List of tourist attractions in Kochi

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St.George Orthodox Koonan Kurish Old Syrian Church - Koonan Kurish Sathyam took place at this Church in AD 1653 is the first attempt to resist colonialism and western invasion in India. Koonan Kurishu Palli Kochi Kerala .jpg
St.George Orthodox Koonan Kurish Old Syrian Church - Koonan Kurish Sathyam took place at this Church in AD 1653 is the first attempt to resist colonialism and western invasion in India.

A traditional kettuvallam idling in the lake House Boat View DSW.jpg
A traditional kettuvallam idling in the lake
A common scene from Fort Kochi Fort Cochin view.JPG
A common scene from Fort Kochi
Rainbow Bridge beauty Rainbow Bridge DSW.jpg
Rainbow Bridge beauty
The Chinese Fishing Net bridge in Kochi India Bridge.jpg
The Chinese Fishing Net bridge in Kochi
Pedestrians can stroll along the Marine Drive, a waterfront promenade of Kochi Musical-walkway.jpg
Pedestrians can stroll along the Marine Drive, a waterfront promenade of Kochi
A view of the Kochi harbour mouth from Willingdon Island Kochi view from taj malabar.jpg
A view of the Kochi harbour mouth from Willingdon Island
Cheena vala (Chinese fishing nets) Kochi, Chinese fishing nets, Kerala, India.jpg
Cheena vala (Chinese fishing nets)
Marine Drive Marine Drive View.JPG
Marine Drive
Mattancherry Palace, front side Kerala Dutch Palace1.JPG
Mattancherry Palace, front side

Kochi (Malayalam : കൊച്ചി [kotˈt͡ʃi] ), formerly known as Cochin, is a city in the Indian state of Kerala. It is a popular tourist destination for both domestic and international visitors travelling to Kerala and is amongst the most visited tourist destinations in India. [1]

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As per Kerala's Tourism Department data, more than 23 million domestic tourists visited the city in 2017. [1] According to the department, aspects like MICE tourism, LuLu Mall, the Wonderla water theme park, and the metro nature of Kochi city were the main aspects for attracting more domestic tourists. [1]

The city is popularly known as the Queen of Arabian Sea [2] [3] [4] as it has the natural harbor on the Arabian Sea coast [5] and was the centre of the world spice trade for many centuries. Old Kochi (presently called West Kochi), loosely refers to a group of islands which comprise Willingdon Island, Fort Kochi, Mattancherry etc. The city derives its name from the Malayalam word Kochazhi meaning small lagoon.

Attractions

Around Kochi

Vallarpadam Church Vallarpadam Basilica.jpg
Vallarpadam Church
Marine Drive, Kochi Marine Drive Kochi Night View DSW.jpg
Marine Drive, Kochi

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kochi</span> Metropolis in Kerala, India

Kochi, also known by its former name Cochin, is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of Kerala. The city is also commonly referred to as Ernakulam. As of 2011, the Kochi Municipal Corporation had a population of 677,381 over an area of 94.88 km2, and the larger Kochi urban agglomeration had over 2.1 million inhabitants within an area of 440 km2, making it the largest and the most populous metropolitan area in Kerala. Kochi city is also part of the Greater Cochin development region and is classified as a Tier-II city by the Government of India. The civic body that governs the city is the Kochi Municipal Corporation, which was constituted in the year 1967, and the statutory bodies that oversee its development are the Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) and the Goshree Islands Development Authority (GIDA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chendamangalam</span> Town in Kerala, India

Chendamangalam is a small town and a panchayat in Paravur Taluk, Ernakulam district in the state of Kerala, India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernakulam district</span> District in Kerala, India

Ernakulam is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala, and takes its name from the eponymous city division in Kochi. It is situated in the central part of the state, spans an area of about 2,924 square kilometres (1,129 sq mi), and is home to over 9% of Kerala's population. Its headquarters are located at Kakkanad. The district includes Kochi, also known as the commercial capital of Kerala, which is famous for its ancient churches, Hindu temples, synagogues and mosques.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cochin Jews</span> Jewish community that settled in the Kingdom of Cochin in modern-day Kerala, India

Cochin Jews are the oldest group of Jews in India, with roots that are claimed to date back to the time of King Solomon. The Cochin Jews settled in the Kingdom of Cochin in South India, now part of the present-day state of Kerala. As early as the 12th century, mention is made of the Jews in southern India by Benjamin of Tudela.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kodungallur</span> Municipality in Kerala, India

