Kathmandu Valley and Nagarkot

Kathmandu altitude (1300m/4260 ft.)

Upon arrival at Kathmandu airport, clear immigration and customs process and you will be met by our representative at the arrival gate and transfer to your hotel in the city. You will have time to settle into your room. After some rest, your guide will take you on the sightseeing of Kathmandu. 

First, visit the 2000 years old, legendary Swayambhunath Stupa, also nick-named as "Monkey Temple" due to a good monkey population in the area. Besides the main shrine, there are two active Buddhist monasteries and several other temples. The stupa sits atop a hill 80m (262 ft.) above the valley floor and provides an excellent view over the valley. 

Next, we visit the Kathmandu Durbar Square, the former capital of Nepal, where we visit the old Royal Palace complex and cluster of temples. Parts of the palace and some temples suffered damages during the earthquake of Apr 2015. We visit the temple of Kumari - the Living Goddess of Nepal, among others.

Now, we take a rickshaw ride through Indrachowk and Asson - the traditional business hub of medieval Nepal. The streets are vibrant with the activities of vendors and buyers.

Nearby Thamel is the Garden of Dreams-a neo-classical garden in 6,895 square meters (74,220 sq ft) with three pavilions, an amphitheater, ponds, pergolas, and urns.

In the evening, enjoy Nepali welcome dinner hosted by our local representative. 

After breakfast, your guide will take you for the sightseeing of Patan City and traditional villages of Khokana and Kirtipur.

First, visit Patan, one of the three medieval principalities of the Kathmandu Valley, the other two being Kathmandu and Bhaktapur. Patan is called the "City of Arts and Crafts." The tour commences from the Durbar Square, with former Royal Palace and an array of ancient and medieval temples and continues through the Golden Temple, Kumbheshwar Temple, Mahaboudha Temple, and Macchindranath Temple.

From here, we head to Khokana. It is a small sleepy village that offers a window back in time, with mattress-makers stuffing cases with cotton, farmers baling straw. And also tailors stitching, and women are spinning wool and winnowing rice. In the main village square is the triple-tiered Shekala Mai Temple (also known as Rudrayani), damaged by an earthquake in 2015 but still standing after the disaster, with carved balconies covered by fretwork screens. 

Our final destination of the day is Kirtipur-a historic town with faded grandeur. The street is lined up with old homes and temples. We take a stroll through the city and visit the temples.

Late afternoon, you are transferred back to your hotel for your leisure time.

After breakfast, we transfer to the Changu Narayan. On the way, we stop in a traditional town of Thimi-one of the ancient, cultural, and historical places along the trade route from Bhaktapur to Kathmandu. Changu Narayan is the oldest functioning Hindu Temple in Nepal, and it's also a UNESCO Heritage site. The last earthquake damaged the temple a bit, but restoration work is in progress and still the temple, and the vicinity is worth visiting.

After spending some time in this ancient temple, we begin our hike to Nagarkot. Your luggage will go with the van. Those who are not willing to hike can also take a ride. Its three or four hours walking through the terraced fields and villages and sometimes following the dirt road. You will be surprised to see just how much the local life along the trail is laid back and still maintain the traditional architecture, culture, and values. We will see on the way people busy in farming or harvesting, tending livestock, living in a joint family, and maintaining a close bond in the neighborhood.

At first, we follow the jeep track and later the trail goes through the village and sparse forest. Walking is comfortable with fairly level paths, and we will enjoy the mountain views from most of the trail. Now, we arrive at the village of Tamang ethnics. The town is made up of mud and stone houses with thatched or slate roof. Usually, the homes are three-storied, with a kitchen on the ground floor, bedrooms on the second and storage for the grains on the top floor. Often, there is a separate shed for the cattle. Each house maintains its vegetable garden, flowers, and even fruit trees. Later, we follow the jeep track to our hotel in Nagarkot.

Early morning, enjoy the spectacular sunrise view over the Himalaya! On a clear weather day, we will see a 180-degree view of the snow-capped mountains! We don't have this luck during the monsoon season, but we will enjoy the views of the lush and verdant valley. After breakfast, take a light walk to the village and hills of Nagarkot, and later we travel back to Kathmandu with stops in Bhaktapur, Pashupatinath Temple, and Boudhanath Stupa.

Bhaktapur is the best preserved of the three medieval principalities of Kathmandu Valley. We enter the city from its eastern gate and walk through the pottery street and arrive at Dattatreya Square with a temple and Pujarimath complex. All the houses and temples exhibit beautiful wood carving. The peacock window of Pujarimath Complex claims to be the masterpiece of wood carving in Nepal.

We continue walking on the cobbled street and arrive at Taumadhi Square, where we visit the impressive five-storied Nyatapola Temple and Bhairav Temple with rich wood carving. Finally, visit the Bhaktapur's Durbar Square that constitutes the former palace and several temples with intricate wood carving and beautiful stone sculpture. The Golden Gate-the main entrance of the castle is the masterpiece metalwork of Nepal. We will visit the palace museum, the courtyard and the Royal Bath Tank of the palace complex.

Next stop will be at the Pashupatinath Temple-the holiest Hindu Temple of Nepal that sits on the bank of sacred Bagmati River which is also a tributary of holy Ganges. Only Hindu people can get inside the temple. However, anyone can view the temple and activities on the premises from another side of the river.

The final destination of the day will be Boudhanath Stupa -the most significant Buddhist stupa architecture in Asia! The stupa is believed to be one of the "must visit" site for all Buddhists in their lifetime. There are are several monasteries, belonging to different schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The area is predominantly Tibetan and reminds of Barkhor area of Tibet.

After breakfast, your guide will transfer you to the airport for flight back home or to your next destination.