15 Best Hotels in Kochi, Kerala

Built in a combination of Dutch and Portuguese colonial styles, this elegant hotel is on the site of a former boatyard, facing the Chinese fishing nets and featuring antique fixtures and furnishings, right down to the light switches. Guest rooms offer four-poster beds and luxurious, colonial-style bathrooms with showers and bathtubs; most rooms have balconies offering picturesque views of the harbor.

This luxurious Relais & Chateaux property set in an early-18th-century Dutch villa is highlighted by a courtyard garden with a pool and a stunning frangipani tree. Rooms in this delightful hotel, which once housed European traders and bankers, are a mixture of regional-traditional and contemporary styles. Each room is adorned with antiques and paintings, and some come with high four poster beds.

Isolated at the tip of Willingdon Island, this grand hotel offers a heritage sensibility and style with a stunning carved-wood ceiling in the lobby and a similarly styled bar with a harbor view. The rooms are divided between two wings: the Heritage Wing, which dates back to 1935, and the Tower Wing, which is more modern. All rooms and suites have wooden flooring and Kerala-style furnishings, with some offering views of the harbor.

Located on the bustling Bazaar Road, this 1877 building originally functioned as a granary storing food grains before being renovated into a hotel. The cheerful yellow color of the building's exterior extends to the spacious rooms, which feature high wood-beamed ceilings and vintage-style beds. There’s an inner courtyard garden, a small swimming pool, and a restaurant by the water featuring authentic Kutchi dishes.

Merging the old with the new, this boutique hotel reflects the heritage of Kochi's Dutch era, offering elegant rooms with modern conveniences. From the model of the 17th-century Batavia ship that sits at the reception to paintings that harken back to the city's seafaring past, a nautical theme runs through the property's decor. There's a lush lawn and swimming pool.

This bright yellow heritage building has charming rooms with four-poster beds that are set around a stylish central courtyard. Near the beautifully tiled pool, there's an ancient mikvah or natural spring used for Jewish rituals---it is one of the last to exist in Kerala today. 

Conveniently situated between Fort Kochi and Jew Town, this luxury hotel with its landmark clock tower features an atrium-style lobby with marble flooring and a large trompe l’oeil paying homage to the building’s original occupants---the East India Company. The light and airy rooms are decorated in a British colonial style with wooden floors, bright patterned area rugs, and intricate wall mouldings; suites add sitting areas and balconies with prime views of the waterfront. 

Set in Kochi’s bustling antiques market, this luxurious boutique hotel has a unique policy: if you like any piece of furniture or artwork in the hotel—all collectible antiques—you can purchase it. The eight rooms, which are spacious and offer views of Lake Vembanad, are individually decorated with antiques from all over India and constantly changing as new inventory arrives to the hotel’s own antique store, Heritage Arts. There’s also a restaurant, swimming pool, and small garden.

This hotel, which lies adjacent to one of the most popular malls in the city, Lulu Mall, is a good choice for those who want to include shopping on their agenda. The gleaming, modern lobby has a piano and a massive antique clock; the rooms are spacious and have gorgeous views of the city. There's a seafood restaurant and two bars as well. The on-site spa offers a range of therapies, including ayurvedic massages.

Unlike the sober Dutch mansions nearby, the three-story Koder House sticks out due to its brick exterior's fire-engine color and slightly unusual, Portuguese-inflected architecture. The six eccentric, attractive rooms are filled with antique furniture, overstuffed armchairs, red coir carpets, and enormous bathrooms. The home was built in 1808 and originally housed Kochi’s most-respected Jewish family.

Just opposite the Chinese fishing nets, this 1837 Dutch heritage building, a former brokerage house, features 13 tastefully decorated rooms with bright walls, antique fixtures, and contemporary Indian artwork. The rooms have views of either the fishing nets or the courtyard. Guests can dip in the elevated pool or read under a canopy of tall trees. The restaurant serves local seafood dishes as well as wine and beer.

This hotel is the former home of the late Sir Robert Bristow, the architect of the modern port of Kochi, and it is one of the only Kochi hotels that opens out onto a beach. Some rooms look out to the Arabian Sea, while others have a view over the garden and swimming pool. Rooms are large (though in need of maintenance). Pool-side villas and ocean-view suites are attractive.

Housed in a 200-year-old former Jewish home, this boutique hotel has five rooms, each designed like an art gallery and displaying the works of different artists. The hotel organizes different experiences for guests, like heritage walks through Kochi, houseboat cruises, and cultural performances. The on-site fine-dining restaurant specializes in contemporary Kerala cuisine.

This tasteful and stylish hotel, across the harbor from Fort Kochi, is a low-rise, tile-roof building that wraps around a central courtyard and is outfitted rather plushly for both business and leisure travelers. A beautiful oil painting of Portuguese explorer Vasco Da Gama meeting the Zamorin of Calicut in the 15th century is a backdrop in the reception area. The rooms, which face either the pool or the garden, have sand-color wood floors that complement soothing cream and teal color schemes. Due to the central courtyard, hallways are full of natural light. 

Located by the backwaters of Kochi harbor and away from the touristy hub of Fort Kochi, this hotel has clean, modern rooms with excellent views over the water or the city. There's a pool, a gym, and a spa offering ayurvedic treatments.