Varkala Beach is located in the Indian state of Kerala. It is situated on the Arabian Sea, 51 km northwest of Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) and 37 km south-west of Kollam. Varkala is the only place in southern Kerala where high rocks meet the ocean. These Tertiary sedimentary rock formations are a unique geological feature in the otherwise flat coastal area of Kerala and are known among geologists as the Varkala Formation and have been declared a geological monument by the Geological Survey of India. There are many water springs and spas on the slopes of these rocks.