Kottayam among the state's more mountanous districts, provides some of Kerala's finest natural sceneries,sandwiched as it is between serene palm-fringed backwaters on the west and the Western Ghats on the east. Much of this beauty is laid out in all its glory along the road which winds from Kottayam to the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary in Thekkady through plantations of rubber, tea, coffee, and pepper.

Kottayam was the seat first of the Munjunad Rajas and later, in the 12th c., of the Tekkumkur Rajas. This fact of royal history is echoed in the town's name, which is derived from the Malayalam word kottayakam' , which means the hold of a fort.

Kottayam is also an important commercial centre, thanks to its strength as a producer of cash crops. Most of India's natural rubber originates from the well-kept plantations of Kottayam, also home to the Rubber Board, one of the country's primary commodities board.

Kottayam is equally well-known for its cultural achievements.It is the Mecca of Kerala's publishing scene, home to dozens of Malayalam newspapers and magazines, including the state's earliest, the Deepika (founded in 1887), as well as the country's largest-selling daily and weekly from the Malayala Manorama group.

To sustain this plethora of publications, Kottayam became the first town in India to attain total literacy, an event which triggered a mass movement to make Kerala the country's first totally literate state.