We love to visit off-beat locations during off-seasons. Once such trip was the Nepal during the high winter -The December of 2013. The Wolfpack were there to witness "The New Year's Eve". And one myth-buster to add, Nepal is not just for adventure loving adrenaline junkies but equally enjoyable by nature-loving and culture-loving backpackers. This blog is all about spending quality time in Nepal without any hiking or trekking
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| Boudhnath Stupa |
The Prep
Indians do not require a visa for Nepal, so the prep was pretty much the ticketing and hotel bookings. From Chennai we took a train to Delhi and took direct flight to Kathmandu. Kathmandu is the only International airport in Nepal and it has daily direct flights from Delhi.For visa information, please visit, http://www.nepalembassyusa.org/visa.php
First Important part of the prep, is the currency. The 500 INR notes and 1000 INR notes are illegal in Nepal, so we had to change all our money into 100 INR notes for the travel. We then exchanged the INR to Nepal Rupees in Kathmandu. Even though the Indian currencies are widely accepted (including 500 and 1000), it is safe to exchange your currencies once you reach there, because negotiations in INR will make you end up paying higher. It is very advisable to book your hotels before you reach there. We stayed in a good hotel called 'Backpacker's Inn' in Thamel. The advance payment for the hotels you can use Punjab National Bank or Standard Charted Bank. They have tie-up with the other Nepal banks.
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| Indo-Nepal border via Bhadrapur |
Regarding the packing, take a single backpack which you can carry around and could hold all your things. We stayed mostly within the towns but the temperature went low till 2 C. Do remember to take thermal wear. If you are planning for trek pack as per your trekking partner's advise.
Getting Around
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| Biking in Nagarkot |
For families, book a tourist van for all days of your stay. Make sure you are booking a tourist van, the local transport also looks alike. Most easiest way are the domestic flights, which are relatively cheaper, but if you are on a tight budget, you can travel in local buses. Flight cancellations are very frequent here, so be prepared to hop on a local bus and enjoy the climate and scenic route without complaining about the bumpy roads
Thamel and Kathmandu
Thamel is a major town and center of Kathmandu. It is the shopping destination and also the party town. It hosts lot of cheap hotels for backpackers and many food joints. You can visit many Squares (like Durbar Square) and temples in walkable distances. Thamel is where you can rent motorbikes.
The Durbar Square and Kumari palace are must-go places in Kathmandu. The Pashupathinath Temple is a world heritage site and the Boudhnath Stupa are other major sites in Kathamandu. Please ask for right directions or have a tour guide, because Kathmandu city has many small and big Stupas and Durbar Squares around the town
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| Temple near Boudhnath Stupa |
Video Showing Durbar Square and Kumari palace: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq9mBM78c4o
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| Pashupathinath Temple |
Thamel is a great place to stay and do nothing. Have a leisurely plan so you can stay and get immersed into the culture and people. Staying in Kathmandu city might not give you the pleasure as in Thamel
Chitwan
Chitwan is a lower altitude town closer to the plains of India and to south of Kathmandu. If you are crossing the border via land across Gorakpur visit Chitwan first before you proceed to Kathmandu. The nearest airport is in Bharatpur. Travelling by road gives you good scenic view with 'Thrishuli river' flowing nearby.
We traveled in a local bus which took us more than 7 hours to reach Chitwan from Kathmandu. After reaching there we realized we had missed the famous "Elephant festival". The Elephant festival is very enthusiastic and crowd pulling . People from nearby towns come and enjoy elephants playing football and other events. By this time the park is open but you cannot sight any animals and also there are no elephant safaris during December. Even though December is not a good time for wildlife experience here, it is worth visit for the 'Elephant festival'
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| Thrishuli river en-route to Chitwan |
We traveled in a local bus which took us more than 7 hours to reach Chitwan from Kathmandu. After reaching there we realized we had missed the famous "Elephant festival". The Elephant festival is very enthusiastic and crowd pulling . People from nearby towns come and enjoy elephants playing football and other events. By this time the park is open but you cannot sight any animals and also there are no elephant safaris during December. Even though December is not a good time for wildlife experience here, it is worth visit for the 'Elephant festival'
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| Inside Chitwan National Park |
Pohkra
It is an adventure town and located to west of Kathmandu. It is the hub for adventure activities like light-weight flight, paragliding etc.,
Note: The famous bungee jumping is not near Pohkra but near Kathmandu. It takes around 6000 INR per person for the bungee and it is one of the best in the world. If you are planning to do the bungee, please allocate one full day for the bungee jumping, since you will be taken in a bus from Kathmandu to the bungee jumping place and will return in the same bus with other tourists. Only those who got the passes for bungee jumping will be taken to the location. It is not just another tourist spot where you can go, see then decide. Please book prior for bungee.