Kodungallur (IPA:[koɖuŋːɐlːuːr]; formerly also called as Cranganore (anglicised name), Portuguese: Cranganor; Mahodayapuram, Shingly, Vanchi, Muchiri, Muyirikkode, and Muziris) is a historically significant town situated on the banks of river Periyar on the Malabar Coast in Thrissur district of Kerala, India. It is 29 kilometres (18 mi) north of Kochi (Cochin) by National Highway 66 and 38 km (24 mi) from Thrissur. Kodungallur, being a port city at the northern end of the Kerala lagoons, was a strategic entry point for the naval fleets to the extensive Kerala backwaters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paradesi Synagogue</span> Synagogue in Kochi, Kerala, India

The Paradesi Synagogue aka Cochin Jewish Synagogue or the Mattancherry Synagogue is a synagogue located in Mattancherry Jew Town, a suburb of the city of Kochi, Kerala, in India. It was built in 1568 A.D. by Samuel Castiel, David Belila, and Joseph Levi for the flourishing Paradesi Jewish community in Kochi. Cochin Jews were composed mainly of the much older Malabari Jews and the newly arrived Sephardic refugees from the Portuguese religious persecution of Jews in Spain and Portugal. It is the oldest active synagogue in the Commonwealth of Nations. Paradesi is a word used in several Indian languages, and the literal meaning of the term is "foreigners," applied to the synagogue because it was built by Sephardic or Portuguese-speaking Jews, some of them from families exiled in Aleppo, Safed and other West Asian localities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Willingdon Island</span> Artificial island in Kerala, India

Willingdon Island is the largest artificial island in India, which forms part of the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala. Much of the present Willingdon Island was claimed from the Vembanadu Lake, filling in dredged soil around a previously existing, but tiny, natural island. Willingdon Island is significant as the home for the Port of Kochi as well as the Kochi Naval Base, the Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy, Plant Quarantine station, Custom House Cochin and Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, a constituent unit of Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Kochi</span> Neighbourhood of Kochi, Kerala, India

Fort Kochi, formerly known as Fort Cochin or British Cochin, is a neighbourhood of Cochin (Kochi) city in Kerala, India. Fort Kochi takes its name from the Fort Manuel of Cochin, the first European fort on Indian soil, controlled by the Portuguese East Indies. This is part of a handful of water-bound islands and islets toward the south-west of the mainland Kochi, and collectively known as Old Kochi or West Kochi. Adjacent to this is the locality of Mattancherry. In 1967, these three municipalities along with a few adjoining areas, were amalgamated to form the Kochi Municipal Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vypin</span> Suburban Island in Kochi

Vypin is one of the group of islands that form part of the city of Kochi (Cochin), in the Indian state of Kerala. Vypin forms a barrier island which lies between the Arabian Sea in the west and the Cochin backwaters formed by the various distributaries of Periyar river, in the east. The northernmost end of the island lies on the estuary of the Periyar river in Muziris (Kodungallur), and the southernmost end in the mouth of the Cochin Backwaters in Kalamukku near Fort Vypin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mattancherry</span> A locality in Kochi

Mattancherry, is a historic ward of Kochi, Kerala. It is about 9 km south-west from the city centre. Mattanchery is home to many sites of historical and cultural significance, including the Paradesi Synagogue- which was the centre of life in the Jewish Quarter. In addition to the Cochin Jews and Paradesi Jews, Mattanchery is also home to Konkanis and Gujaratis, with the Gujarati street in Mattancherry being a cultural icon for Keralite Gujaratis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mattancherry Palace</span> Palace at Mattancherry built by Portughese

The Mattancherry Palace is a palace popularly known as the Dutch Palace, in Mattancherry, Kochi, in the Indian state of Kerala which features Kerala murals depicting portraits and exhibits of the Rajas of Kochi. The palace was included in the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Despite the name Dutch Palace, the palace was built by the Portuguese Empire as a gift to the Kingdom of Cochin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in Kerala</span>

Kerala, a state situated on the tropical Malabar Coast of southwestern India, is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. Named as one of the ten paradises of the world by National Geographic Traveler, Kerala is famous especially for its ecotourism initiatives and beautiful backwaters. Kerala has unique culture and traditions coupled with its varied demography. Several international agencies ranging from UNESCO to National Geographic have recognised the state's tourism potential. Kerala was named by TIME magazine in 2022 among the 50 extraordinary destinations to explore in its list of the World's Greatest Places. In 2023, Kerala was listed at the 13th spot in The New York Times' annual list of places to visit and was the only tourist destination listed from India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cochin Port</span> Major port in India

Cochin Port or Kochi Port is a major port on the Arabian Sea – Laccadive Sea – Indian Ocean sea-route in the city of Kochi in Ernakulam district in the state of Kerala and is one of the largest ports in India. It is also the first transshipment port in India. The port lies on two islands in the Vembanadu Lake Willingdon Island and Vallarpadam, towards the Fort Kochi river mouth opening onto the Laccadive Sea.

