A Complete Travel Guide to Kathmandu City

It’s no surprise that Nepal attracts around 790,000 foreigners every year through land and air.

More interestingly, tourists from around the globe choose Nepal for different recreational activities and cross them off the things-to-do-before-I-die list.

What will give you that adrenaline rush are the fact that Nepal is geographically diversified resulting in different thrilling adventures.

Over 40,000 people venture into trekking to Everest Base Camp, which makes it the most popular trek in Nepal, followed by Annapurna Base Camp Trek.

If you are travelling to Nepal for the first time in hopes of trekking and embarking on adventures, Kathmandu will be your first stop as it has the only international airport in Nepal.

Kathmandu is also the capital city of Nepal. So there are a lot of things this city has to offer too.

Kathmandu recently made its way to the list of Top 25 cities ‘Traveller’s Choice’ by Trip Advisor, beating Sydney. Moreover, Kathmandu is the only South-Asian country to make it to the list.

Back in 2013, Kathmandu was ranked third among the top 10 travel destinations on the rise in the world by Trip Advisor which also meant it ranked first in Asia.

Kathmandu has always fascinated people from all around the world with its beautiful hills and around 130 ancient and important monuments.

So if you give this city a chance to show you how wonderful it is, you’ll definitely want to lengthen your stay.  It has that effect on everyone.

Getting to Know Kathmandu City

It’s a known fact that Kathmandu is a size of a peanut geographically but when it comes to culture and lifestyle, it dominates most cities.

The city is above 2000 years old and is situated at 1400 meters above sea level.

Nepal is basically known for its altitudinal variations, ranging between 100 m above the sea level to peak of the Earth, the Mt. Everest.

Also Nepal is the mountainous country having many sky-penetrating mountains with lush green meadows, serene hills and deepest gorge.

Among many hill stations, some of the most notable ones are: Kakani, Nagarkot, Chandragiri, Dhulikhel and Shivapuri.

The city got its name ‘Kathmandu’ from the ‘Kasthamandap Temple’ located at Durbar Square, which means a shelter made through the wood of a single tree.

Also the legends say that before this heavy human civilization, Kathmandu used to be a huge wide lake which was later cut by the goddess Manjushree and the water ran out.

Even though the city is packed with heritages, it isn’t what it used to be anymore. The earthquake of 25th April, 2015 destroyed everything leaving people devastated.

 possible.

If you take south, there is a street filled with incredible metalwork, especially utensils. Straight on this way and you’ll reach Jana Bahal, featuring the majestic temple of Luchhubhulu Ajima.

Going south of the same way, you’ll find yourself at Indra Chowk. You’ll know its Indra Chowk when you see tons of shawls showcased for sale on the temple’s step.

That temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva which was built in the 18th century. Its distinguishable characteristic is its big black stone.

On the right after moving a little ahead, you’ll see The Aakash Bhairab (Indra Mandir). The statue of Lord Indra is placed on the second floor of that rectangular building.

You also might observe a big crowd on the ground floor of the temple.

The crowd is there to take luscious sip of the amazing lassi ( a yoghurt based thick drink with nuts and sweets). Best in the city.

Passing the Aakash Bhairab, you’ll find yourself standing between two streets. Take one on the right and follow it to the end.

Now you’re in the Kathmandu Durbar Square’s north end.

While walking through the heritage walk, don’t freak out when you feel like you’re lost. You’ll be okay, trust me.

One road might not lead to where you thought it would but that’s what’s interesting about this place. The unpredictability.

And all the narrow streets have a common end so there’s really nothing to worry about. Just explore every corner possible.