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Cochin accommodation

Cochin accommodation

Luxury (over US$35/Rsl000 per room night)
The two top hotels are on Willingdon Island near to the airport. The Taj Malabar Hotel (tel 340010, tax 885-6767 TAJN IN, fax 0484-340297) has an excellent location on the north-western promontory of the island, overlooking Mattancherry and the Chinese fishing-nets, with good first-floor balcony rooms in the original building, a nice swimming-pool, and the Government of India tourist office on your doorstep. Rooms are from US$75. The Casino Hotel (tel 340221, tlx 885-6314, fax 0484-340001) has air-conditioned singles from US$38, doubles from US$50, a brand-new pool, informal (yet stylish) ambience, and two excellent restaurants. Both hotels have been recently renovated.

Mid-range (US$10-35/Rs250-1000 per room night)
Over on Boighatty Island, the KTDC Bolghatty Palace (tel 355003) is a rather run–down Raj-style hotel with large grounds, good recreational facilities, and lots of character. The massive old-wing rooms are not air-conditioned (single Rs165, double Rs220), while the newer air-con rooms (Rs340 single, Rs400 double) are not so attractive. The cottages down by the water’s edge (Rs385 single, Rs600 double) are often plagued by mosquitoes.

In Ernakulam, stay at Sea Lord Hotel, Shanmugham Rd (tel 352682, tix 0885-6643 TOUR IN) with air-conditioned singles from Rs350, doubles from Rs475. The hotel has a good roof-top restaurant. Hotel Presidency, Paramara Road (tel 363100, tix 885-6201) has air-conditioned rooms from Rs450 single, Rs50 double. Hotel Abad Plaza (tel 361636, tix 885-6587, fax 0484-369729) on M.G. Rd has comfy singles and doubles for Rs250 and Rs50 respectively and is well-located with seafood restaurant and attached supermarket. A new Gateway Hotel overlooking the harbour and near the KTDC office in Ernakulam is due to open in 2992.

Budget (under US$1O/Rs250 per room night)
Woodlands Hotel (tel 252272), also on M.G. Rd, has rooms from Rs255 single, Rs50 double. It’s a reasonably clean hotel, if tacky, with air-con veg restaurant and ice-cream parlour. Many budget travellers enjoy Biju’s Tourist Home in Market Rd, opposite the main jetty (tel 259552), with a friendly and informative management and bright, spacious rooms just Rs250 single, Rs50 double. There are also a few air-conditioned rooms at Rs250. As a second string, try Hotel Luciya in Stadium Rd, next to the bus-stand (tel 255522). Rooms cost from Rs250 .

In Fort Cochin, the Hotel Sea Gull (tel 25225) in Calvetty Rd has a pleasant location between the two ferry stops, overlooking the harbour, and nice air-conditioned singles and doubles from Rs250 and Rs50 respectively. The restaurant and bar are very popular. Facing the Chinese fishing-nets, there’s KTDC’s Subala, a nice friendly place with cheap restaurant, helpful staff and comfy rooms at Rs250 single, Rs75 double. It’s very convenient for the boat jetty and bus-stand. Other decent cheap lodgings are PWD Tourist Rest Home near the beach (spacious, spartan rooms at Rs50) and Hotel Elite near St Francis Church, with decent Rs50 double rooms on the ground floor but grim rooms upstairs.

EATING OUT
On Willingdon Island, Casino Hotel has one of the most prestigious eateries in town, a seafood speciality restaurant called Fort Cochin. Service and food are excellent, and the lobsters unbelievably large. An average meal including dessert comes to around Rs250 per head. The Casino’s other restaurant, the multi-cuisine Tharavadu features a daily lunch buffet for Rs220 and live music performances nightly. The Taj Malabar’s Rice Boats prepares some excellent Malabar food from Rs50 per head.

In Ernakulam, there’s a wide choice of eating places. Sealord Hotel has a popular air-conditioned restaurant, with tasty Indian/continental food at around Rs50 per dish. For fast food and superb North Indian fare, try Pandhal Restaurant opposite Woodlands Hotel on M.G. Rd. This is a relaxing air-con place, with good lunchtime specials; thalis and Kerala-style curries from Rs25, 22 noon-2 pm daily, except Sundays. For seafood, try the Rs250 buffet lunch (22 to 2 pm) at Abad Plaza Hotel, which serves squid, lobster and prawns in Ernakulam. At Subhiksha, the stylish vegetarian restaurant attached to B.T.H. Hotel in D.H. Rd, you can enjoy amazing lunchtime thalis for about Rs25 and incredibly cheap south Indian food with most dishes only Rs5 in air-conditioned comfort. Next door, there’s a popular little coffee shop Ernakulam has two Indian Coffee Houses; one opposite the main jetty in Cannon.

Shed Rd, the other below the rail station in M.G. Rd, which do good cheap breakfasts Two reliable Chinese restaurants are Malaya on Bannerjee Rd, and Golden Dragon opposite Park Hotel. Chinese food is also available at the Sealord’s roof-top restaurant and The Hotel Presidency. Two good bakeries are Cochin Bakery opposite Woodlands Hotel, and Ceylon Bake House near the tourist office on the Broadway. In Fort Cochin, Hotel Seagull is good for non-vegetarian food, doughnuts art porridge, and KTDC’s Subala has a nice breezy restaurant by the water, with cheap if unimaginative meals. The best treats are still at Hotel Elite’s famous Parisian-style café. This has patisseries, fancy cakes and refrigerated cheese.

COCHIN TRAVEL GUIDE
The Government of India Tourist Office, Malabar Hotel, Willingdon Island (tel 340352, tix 885-6847) is open 9 am-5 pm weekdays, 9 am-12 noon Saturday, closed Sunday. It still enjoys the reputation of being the ‘best tourist office in India’; hires out good approved guides (Rs50 half-day, Rs80 full-day) and the staff are invariably helpful. KTDC’s Tourist Reception Centre, near Ernakulam jetty (Shanmugham Rd, tel 353234) is open 8 am-6 pm daily, and sells the boat tours (9.30 am-1 pm, or 1.30-5 pm; Rs20) round Cochin and its islands. It also sells Jaico’s monthly Timetable; an excellent little publication with up-to-date city information and local air/rail/bus timings.

All useful tourist addresses are in Ernakulam: Indian Airlines at Durbar Hall Rd (tel 353901, 353826, apt 364433), East West Airlines tel (361632, 355342, apt 340041). The main post office in Hospital Rd (8 am-8 pm Mon-Sat, 10 am-6 pm Sun). There is a useful travel agent for bus/rail reservations at Woodlands Hotel on M.G. Rd (tel 351372) (9 am-7.30 pm).

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