Manapad is a predominantly Roman Catholic coastal village in India, 70 km from Tirunelveli and 18 km south of Tiruchendur, and one of the first places to be visited by St. Francis Xavier in 1542 when he initiated missionary activity on the Fishery coast.

Francis Xavier is said to have lived and prayed in a cave on a cliff near the coast. The cave is still called as St.Xavier Cave. Holy Cross Church close to the sea was built in the year 1581. This church has what is believed to be a fragment of the True Cross of Jerusalem. Thousands come to the celebrate the feast during from 1st to 14th of September every year.