The Pohkra town truly lights up during the New year with the street festival and other events. You can spend your new year's eve here. Apart from adventure activities you can also see the Phewa Lake and other tourist spots in Pohkra
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| Street Food Festival at Pohkra |
Nagarkot
On our 7 days trip to Nepal, I have to accept, Nagarkot was the best!There are two routes to reach this place. One is a nice, smooth road. Gives you some spectacular views of the terrain. The other one is rugged. It becomes reaaaallllyyy difficult to ride with a pillion.
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| Nagarkot View |
One thing that makes the 'journey' to Nagarkot, an 'experience' is to RIDE to Nagarkot! You get some spectacular views of The Himalayas. You will be able to see a big stretch of the mountain!
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| View from watch tower |
Suggested itinerary:
Spend a day there, atleast(A night and a sunrise). Rent a room, put a camp fire in the terrace and sit under the blanket of stars! You will forget how your actual world will look like! In the morning, go for a ride/walk to the Nagarkot tower(a viewpoint). Enjoy the view.
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| Sunrise at Nagarkot |
En-route to Nagarkot tower, you will find a shelter where a mapping of peaks and their names will be written on a cement slab. Do not miss that, cos nobody really knows which peak is the Mt.Everest ;)
Plan your itinerary in such a way, so you need not shuttle between cities. If you are planning to leave by road across the Darjeeling border then keep Chitwan the last place to go. Keep enough buffer time for each visits since flight delays and cancellations are very common here. If you are on a tight schedule after you reach here book a package with a travel agent. There are tons of travel agents in Thamel and Kathmandu. Do roam around and find the most economical one.
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| World's Tallest Shiva Statue - Kailashnath Mahadev |
You can find the branded restaurants in Kathmandu and cusines from around the world but do enjoy the food-joints on the streets to have their staple food the "Chowmein", "Thupka" and "mo-mo"s
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| Chowmein |
What we learnt!
As you would be on the move most of the time, keep your backpack light.
Carry a good pair of woolen gloves, sock, a pair of thermal wear(Top and Bottom) and a good jacket. From the moment you step out of the airport, you'll need all these. We are from Chennai and it was freezing when we reached Kathmandu @ 11 PM. It was 10 degree Celcius. Carry limited clothes and shop at Nepal. Carry a half filled backpack, go there, buy a 'North Face' duffel bag and shop there.
What to buy:
- Gurkha knives (Khukuri)
- Rudrakshas
- Handicrafts and Antiques
- Trek equipments
- Souvenirs(T-shirts, cards, Refrigerator magnets)
- Fabrics
The city wakes up early and it gets dark as early as 5 PM. So if you are planning to hang around in the evening (Thamel has a bunch of night clubs ;)), suggest you to travel in group.
Even the smallest food joint has WiFi. So you can always be connected(Do not do that! Throw electronics and Enjoyyy I say!). If you are gonna stay for a week or long, get a local number there. You may need to use that in case of an emergency - To contact your hotel/Bike rental. Ncell was the only operator we were able to find. (http://www.ncell.com.np/)
Plan for atleast 10 days. Nepal is worth more than that. And if you wanna play with snow, plan ahead for a trek. It takes a 4 day trek for Mt.Everest base camp alone. Do a little bit of research and plan a trek! :)
Must-DO
- Roam around Kathmandu
- Stay, shop and drink in Thamel
- Ride a bike or trek to Nagarkot
- Elephant Safari in Chitwan
- Do Bungee Jumping
- Visit the Kailashnath Mahadev temple
- Do Adventure activities in Pohkra
- Eat Chowmein and mo-mo 's
Overall, It is never a wrong time to visit Nepal! There's always something and you will want to visit again :)
