The best things to do in Nepal do not begin at Everest. They begin in the potters’ squares, the lake towns, and the rhododendron forests that most travellers rush past on their way to the mountains.
Most people arrive in Nepal thinking about Everest and leave talking about everything else: the woodcarved temple towns of the Kathmandu Valley, the sweet buffalo-milk yoghurt of Bhaktapur, sunrise over the Annapurnas from a Pokhara hilltop, a rhino crossing a river at dawn in Chitwan. The mountains are the headline, but the country between them is the real story.
This is a guide to the classic Nepal route, the loop that links the Kathmandu Valley, Pokhara, and the southern jungle. It suits a first trip of one to two weeks and needs no mountaineering experience, just a decent pair of walking shoes and an appetite for temples, trails, and dal bhat.
Here are ten things to do in Nepal that earn their place on the itinerary.
Read also: Top 10 Attractions in Kathmandu: A Cultural Journey in Nepal
Take a Nepali Cooking Class
Nepali food deserves more attention than it gets, and the fastest way in is to cook it yourself. A half-day class in Kathmandu or Pokhara teaches you the staples: dal bhat, the lentil-and-rice plate that fuels the whole country, and momos, the steamed dumplings you will crave long after you fly home.
Book Authentic Private Nepali Cooking Class in Kathmandu
Most classes start with a walk through a local market to pick up spices and vegetables, then move to a home or small kitchen for the cooking. You grind your own masala, fold your own momos, and sit down to eat the results. It is the single best crash course in the flavours you will meet across the rest of the trip.
Explore the Temples of Kathmandu
Kathmandu is dense, loud, and layered with sacred sites. Two stand above the rest and belong on any first visit.
Swayambhunath
Perched on a hill west of the city, Swayambhunath is the ancient stupa often called the Monkey Temple for the troops of macaques that roam its steps. Climb the 365 stairs for the painted eyes of the Buddha gazing out in four directions and a wide view back over the Kathmandu sprawl.
Book a Sunset Walk Through Swayambhunath
Pashupatinath
On the banks of the Bagmati River, Pashupatinath is the most important Hindu temple in Nepal, dedicated to Lord Shiva.
Non-Hindus cannot enter the inner shrine but can watch the open-air cremation ghats and evening aarti ceremony from across the river, a solemn and unforgettable window into Nepali ritual life.
Wander the Streets of Patan
Just across the river from Kathmandu, Patan is the valley’s city of artisans, and its Durbar Square is the finest of the three royal squares. The density of temples, courtyards, and metalwork workshops here rewards slow walking.
Book 1-day tour of 7 historical sites in Kathmandu
The Patan Museum, set in a restored royal palace, is among the best museums in South Asia. Around it, the square’s Krishna Mandir and rows of pagoda temples show off the Newari woodcarving and stonework that define the valley. Duck into the side lanes to find bronze casters and Buddhist courtyards known as bahals.
Few experiences match what this offers within the broader conversation about things to do in Nepal, where the landscape alone tends to rewrite expectations.
Read also: Exploring the 7 Best Museums in Kathmandu, Nepal
Spend a Day in Bhaktapur
Of the valley’s three old cities, Bhaktapur is the best preserved, a medieval town where the streets are still paved with brick and the loudest sound is often a potter’s wheel. Give it a full day.
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- Nyatapola Temple: The five-tiered Nyatapola is the tallest temple in Nepal and the emblem of Bhaktapur, guarded by its famous flights of stone figures on the steps.
- Pujari Math and the Woodcarving: Near the Dattatreya Square, the Pujari Math is a monastery house famed for the Peacock Window, a carved wooden lattice regarded as a masterpiece of Newari artistry.
- Potters’ Square: A short walk away, Potters’ Square is exactly what it sounds like: an open plaza where clay pots dry in rows under the sun and potters work the wheel much as they have for centuries.
- Juju Dhau: Do not leave without a clay cup of juju dhau, the “king of yoghurts,” a thick, sweet, custardy buffalo-milk yoghurt that Bhaktapur is famous for across the country.
Hike from Panauti to Namo Buddha
For a taste of the countryside without committing to a multi-day trek, the walk from Panauti to Namo Buddha is one of the best day hikes near Kathmandu. The trail spans around 12 to 15 kilometres and takes four to six hours through terraced fields, forests, and farming hamlets.
