Nepal Destinations & City Guides

Cradled inside a lush Himalayan amphitheatre sits ancient Kathmandu — where brass bells echo softly past brick pagoda courtyards, butter lamps flicker before Boudhanath's giant whitewashed dome, and morning sightseeing flights sweep effortlessly past ice walls of Mount Everest in less than an hour without strenuous trekking.

Set beside shimmering glassy Phewa Lake directly beneath the colossal snow-clad fluted triangle of sacred Machapuchare ('Fishtail' Peak, 6,993m), serene Pokhara delivers one of Asia's most astonishing mountain panoramas without requiring a single climbing crampon. Cruise wooden rowboats past island Hindu shrines, drink coffee watching paragliders lift over emerald hills, and enjoy Himalayan sunrise glows from hilltop Sarangkot.

Tumbling out of steep snowy foothills onto lush tall-grass floodplains along Nepal's southern Terai, UNESCO World Heritage Chitwan National Park delivers thrilling African-style big-mammal wildlife safaris framed by distant Himalayan views! Track massive armoured Greater One-Horned Rhinos by 4x4 open-top jeep, glide past basking marsh crocodiles in carved sal-wood canoes, and relax in riverside luxury suites at Meghauli Serai or Barahi Jungle Lodge.

Just 40 minutes east of busy central Kathmandu lies pedestrianized medieval Bhaktapur — a living red-brick museum of five-tiered Nyatapola roof pagodas, spinning terracotta potter wheels in sunlit squares, and world-famous creamy Juju Dhau (King Yogurt) served in clay bowls. Climb another 35 minutes up forested ridges to quiet Nagarkot & Dhulikhel sanctuaries looking clear across the eastern Himalayas from Langtang to distant Everest.