The beauty of Kathmandu has been hidden by the dust and pollution. Well, hiking up in some amazing hills you can witness the stunning views of the Kathmandu valley with beautiful scenes of sun shine and Sun sets.
Hiking trails in Kathmandu
- Hike to Whitehouse
- Champadevi trail
- Shivapuri Hiking
1. Hike to whitehouse
At the southern outskirt of Kathmandu, there lies one of the best hiking trails to Bosan Dada. With a distance around 12km and height up to 558m, this hiking trails is totally worth it. The journey starts from Kirtipur, which is an ancient newari town of the valley. You can also head on fron Taudaha but if you move on through Panga, you get the witness the local housing and culture of the people of this place.
Moving on from Panga, you will reach to Lanagol, another village of Kirtipur. As soon as you reach to Kirtipur and head on to Lanagol, you will see this giant of a hill infront of you. On top of that, you will see a small facility at top, and that is the Whitehouse Resort, which is most probably thefinal destination of this hiking trail.
A little further from Lanagol, you will find a way to head on the trails through the dense forest. Whitehouse has gained a lot of impressions in last few years so, there is a road that will lead straightto the top of the resort. Just before you reach Whitehouse, you will find another newly operated facility, Lemon Grass Resort which is jsut below your final destination.
Both of the Resorts provide a wonderful serene view of the Kathmandu valley and bonus for you, amazing views of the mountain ranges including Annapurna can be seen from the top if you are lucky. As you get the resort on top, yoy can stop by and relax with tasty delicacies and warm ambience as well.
2. The Champadevi Trail
A slightly bigger and taller hill behind the Bosan dada is the Champadevi hill. With an elevation of 1324m and the distance of 12.9km, this hike is going to take a slightly longer time than the Bosan danda hike. The best thing about this hike is the amazing view of different mountain peaks and the Kathmandu valley.
You can start your journey from Taudaha, Dakshinkali or Kirtipur. There can find some route signage for the hiking trail but you might still need a guide at some point for this hike. However, with a little guidance and study before the trip, you might be able to head on with your own group.
Since you have to cover long distance to the top, you might want to start your journey early in the morning. The hiking trail passes through the dense forest which might take a while so be careful.
There are no restaurants, hotels, resorts or any local eateries at the top or at least to your final destination in between, so bring your own food and water for this trail. This trail might feel a little longer than you think but it is worth the sweat as the hikers say.
3. Shivapuri Hiking
Hike to Shivapuri is one of the popular hiking destination inside the Kathmandu valley. One of the major highlight of this hike is the Shivapuri National Park. Located at the northern fringe, shivapuri has an elevation of 1850m. The beautiful scenic views from Shivapuri peak and Nagi Gumba (Monastery) is one of best part of this hike.
Journey to Shivapuri hike starts from Budhanilkantha which is also an entry point to the Shivapuri Nagaruna National Park. You need to walk 2.3 km uphill from Budhanilkanth to the north east before you reach to the park. Buy a ticket permit to enter the national park whichs costs somewhere around $5 for foreigners and Rs 50 for Nepalese.
After the national park, a few hours uphill will take you to the entry point of the Nagi Gumba where you see the flags and the vibes of the monastery. You might want to take a slight break ther then head on straight to the peak after a while.
The scenes yet from the top yet again provides another beautiful scenery of the valley. As it is one of the popular hiking trail, you get to meet fellow hikers at times and also there are good route signage. You can return back the same trail or you can find another trail to head down.
Best time to hike in Kathmandu
March to May and September to November is the best time to hike in Kathmandu as the weather is clear and trails are dry (most of the time). Having said that, you can hike anytime of the season but you might want to pass the monsoon as it might be a little risky than the other seasons.
Things to know before hiking in Kathmandu
- Most of the hiking trails can be done by yourselves in a group but a guide is recommended
- Get all the required hiking gears
- Pack food and water
- Carry cash with you all the time as the local eateries, shops and cafes might not accept cards
Other best hiking trails in Kathmandu
- Pulchowki Danda (popular hiking destination - crowded in the winter during the snowfall)
- Dahachowk
- Chisapani to Nagarkot
- Panauti to Namobudhha
- Pilot Baba Ashram
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