Read also: Discovering Kumari Goddess of Nepal: 9 Fascinating Truths
Start in Panauti, an ancient Newari town at the confluence of two rivers, known for its medieval temples. The path climbs gently past small villages and prayer flags to Namo Buddha, home to the Thrangu Tashi Yangtse Monastery, one of the most important Buddhist pilgrimage sites in the country, where more than 250 monks study and pray. On a clear day the Himalayas line the horizon the whole way up.
Break the Journey in Bandipur
Halfway along the road between Kathmandu and Pokhara, Bandipur is a hilltop Newari town that most travellers speed past. Stop. Its car-free main street of restored 18th-century merchant houses is one of the prettiest in Nepal.
Book 1 Day Kathmandu Cultural Village Tour to Bandipur
Bandipur trades on the Kathmandu Valley’s old trading wealth without the valley’s traffic. Stay overnight to catch the Himalayan panorama at dawn, walk the ridge trails, and eat on a terrace looking out over the hills. It breaks the long drive to Pokhara into two easy halves.
It is the sort of experience that earns its place among things to do in Nepal not through spectacle alone, but through the kind of impression that lingers well beyond the journey home.
Slow Down in Pokhara
Pokhara is Nepal’s second city and its adventure capital, strung along the shore of Phewa Lake beneath the Annapurna range. After the intensity of Kathmandu, it is where you exhale.
Phewa Lake
Hire a brightly painted wooden boat and row out on Phewa Lake to the Tal Barahi temple on its small island, with the mountains mirrored in the water on a still morning.
It stands apart from the more obvious entries on any list of things to do in Nepal, offering a perspective that feels harder to come by.
Book Full Day Pokhara Sightseeing Tour
Sarangkot Sunrise
Rise early and head up to Sarangkot, the hilltop viewpoint above the city, for sunrise over the Annapurnas and Machhapuchhre, the sacred fishtail peak. It is the classic Pokhara postcard, and it earns the early alarm.
The conversation around things to do in Nepal always circles back to this, and the consistency of that reputation speaks for itself.
Stay in the Astam Village
For a quieter counterpoint to Pokhara’s lakeside bustle, the hillside village of Astam sits about an hour away, surrounded by farmland and framed by the Annapurnas. This is eco-homestay and organic-farm country.
Astam is built for slow, restorative days: mountain views from your window, home-cooked Nepali meals, gentle walks through terraced fields, and the kind of hospitality that turns hosts into friends.
It is the antidote to itinerary fatigue. It occupies a distinctive place among things to do in Nepal, appealing equally to first-time visitors and those returning for a second or third look.
Trek the Ghorepani Poon Hill Circuit
If you want a real Himalayan trek without the altitude and commitment of the big expeditions, Ghorepani Poon Hill is the one. This four-to-five-day loop in the Annapurna foothills is the country’s most popular short trek for good reason.
Sunrise from Poon Hill
The trek’s centrepiece is the pre-dawn climb to Poon Hill (3,210 metres) for a sweeping sunrise over the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri massifs. The trail also passes through some of the finest rhododendron forest in Nepal, ablaze with colour in spring, and the Gurung and Magar villages along the way offer teahouse beds and warm dal bhat each night.
Go on Safari in Chitwan National Park
Trade the mountains for the jungle in Chitwan, Nepal’s first national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the southern lowlands of the Terai. This is one of the best places in Asia to see wildlife on foot and by jeep.
Book Nepal 6 Days Tour Package with Kathmandu UNESCO Sites & Chitwan Safari
Chitwan is home to the greater one-horned rhinoceros, wild elephants, sloth bears, gharial crocodiles, and a small, elusive population of Bengal tigers.
Canoe the Rapti River past basking crocodiles, walk the grasslands with a naturalist, and visit a Tharu village to learn about the Indigenous culture of the plains.
Things to Do in Nepal for Serious Trekkers
If you have more time and real backcountry experience, Shey Phoksundo National Park in remote Dolpo, far in the northwest, holds Nepal’s deepest lake and some of its most untouched Himalayan wilderness.
It is a permit-heavy, expedition-level journey well beyond the scope of a first trip, but worth knowing for a return visit.
Travelling Nepal Responsibly
Nepal’s trails and heritage sites carry heavy footfall, and the mountain environment is fragile. Carry a refillable water bottle and purification tablets to cut down on plastic, since bottled water piles up fast on the trekking routes.
Choose locally owned teahouses, homestays, and guides so your money stays in the villages you pass through, and stick to marked trails to protect the terraced hillsides. In the parks and temples, follow your guide’s lead on distance from wildlife and on local custom.
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