Kathmandu City Tour

Welcome to Kathmandu! Once you land at Kathmandu airport (Tribhuvan International Airport), retrieve your luggage and go through customs (visa, etc.). Then get to the arrival terminal. You will find our representative waiting to greet you. He/she will be holding Icicles Adventure Treks and Tour signboard with your name on it. A comfortable private transfer will take you to the reserved hotel. After checking in, we suggest you have a good rest for the remainder of the day to recover from the jet lag. Overnight in hotel.

After breakfast, we start an interesting tour around Kathmandu. Escorting by an English speaking guide (can be provide any language speaking guide on request) be, try to give them a full taste of our vivid culture image and an enchanting manner of its people. In our sightseeing tour we go to Monkey temple Swayambhunath, Pashupatinath Boudhanath Stupa and Kathmandu Durbar square.

Mountain flight adventure is to encounter to the tallest mountains of the world. Mountain flights offer the closest possible aerial views of Mount Everest, Kanchenjunga and many breathtaking snowcapped mountains and beautiful peaks

Durbar Square: -This complex of palaces, courtyards and temples, built between the 12th and 18th centuries, used to be the seat of the ancient Malla kings of Kathmandu. An intriguing piece here is the 17th century stone inscription set into the wall of the palace with writings in 15 languages. The Durbar square, protected as an UNESCO world Heritage site, is the social, religious and urban focal point of the city. There are also museums inside the palace building. There is an entrance fee of Rs.250 for foreign visitors. Your ticket to the Square entitles you to visit all the museums.

Swayambhunath, 6.5 kilometers west of Kathmandu, situated on a hillock, this 2000 years old Stupa is the world’s most glorious Buddhist shrine and is surrounded by several small pagodas. The main temple is capped by a pinnacle of copper gilt and is painted on the four sides with all seeing eyes of Lord Buddha.

Pashupatinath, dedicated to Lord Shiva, is the holiest and most famous Nepalese temple. Situated 5 kilometers northeast of Kathmandu on the bank of the sacred Bagmati River, it is an impressive pagoda style structure with gilt roof and richly carved silver doors. It has bathing and cremation ghats, which are of absorbing interest to the tourist, particularly in the mornings and on festival day

Boudhanath Stupa, one of the largest stupas in the world and an important Buddhist pilgrimage. The unique octagonal Mandala design with hundreds of prayer wheels and the 108 images of the Buddha set into the niches around the huge structure.  The area of Boudhnath is also famous for over 50 Tibetan Gompas or monasteries, the also being known as the ‘Little Tibet’.

After breakfast, we start an interesting tour around Kathmandu. Escorting by an English speaking guide (can be provide any language speaking guide on request) be, try to give them a full taste of our vivid culture image and an enchanting manner of its people. In our sightseeing tour we go to patan and bhaktapur

Patan city nearby Kathmandu provides us the wonderful opportunity of sightseeing around ancient temples, palaces, handicrafts, stone works, metal works and other authentic nepali products. These art and crafts reflects the culture and tradition of local inhabitants mainly Newars. Visit to the Ashok stupas around the boundaries of the city, heavenly Patan Durbar square that was once the palace of ancient Malla Kings, Patan Dhoka, golden temple, mahaboudha temple, Krishna mandir and other musems reflects centuries old monuments.

Bhaktapur city is the cultural Newar city located nearby Kathmandu linked by Araniko highway. Bhaktapur is known for its pottery art and artitecture that enthralls every visitors over here. Visit to Bhaktapur durbar square, museums, golden gate, 55 windows palaces and spectacular temples is worth visiting. Still the locals follow the ancient tradition and lifestyle along with their profession which is the primary source of their income. As soon as you enter the Bhaktapur, the bricked roads, ancient style houses and monuments symbolizes that being near to metro city Kathamandu, Bhaktapur is untouched from urbanization. There are also many hiking points on bhaktapur. You can hike up to Nagarkot and witness spectacular sunrise views next morning or drive upto panauti and hike to Namo Buddha monastery, the perfect day tour.

We wake up early today to catch a glimpse of the spectacular sunrise over the Himalayas. Weather permitting, the seemly endless chain of mountains appear glossy in the north, while the entire Kathmandu valley can be clearly seen towards the west.

BUGMATI:
Bungamati is the birthplace of Rato Machhendranath, regarded as the patron of the valley, and the large shikhara – style temple in the centre of the village square is his home for six months of the year. He spends the rest of his time in Patan. The process of moving him around Patan and backwards and forwards to Bungamati is central to one of the most important annual festivals in the valley. The chowk around the temple is one of the most beautiful in the valley – here one can see the heart of a functioning Newari town. There are many Chortens and a huge prayer wheel, clearly pointing to the syncretism nature of the Newari religion.

KHOKANA:
Khokana in Nepal is situated just north of Bungamati. It is a tiny Newari village with a reputation for two things – mustard oil and the local temple. The Newari who live here eke out a simple living off the land. Much of their daily activities take place outside of their dwellings and they really do seem to embrace nature.

Thus, as you make your way down the main street of the village, you will see woman sitting outside spinning, men crushing seeds, and other daily activities. The village is famous for its unusual mustard oil harvesting process in which a heavy wooden beam is used to crush the mustard seeds in order to extract the oil. This oil can be eaten if desired but it can also be used for therapeutic massage. Even if you are not a fan of the mustard plant, you simply have to enjoy the local mustard oil in whatever way appeals to you the most.

In the center of town you will find that the main street is particularly wide – especially for a village of such diminutive size. The street was widened significantly during the rebuilding process after an earthquake shook the village in 1934. You will also find that no matter where you go in this tiny village, a large three-storied temple will catch your eye. This massive building certainly dominates the ‘skyline’ of the village and can be seen from virtually anywhere in the area.

The temple is dedicated to the local mother goddess, Shikali Mai, and it is regularly used by the local people. A similar temple to the northeast of the village is mainly only used during times of epidemic. Clearly, Kokhana does have something to offer – even if it will only keep you busy for a few hours.

Normally, we conclude the tours around 3 o’clock. However you can take more time, if you are deeply interested about the history, nature and cultural of these places. In the evening at 6.00 pm we will come to pick at your hotel for the farewell dinner at typical Nepalese restaurant with cultural dance.

Transfer to airport for the home departure.”Farewell!”