Photos: Kathmandu by Nabin K. Sapkota, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped; Kochi by Vis M, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped.
Kathmandu or Kochi?
Our verdict in twelve categories, each scored against the same fixed benchmark cities, and the climate month by month, so you can choose for your trip.
Choose Kathmandu for
- culture and sights
- nightlife
- nature and the outdoors
What lies behind each score is written up on Kathmandu’s own page.
Choose Kochi for
- beaches
- wellness
- families
What lies behind each score is written up on Kochi’s own page.
Scoreboard
Twelve categories on one fixed scale from 0 to 100. The shaded stretch is the gap between the two.
What lies behind each score is written up on the two cities’ own pages: Kathmandu and Kochi.
Your match
Pick a travel style or drag the sliders, and both match scores follow your weighting.
Wins on culture and sights and nightlife with your weighting.
Wins on beaches and wellness with your weighting.
What matters to you?
When should you go?
Pick your month. The climate figures are measured averages, not a forecast.
Kathmandu in July
Kochi in July
Daytime high, °C
Rainfall in the month, mm
Where the figures come from
Kochi has no weather station within reach, so its figures come from a gridded climate model rather than a measured record, and read a broad area rather than the city itself.
Temperature and rainfall are climate normals, averaged over the years shown. Kathmandu: 1991-2020 normals, Kathmandu Airport (4.7 km from centre). Kochi: 2001-2020 normals, NASA POWER reanalysis grid, no weather station within 90 km.
Before you go
| Measure | Kathmandu | Kochi |
|---|---|---|
| Official language | Nepali | Hindi, English |
| Currency | Nepalese Rupee (NPR) | Indian Rupee (INR) |
| Sockets | CM230 V, 50 Hz | CM230 V, 50 Hz |
| Driving side | Left | Left |
| Time zone | UTC+5:45 | UTC+5:30 |
| Emergency number | Police 100, ambulance 102, fire 101 | 108 or 112 |
| Elevation | 1,300 m | 0 m |
| Main airport | Tribhuvan International Airport (KTM)4 km from centre38 non-stop destinations | Cochin International Airport (COK)24 km from centre36 non-stop destinations |
By the numbers
| Measure | Kathmandu | Kochi |
|---|---|---|
| City population | 845,767 | 677,381 |
| People per km² | 17,121 | 7,138 |
| Museums within 10 km | 9 | 4 |
| UNESCO World Heritage sites within 50 km | 1 | 0 |
| Swim season, months above 21 °C | - | 12 months |
Where else could you go?
Every comparison below shares a destination with this one, so you can follow Kathmandu or Kochi somewhere new.