Ganesh house homestay is an excellent place to stay if you want to be at a place a bit away from the biggest beach and commercial spots at Kovalam.
It's close to a smaller beach called Grow, and there are a few restaurants nearby that are very nice.
The house offers complimentary water and you have access to the kitchen including fridge/freezer.
We had planned to stay at Ganesh for three days, but only stayed for one day and a half. This, however, had nothing to do with either the house or Ganesh, who is a lovely host and super friendly.
We simply got an offer to check in two days early at the next hotel we were staying at further down south in Kovalam for free, since our room had become available, so we decided to shorten our stay at Grow beach and head on south.
I would gladly recommend Ganesh house home stay. It's comfortable, homey and clean - and the wifi is stable.