Top Things to do in Kathmandu Valley
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Top 10 Things to do Good for Kids in Kathmandu Valley, Central Region
Discover the best top things to do in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal including Patan Durbar Square, Basantapur Tower, Changu Narayan, Hanuman Dhoka, Pashupatinath Temple, Pullahari Monastery, Patan Museum, Durbar (Central) Square, 55 Window Palace, Bhaktapur Durbar Square.
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1. Patan Durbar Square
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 60 reviews
Reviewed By egekarakas12 - Dubai, United Arab Emirates
You have to visit this place asap, you will be enchanted!! I couldn’t close my mouth because i was shocked, i dont know what kind of talent that they have about handicrafts!! Superb
2. Basantapur Tower
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 308 reviews
This is the tallest of four towers (or "durbars") built by King Prithvi Narayan Shah in honor of Kathmandu Valley.
Reviewed By 448kathyv - Brookings, United States
A very intact site. This ancient palace of Nepalise royalty, and the Temple of Kumari. We were so lucky that the child Lama was in residence. We received his blessing. The stone carved statue of KalBhairav is awesome, as was the costumed parade and music that greeted us when we stepped outside!
3. Changu Narayan
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 497 reviews
Reviewed By belamek
It's believed to be oldest Sri Narayana temple. As per the guide explanation, Lord Vishnu used to come and pluck the flowers to worship his mother, One day locals caught him and tied him to a pillar. After some time Lord Vishnu mother came in search of Sri Lord Vishnu, after knowing about it locals pegged for pardon and requested Sri Lord Vishnu to be there and they will build temple, worship him. For this Sri Lord Vishnu accepted and locals built the temple. That's the short story about Chagu Naraya temple, one of the oldest poweful temple in Nepal
4. Hanuman Dhoka
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 590 reviews
Real monkeys live in this square, built to honor the mischievous and courageous monkey god Hanuman.
Reviewed By sklb2014 - London, United Kingdom
great place to be in Kathmandu Durbar square history is just a amazing and cannot be the best like this take a guide as we did it will be worth
5. Pashupatinath Temple
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4,935 reviews
Reviewed By SFO_Drew - San Francisco, United States
This UN World Heritage site is literally a must-see for many Hindus, in order to gain spiritual fulfillment (along with Varanasi). If you cross the bridge behind the temple and climb the stairs, you will find a respectful viewing area to watch cremation ceremonies of the high-ranking deceased (there are other slabs further up the river for the common folks). But if you continue up the stairs, you will find rows of stupas that are quite pretty (you'll also frequently find sadhus here who will pose for pictures for money), and then a monkey road that leads down to a back gate exit. The grounds are quite large so you may wish to get a guide (such as Pink Mountain) before going there.
6. Pullahari Monastery
7. Patan Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 525 reviews
It takes all three floors of the meticulously restored royal palace to cover thirteen centuries of Nepal’s religious art history; easily Nepal’s leading museum.
Reviewed By ggm96822 - Honolulu, United States
Severely damaged in the April 2015 earthquake, the restoration since has been phenomenal; much of the original doors, windows, wood carvings and brick work have been put back into place, only replaced by very high quality new work when necessary. This was the palace of the Malla kings of Patan, originally built in 1734 AD by displacing Ha Bāhā, though it has been rebuilt several times since (it was leveled in the massive 1934 AD earthquake, for example). The collection continues to expand, too, as (sadly) other historic structures of Patan are rebuilt without preserving their centuries-old carvings but at least letting the museum display them. There are occasional dances and musical events in the courtyard, and the impressively re-established annual Tantric-inspired Kartik Naach is performed in the fall outside the museum. Guide not necessary but many people apparently miss the second, separate entrance and even fewer visit the pond behind the palace.
8. Durbar (Central) Square
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 987 reviews
Most towns and cities have a durbar, or central, square. Patan's is comparatively quiet, surrounded by peaceful palace courtyards, shops and pagoda temples.
Reviewed By AZCasualTraveler - Mesa, United States
UNESCO had designated three (3) town squares in Nepal as World Heritage Sites (Cultural): (1) Kathmandu Durbar Square, (2) Bhaktapur Durbar Square and (3) Patan Durbar Square - all three of these Squares are must see places while traveling through Nepal and they are all different in their own way. The Patan Durbar Square has many distinctive and interesting temples and structures: Krishna Temple, Royal Palace Patan, Jagannarayan Temple, Keshav Narayan Temple, Char Naarayan Temple, Golden Temple and others. When we had visited Patan Durbar Square on November 2019, we found most all of the structures here had been either not affected by the 2015 earthquake or were repaired quickly - we saw only a couple of structures that were being "repaired". This is in contrast to the Kathmandu Durbar Square which had multiple structures that are still in need of earthquake damage repair when we had visited that location. In summary, the Patan Durbar Square is in excellent shape - almost all the structures show no earthquake damage and the whole area is visually quite stunning as you enter the Square. The Ancient Nepal architecture here at the Square looks very impressive and makes for good photography. Highly recommend seeing the Patan Durbar Square, and if you have time walk down through some of the side streets to see the residential areas that surrounds the Square - interesting!
9. 55 Window Palace
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 189 reviews
Reviewed By Kai_Wah - Malaysia, null
This is one of the significant structures in Bhaktapur Durbar Square with NPR 1,500 entrance fee for foreigners. Bhaktapur Durbar Square can be reached within 45 mins from Thamel district in Kathmandu by taxi which cost NPR 1,000 per trip. It was built by King Bhupatindra Malla and completed in 1784 under the reign of King Jaya Ranjit Malla who was the last king of Bhaktapur Malla Kings. Unfortunately, visitors are not allowed to enter the interior of the palace due to damage after earthquake especially 2015. It is protected under the UNESCO World Heritage which is part of the heritage in Kathmandu Valley. Nevertheless, the magnificence of the structure can still be seen from the exterior building.
10. Bhaktapur Durbar Square
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,633 reviews
The ancient city Bhaktapur lies on the Eastern part of Kathmandu valley which is also known as Bhadgaon or Khwopa. The historical monument on around signifies medieval age culture and tradition of Nepal and this old city is inhabited by indigenous Newari people in large group. you can visit to this place to experience Nepali culture,tradition,religion from right way.we are here to support you for your tours.
Reviewed By AZCasualTraveler - Mesa, United States
There are more than one Durbar Squares in Kathmandu Valley Nepal: Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan - all three (3) of these Squares have been designated by UNESCO as World Heritage sites. Bhaktapur is about 45 minute drive from Kathmandu city, and the Durbar Square in Bhaktapur (population 107,000) appears to be less crowded with tourists than the one in Kathmandu city (population 1.4 million). When we had visited Bhaktapur Durbar Square in November 2019, there was not much visible evidence of physical damage due to the 2015 earthquake to the structures when compared to Kathmandu - either the earthquake was less severe in Bhaktapur or the restoration work was completed faster here. The architecture here at Bhaktapur Durbar Square is typical ancient Nepal style with several notable structures in and around the Square area: Shiva Kedarnath temple, National Art Museum, Nyatapola Temple, Siddhi Laxmi Temple, Gopinath Krishna Temple and more. In addition to the Temples, there is the colorful "back streets" just off the square that have interesting shops to look at including a "Nepal Gurkha Knife" shop containing a variety of different styles - Interesting! It was well worth the drive to come visit Bhaktapur from the big city of Kathmandu.
