What's on in Kochi (Cochin), India through the year

Peak crowds — travelers describe it as peak season, Ernakulathappan Utsavam

• Festival

  Ernakulathappan Utsavam

  15 Jan – 10 Feb · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Eight days at the Shiva temple on Durbar Hall Ground: caparisoned elephants lined up for the evening processions, panchari melam and fireworks. The date follows the Malayalam month of Makaram, so it moves. Source ↗

Still on: Fort Kochi season (1 Nov – 28 Feb), Kochi-Muziris Biennale (10 Dec – 31 Mar (usually)), Cochin Carnival (25 Dec – 1 Jan)

Peak crowds — Ernakulathappan Utsavam, Fort Kochi season

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Ernakulathappan Utsavam (15 Jan – 10 Feb (usually)), Fort Kochi season (1 Nov – 28 Feb), Kochi-Muziris Biennale (10 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — Kochi-Muziris Biennale, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Kochi-Muziris Biennale (10 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Peak crowds — Vishu, Summer vacation (Kerala / far south) in India

• Holiday

  Vishu

  14–15 Apr · usuallyNational holidayClosures

  The Malayalam new year, on 14 or 15 April. Firecrackers start before dawn, families view the vishukkani arrangement at first light, and most shops and offices take the day off. Source ↗

Busy — Summer vacation (north & east) in India

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — Summer vacation (north & east) in India, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Southwest monsoon

  1 Jun – 15 Sep · usuallyRisk

  The monsoon makes landfall in India here first, usually around the first of June, and the harbour goes grey for three months. The Chinese nets still work and the hotels are half price.

Quiet — travelers describe it as quiet, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (1 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Busy — Onam, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Onam

  17–26 AugSchool holidaysClosuresCrowded

  Ten days of flower carpets, a sadya on a banana leaf and pulikali tiger dancers on the streets of Thrissur up the road. Offices and many shops close for the final four days. Source ↗

Still on: Southwest monsoon (1 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (1 Jun – 15 Sep (usually)), Onam (17–26 Aug)

Busy — Autumn break (Dussehra / Diwali) in India, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in October.

Peak crowds — Fort Kochi season, Thripunithura Vrischikolsavam

• Season

  Fort Kochi season

  1 Nov – 28 FebDry seasonCrowded

  The rain stops and Fort Kochi fills: homestays on Princess Street booked out, kathakali shows twice a night, and cruise ships tying up at Willingdon Island most weeks.

• Festival

  Thripunithura Vrischikolsavam

  10 Nov – 5 Dec · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  The eight-day festival at Poornathrayeesa temple in Thripunithura, ten kilometres out, opens Kerala's temple season: fifteen elephants abreast and panchari melam in front of them. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Fort Kochi season, Thripunithura Vrischikolsavam

• Festival

  Kochi-Muziris Biennale

  10 Dec – 31 Mar · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  South Asia's biggest contemporary art show, spread over godowns and warehouses across Fort Kochi. It runs every other winter, not every year — the seventh edition opens in December 2027. Source ↗

• Festival

  Cochin Carnival

  25 Dec – 1 JanChristmas & New YearCrowdedClosures

  A week of processions, races and beach games in Fort Kochi left over from the Portuguese, ending with a giant Papanji effigy burned on the parade ground at midnight on the 31st. Source ↗

Still on: Fort Kochi season (1 Nov – 28 Feb), Thripunithura Vrischikolsavam (10 Nov – 5 Dec (usually))