery and the Vizhinjam harbour history fill the coastal belt.
Fast facts
| Status | State capital · Municipal corporation |
| District | Thiruvananthapuram (HQ) |
| Division | Travancore |
| District population (2011) | 33,01,727 |
| City population (2011) | 9,57,730 (corp) |
| Urban agglomeration | 16,87,406 |
| Sex ratio | 1,040 — women outnumber men |
| Languages | Malayalam · Tamil · English |
| Main stations | Thiruvananthapuram Central (TVC) · Kochuveli |
| Nearest airport | Trivandrum Intl (TRV) — ~4 km |
| Space | VSSC/ISRO — first Indian rocket 1963, Thumba |
| IT | Technopark (1990) — India’s first IT park |
| District literacy | 93.0% (2011) |
| Famous for | Padmanabhaswamy temple · Technopark · Kovalam |
City map
Demographics CENSUS 2011
Last official census — 2021 census deferred, estimates update on release.
9,57,738 residents
per 1,000 males
municipal area (2011)
≈1,05,351 children (est.)
🌟 Hidden & heritage places
Thiruvananthapuram beyond the postcards — quiet places and lanes most guides skip.
Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple
The Anantha-sayana Vishnu in recline — the 2011 vaults, the mural halls and the strict dress-code darshanam.
Directions ↗Kovalam
The three-curve bay — Lighthouse beach’s red-and-white tower, the ayurveda resorts and the catamaran mornings.
Directions ↗Thumba & VSSC
The beach where India’s first rocket flew in 1963 — the space-museum and thelaunch-pad memorials.
Directions ↗Technopark
The 1990 first-IT-park of India — 100+ companies in the bamboo-grove campus by the backwaters.
Directions ↗Napier & Sri Chitra
The Indo-Saracenic museum row — the zoo-lawns, Raja Ravi Varma’s canvases and the Kuthiramalika palace next door.
Directions ↗Kuthiramalika (Puthenmalika)
Sree Chithira’s horse-wood-carved palace — 122 carved horses, the Travancore durbar and the Swing court.
Directions ↗Trivandrum Zoo
The 1857-era zoo among the city‗s hills — lion-tailed macaques, the python house and the museum lawns.
Directions ↗Vizhinjam & Poovar backwaters
The fishing harbour mornings and the golden-sand estuary — the sangam of river, sea and the coconut canal.
Directions ↗Weekend getaways
Approximate road distances from Thiruvananthapuram.
Cost of living
Indicative monthly estimates for a single person — verify locally before deciding.
| 1 BHK rent (city) | ₹3,000 – 6,000 / mo |
| 2 BHK rent (city) | ₹6,000 – 11,000 / mo |
| Meal at a local eatery | ₹70 – 150 |
| Groceries (single, month) | ₹3,500 – 5,500 |
| Utilities (basic) | ₹1,200 – 2,500 |
| Monthly total (est.) | ₹10,000 – 17,000 |
Estimates only · state-capital market · updated with market data over time
Top industries
What actually runs Thiruvananthapuram.
Technopark
India’s first IT park — Oracle, UST and the back-office campuses employing the city’s graduates.
IT ↗VSSC & ISRO units
The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre — rocket propulsion, the Thumba legacy and the space-museum economy.
Space ↗State administration
The secretariat, legislature and directorate cluster — the capital’s employment core.
Govt ↗Kovalam-Chain tourism
The beach-and-backwater resorts — ayurveda tourism, the Varkala run and the houseboat spillover.
Tourism ↗Ayurveda & wellness
The treatment houses and the wellness-resort supply chain — the Kerala-brand’s capital address.
Wellness ↗Kerala University & IISER
The 1937 university campus, IISER’s new campus and the medical-college cluster.
Education ↗Handloom & coir belt
The Balaramapuram looms and the coir-yard economy of the coast road.
Handloom ↗Top restaurants & food
Where locals actually eat — local counters, classics and street institutions.
Sadya-style rice houses
The banana-leaf feast — matta rice, avial, sambar, thoran, pulissery and the payasam finish.
Directions ↗Chalai Bazaar food lane
The old market’s line — kadalaparotta, beef-fry rooms and the pazham-pori chai stalls.
Directions ↗Kovalam & Vizhinjam kitchens
The coast’s fish houses — seer-fry, meen-curry and the kappa-meen combos of the beach shacks.
Directions ↗Puttu-kadala mornings
The Malayali breakfast — puttu, kadala-curry and the appam-stew combinations of the tiffin rooms.
Directions ↗Vazhuthacaud & Pattom strip
The capital cafe mile — filter-coffee bars, bakery snack counters and the evening-walk crowd.
Directions ↗Style-verified from local guides · Sep 2026 · hours change — call ahead
Markets & shopping
Chalai Bazaar
The mile-long old market — gold halls, vegetable carts, textile rows and the spice shops.
Directions ↗MG Road & PMG junction
The capital’s retail mile — saree houses, bookshops and the mall anchors of the MG strip.
Directions ↗Balaramapuram loom counters
The handloom village’s co-op sales — kora-cotton sets and the kasavu borders direct from weavers.
Directions ↗Festival & fair calendar
Attukal Pongala
The world’s largest women’s gathering (Guinness) — millions cook pongala on the city’s streets for Attukal Bhagavathy.
Padmanabhaswamy Laksha Deepam
The once-in-6-years festival — a lakh lamps lit at the temple (next dates per temple calendar).
Navratri & the Nawaratri mandapam
The royal Navaratri music at the Navaratri mandapam — the Swati-Tirunal tradition’s concerts.
Onam capital celebrations
The state festival — pookalam rows, the onasadya lunches and the Vallam-kali broadcasts.
October – March
The coast’s cool months — beach runs, backwater mornings and the festival season.
From the Bharat DN network
Everything this city needs, on the network's own hubs.
FAQ
What is Thiruvananthapuram famous for?
The richest temple in the world (Sree Padmanabhaswamy), Technopark — India’s first IT park — the VSSC/ISRO space centre, Kovalam beach and the evergreen-capital tag Gandhi gave it.
What is the population of Thiruvananthapuram?
Census 2011: 9,57,730 in the corporation city and 16,87,406 in the UA; the district counted 33,01,727.
What is the pincode of Thiruvananthapuram?
The city starts at 695001 (MG Road); it spans 695001–695582 including Technopark (695581) and Kovalam.
Which places should I visit there?
Padmanabhaswamy temple and Kuthiramalika, the Napier museum row, Kovalam’s lighthouse beach — with Poovar’s estuary and Ponmudi’s ghats as day runs.