Varkala, a calm and quiet hamlet, lies on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram district. It has several places of tourist interests. Varkala is the only place in southern Kerala where one can find cliffs just adjacent to the Arabian sea. These sedimentary and laterite cliffs are a unique geological feature in the otherwise flat Kerala coast, and is known among geologists as Varkala Formation. There are numerous water spouts and spas on the sides of the cliffs.