Sir Robert Bristow was a British harbour engineer best known for his contributions to the development of the port of Kochi (Cochin) in Kerala, India and is regarded as the architect of modern Kochi port. Bristow recounted his experiences in his book Cochin Saga, which is considered an important source of historiography of Kerala. He is also noted for his initiatives in founding the Lotus Club, the first inter-racial club in Kochi. He was also a member of the Royal Society of Arts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kochi Municipal Corporation</span> Local civic body in Kochi, Kerala, India

The Kochi Municipal Corporation is the municipal corporation that manages the Indian city of Kochi in the state of Kerala. The Corporation manages 94.88 km2 of Kochi city and has a population of 677,381 within that area. It is the most densely populated city corporation in the state. Kochi Municipal Corporation has been formed with functions to improve the infrastructure of town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Kochi</span>

Kochi is an ancient city located in the Ernakulam District in the Indian state of Kerala about 200 km from Trivandrum, the capital of Kerala.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Kochi</span>

Kochi is a city in the Indian state of Kerala. Kochi is located in the district of Ernakulam. Old Kochi loosely refers to a group of islands including Willingdon Island, Fort Kochi, Mattancherry and Mundamveli. Today, Kochi includes Ernakulam, old parts of Kochi, Kumbalangi, and outlying islands. For many centuries up to and during the British Raj, the city of Kochi was the seat of the eponymous princely state — the Kingdom of Cochin, which lay between 9.48° and 10.50° latitude and 76.5° and 76.58° E longitude.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kadavumbhagam Mattancherry Synagogue</span> Former synagogue in Kochi, Kerala, India

Kadavumbhagam Mattancherry Synagogue aka Kadavumbhagam Synagogue is a Jewish synagogue located in Mattancherry, a locality in Kochi, in the coastal state of Kerala. It is one of the oldest extant synagogues in India, built in 1544 A.D. It was built by the Malabar Jews who are the oldest jewish settlers in India, believed to have arrived as traders in the ancient port city of Muziris. It was the second to be built in Mattancherry, after the Kochangadi Palli in 1344 A. D., and is one of three synagogues in the area. The others being the Thekkumbhagam Mattancherry Synagogue (extinct) and the Paradesi Synagogue of the Paradesi jews of Cochin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kadavumbhagam Ernakulam Synagogue</span>

The Kadavumbhagham Ernakulam Synagogue in Kerala, India, is the restored oldest synagogue of the Malabar Jews with a Sefer Torah scroll and offering occasional services. It was established in 1200 CE and restored several times through the centuries on the same site. It is modeled on the earliest synagogue of the Malabar Jews at Muziris, which dated from the time of ancient sea trade between the Mediterranean and Kerala.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Kochi: Queen of tourists' hearts too". The Hindu . Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  2. "Kochi, known as the Queen of Arabian Sea, tucked in the beauty of coconut palms and endless blue waters is one of the important towns in south India, with a natural harbour" . Retrieved 21 February 2008.
  3. "The port City-Queen of Arabian Sea- Complete Information on Cochin" . Retrieved 21 February 2008.
  4. "Places to visit in Ernakulam (Cochin)- The Queen of Arabian Sea". irisholidays.com. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  5. "Cochin Travel Guide, Cochin in Kerala, Travel To Kochi in India, Travel to Cochin City" . Retrieved 20 February 2008.
  6. Ayub, Akber (ed), Kerala: Maps & More, 2006 edition 2007 reprint, p. 48, Stark World Publishing, Bangalore, ISBN   81-902505-2-3
  7. The Official Website of Ernakulam District
  8. The magnificent hill palace at Thripunithura (Thiruvankulam panchayat, ernakulam district of Kerala), was once the headquarters of the illustrious Kochi Royal family Archived 15 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  9. 1 2 The Paradesi Synagogue, Cochin, India. Database of Jewish Communities, The Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot. Accessed online 13 February 2007.
  10. "St. Francis Church". Wonderful Kerala. Retrieved 21 February 2008.
  11. Ayub, Akber (ed), Kerala: Maps & More, Fort Kochi, 2006 edition 2007 reprint, pp. 20-24, Stark World Publishing, Bangalore, ISBN   81-902505-2-3
  12. "St. Francis Church, Kochi". Wonderful Kerala. Retrieved 21 February 2008.
  13. "Mattanchery Church".
  14. "Athirappilly - Vazhachal." Suni Systems (P) Ltd. Retrieved on 3 August 2007.