Must-see hotels in Kochi (Cochin)

  • Old Harbour Hotel

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Overlooking a lush garden with lily ponds and a pool, the stylish Old Harbour is housed in a 300-year-old Dutch/Portuguese heritage building. The elegant…

  • Reds Residency

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Hotel-quality rooms come with solar-powered showers and a true family welcome from knowledgable hosts Philip and Maryann at this delightful homestay. The…

  • Green Woods Bethlehem

    Kochi (Cochin)

    With a smile that brightens weary travellers, welcoming owner Sheeba looks ready to sign your adoption papers the minute you walk through the door. Down a…

  • Ginger House Museum Hotel

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Above an astonishing private antiques collection, each of these eight exquisitely and individually themed design-meets-heritage rooms – with glossy…

  • Brunton Boatyard

    Kochi (Cochin)

    On the site of a Victorian-era shipyard, this grand CGH creation faithfully reproduces 16th-, 17th- and 18th-century Dutch, British and Portuguese…

  • Malabar House

    Kochi (Cochin)

    What may just be one of the most romantic boutique hotels in Kerala, Malabar flaunts its chic blend of contemporary design and original 18th-century…

  • Waterfront Granary

    Kochi (Cochin)

    The first thing you'll notice at the Waterfront Granary is the 1928 Ford vintage car in the lounge. This is a museum-hotel, where relics from the owner's…

  • Grand Hotel

    Kochi (Cochin)

    This 1960s hotel, with its polished original art deco fittings, exudes the sort of retro glamour that contemporary hotels would love to re-create. The…

  • Olavipe

    Kochi (Cochin)

    This gorgeous 1890s traditional Syrian-Christian home is on a 16-hectare organic farm surrounded by backwaters, 28km southeast of Fort Cochin. A restored…

  • Forte Kochi

    Kochi (Cochin)

    A chicly remodelled mango-yellow 1800s home with its origins dating back to the Portuguese-rule era, Forte Kochi is a welcome 2018 luxe arrival. Tiled…

  • Raintree Lodge

    Kochi (Cochin)

    The five intimate, graceful and good-value rooms at this cheerful converted 18th-century house flirt with boutique-hotel status. Each mixes contemporary…

  • Tea Bungalow

    Kochi (Cochin)

    This Goan-owned mustard-yellow building was built in 1912 as headquarters of a UK spice-trading company before being taken over by Brooke Bond tea. The 10…

  • Bungalow Heritage Homestay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Just 300m north from Vypeen Island's ferry dock, this beautiful 1930 Keralan heritage house is a delight, with two large connecting rooms featuring quaint…

  • Maritime

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Behind a red-and-white facade, this branch of the Goan Hostel Crowd chain is just west of the Customs jetty. The nautical theme is a characterful touch;…

  • Kallanchery Retreat

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Escape the Kochi crowds at this peaceful waterside homestay and expansive garden in the village of Kumbalanghi, 13km south of Fort Cochin. Tidy rooms are…

  • Fort House Hotel

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Around 200m west of Fort Cochin's Customs jetty, this family-owned hideaway is one of the old core's few truly waterfront hotels, though the 16 smart,…

  • Zostel

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Zipped away down a small lane, Kochi's popular and sociable Zostel ticks all the right backpacker boxes. There are personal plugs, lights and lockers in…

  • Happy Camper

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Billing itself as a boutique hostel, Happy Camper is a relaxed place with three en suite, air-con dorms (for four or eight; lockers provided), a small…

  • Travellers Inn

    Kochi (Cochin)

    In the heart of Fort Cochin, with a handy travel desk, this welcoming, efficiently operated Indian-Italian-run guesthouse has six unpretentious modern…

  • Delight Home Stay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    One of Fort Cochin's original homestays, this charming whitewashed house is adorned with elaborate woodwork and dangling terracotta plant pots, while the…

  • Boat Jetty Bungalow

    Kochi (Cochin)

    An 1891 former jetty-manager's house and ancestral home has been thoughtfully refurbished into budget-to-midrange accommodation, its palette of greys and…

  • Beena Homestay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Beena has been feeding and sheltering travellers for years in the family homestay, just off Ponnoonjal Rd 1km south of central Fort Cochin, and maintains…

  • Albin's Glory

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Coconut palms dot the backwaterfront gardens and Chettinadu tiles adorn the floors at this 120-year-old heritage home, on Vypeen Island 5.5km north of the…

  • John’s Residency

    Kochi (Cochin)

    A genuine backpacker place, efficiently run John's is your best budget bet for an overnight stop in Ernakulam, especially if John himself is in residence…

  • Walton’s Homestay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Spacious, up-to-date, wood-furnished rooms huddle around a leafy garden in fastidious Mr Walton's lovely old family home, painted a nautical white with…

  • Sonnetta Residency

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Right in the thick of Fort Cochin, the six old-fashioned rooms at this friendly, efficient Portuguese-era guesthouse are ultra-clean and well presented,…

  • Leelu Homestay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Central and very homely, Leelu has three spotless, modern upstairs rooms (two of them with gigantic bathrooms), a rooftop terrace (yoga can be arranged)…

  • Saas Tower

    Kochi (Cochin)

    The flashy lobby is more promising than the uninspiring but comfy enough rooms filled with wooden furniture at this midrange business hotel near Ernakulam…

  • Saj Homestay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    There are six upstairs rooms at this welcoming, spick-and-span homestay run by helpful Saj. It can be a bit street-noisy at the front but the air-con…

  • Costa Gama

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Spotless, unfussy rooms up a spindly staircase are good-value at long-running Costa Gama, which now inhabits a modern, pink-washed building with…

  • Jojie's Homestay

    Kochi (Cochin)

    A hospitable family oversees this five-room homestay, simply set up, immaculately presented, and popular with travellers thanks to its warm atmosphere and…

  • Homested

    Kochi (Cochin)

    A welcoming, expertly maintained homestay, 900m south of central Fort Cochin, with bright, unadorned rooms, some of them air-conditioned, and homemade…

  • Elite Hotel

    Kochi (Cochin)

    Though now much reduced in size, 50-year-old Elite is a popular budget bet in an unbeatable location on Princess St, behind a streetfront tour desk.