Kathmandu Valley
Bhaktapur
An hour from Kathmandu, a Newar city of brick and carved wood, pedestrian at its heart, where life still follows the rhythm of temples and potters.
- Region: Kathmandu Valley
- Time needed: 1–2 days
- Entry: 2,000 NPR (≈ €12) or 15 USD (≈ €13)
- From Kathmandu: 45 min to 1 h 15
At a glance
Bhaktapur was one of the valley's three royal capitals, along with Kathmandu and Patan. It is the one that has best kept its old look: brick-paved streets, houses with carved wooden windows, squares linked by lanes where rice and pottery dry in the sun. The centre is almost closed to cars, and you can hear it.
The city charges a high entrance fee, but it pays for upkeep and rebuilding after the 2015 earthquake, and it covers the whole old town for a week on request. You can see it in a day from Kathmandu; you really discover it by staying the night, when the day visitors have gone.
Don't miss
- The Nyatapola temple, five roofs and some thirty metres high: the tallest pagoda-style temple in Nepal.
- The workshops of Pottery Square, where clay is thrown in the open air.
- The calm of evening and early morning, when locals make their devotions.
- Juju dhau, the “king of curds”, served in a small clay pot.
Less good
- The most expensive ticket in the valley: 2,000 NPR (≈ €12) or 15 USD (≈ €13).
- Around midday, tour groups crowd Durbar Square.
- The road from Kathmandu is often congested.
In pictures
What to see
A single ticket (2,000 NPR (≈ €12) or 15 USD (≈ €13) for non-SAARC foreigners, the rate since July 2025) covers the whole old town. Ticket counters are open from 7 am to 7 pm; show your passport when buying and you can have it extended for up to 7 days.
UNESCO
Durbar Square
The old royal square: the 55-Window Palace, the Golden Gate leading to the Taleju temple (closed to non-Hindus), the stone Vatsala Durga temple, rebuilt after 2015. The square feels more open than Kathmandu's: many temples destroyed in the 1934 earthquake were never rebuilt.
- Time
- 1 h 30
5 min on foot
Taumadhi and the Nyatapola temple
The liveliest square in town. The Nyatapola, built in the early 18th century, survived both great earthquakes; its stairway is guarded by pairs of wrestlers, elephants, lions, griffins and goddesses. Next to it, the Bhairav temple. The rooftop cafés have a fine view over the square.
- Time
- 1 hour
South of Taumadhi
Pottery Square
On the square and in the surrounding courtyards, hundreds of pots are shaped, dried in the sun and fired. You can try the wheel for a few hundred rupees.
- Time
- 30 min to 1 hour
To the east
Tachupal Tole (Dattatreya Square)
The oldest square in town, quieter, with the Dattatreya temple and, in a lane nearby, the famous carved wooden “Peacock Window”. The Woodcarving Museum occupies an old monastery on the square.
- Time
- 1 hour
Planning your visit
As a day trip from Kathmandu
Leave early (before 8 am, the road is clearer). Durbar Square, then Taumadhi and Pottery Square, lunch, and Tachupal Tole through the lanes in the afternoon. Back before dark.
With a night there (recommended)
Arrive in the afternoon, sunset from a roof terrace on Taumadhi, dinner. Next day, the squares early in the morning with the locals, then one of the two excursions below.
Nearby
Changu Narayan, a UNESCO-listed temple on a ridge 6 km north, often described as the oldest in the country (separate entry fee): go up by taxi and walk back down to Bhaktapur in about 2 hours. Nagarkot, a Himalayan viewpoint an hour's drive away, for a sunrise (Nagarkot and Dhulikhel).
Getting there
Taxi or ride-hailing from Thamel
The easiest option. Pathao and InDrive show the price upfront. The taxi drops you at the entrance of the old town, by the ticket counter.
Local bus
From Ratna Park bus station in central Kathmandu. Crowded but very cheap; ask for the Bhaktapur bus, there are several an hour.
Getting around locally
On foot only
The four squares are less than 10 min' walk apart. The centre is almost car-free: that's the whole pleasure of the visit.
Where to stay
In the old town
Guesthouses in restored Newar houses around Durbar Square and Taumadhi. Small rooms, often with a roof terrace. The entrance ticket covers your whole stay if it was extended when you bought it.
When to come
bestpossiblenot advised
Same climate as Kathmandu: best from October to December, pleasant from January to April, rainy but visitable from June to September. Bhaktapur has less traffic, so less pollution in the old town.
Festivals
| Bisket Jatra | April Nepali New Year: giant chariots pulled by rope clash on Taumadhi, and a pole is raised and then pulled down. The most spectacular festival in the valley. |
| Gai Jatra | August–September A parade in memory of those who died during the year, with children dressed as cows and stick dances. |
| Dashain and Tihar | October–November Sacrifices and family feasts for Dashain, oil lamps all over town for Tihar. |
Dates follow the lunar calendar and change every year; old-town guesthouses are fully booked during Bisket Jatra.
Good to know
You get your visa on arrival, at Kathmandu airport or at the border: form, fees and pitfalls to avoid on our dedicated site.
Visa Nepal →Fancy a few days of walking? Poon Hill, Mardi Himal, Langtang… permits, guides, transport and day-by-day itineraries on our trekking site.
Trek Nepal →Comments
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