[black_panther]

Originally Posted by Sudipto-S-Team

Sorry about the delayed response. Thanks for your reply regarding the route to Chitwan.

Regarding Kathmandu - my list of to-do things is somewhat like this. 1. Go to Pashupatinath and Gujjheswari temples. 2. Spend an afternoon at Thamel/Freak Street etc including a good book store like Pilgrims Book House or Asian Book House or perhaps both. 3. Spend half a day in the old city 4. Spend an evening at Rum Doodle restaurant and hope to see some celebrity mountaineer (not that I know them all by face) 5. Spend an evening if not an entire night at the casino 6. Spend another half a day at the Marmot and North Face stores (perhaps 6 and 2 will get combined).

I have been to Kathmandu two times (back in the 80s) and I know that it is not a hill station (many Bengalis make this mistake ) so seeing the snow capped peaks from there is not possible and I am okay with that. I don't have too much fetish for snow peaks :-)

Pokhara will not happen this time because of time constraint. Also I plan to go for the Annapurna Base Camp trek - perhaps next year. In fact point number 6 is related to this. So Pokhara will have to wait for me a bit.

You can get a good view of the kathmandu valley as well as some peaks from the monastery located there. Last time I could get a view of the snow clad Himalayas even on the way to the bus terminus.

You can spend half a day at Nagarkot to get a view of Mt Everest, if you are interested.

[amrisharm]

Hi all, just a short update on my drives into Nepal in 2014. I actually did 2 road trips into Nepal in the year 2014. One to Lumbini and the other to Pokhara. Both times we returned via Kathmandu after visiting my Wife's side of the family there. There is some good news for people who are thinking of taking their Indian registered cars into Nepal. Now the Tax per day for taking your car into Nepal has been reduced from INR 750/day to INR 320/Day.

First Post is of our trip to Lumbini (Birthplace of Lord Buddha) in the month of march 2014. Since most of the questions have already been answered in the above posts, this will just be a summary of our trip.

KMs Break up:

Journey to:
Siliguri-Kakkarbhitta-Hetauda-Lumbini-Mugling-Kathmandu: 767kms
Mileage 17.2kmpl with 65% AC
Speed not exceeding 80-90kmph.

Journey From:
Kathmandu-Mugling-Hetauda-Kakkarbhitta-Siliguri: 635kms
Mileage 17kmpl with 70% AC
Speed not exceeding 80-90kmph.

Total Kms: 1400kms
Total fuel consumed approx 83 Ltrs.



The route we took highlighted on the map. Since I was travelling with Retired parents, we stopped over for the night in Hetauda while going and while coming back.





Starting the drive. The roads in Nepal are for the most part in good shape. But the roads are not smooth tarmac, its more like gravel glued together by Tar than smooth blacktop so there will be a bit of vibrations and a lot of tyre noise.




Taking a break in the middle of nowhere. A short break to break the drive.




Typical roads in the Plains of Nepal, slight gradient with wide flowing curves.



A major Hazard on the roads in Nepal. Slow moving Tractors carrying Sand/ Stone. You cruising at 70-80kmph, and take a wide bend and suddenly in front you is a tractor barely travelling at 30kmph.



Finally at the birthplace of Buddha, the exact spot is in the centre of the white building in the background. A very peaceful place it is.



A panoramic view of the center of Lumbini






The hotel we stayed in aka Hotel Hokke, Lumbini. We got a huge discount due to a family connection.



Lumbini Park is spread over a vast area and inside it are many Monasteries built by different countries as a tribute to Lord Buddha. Some worth mentioning are the Chinese, Nepalese, Thai, Myanmarese, German ones. This particular pic was taken inside the Monastery complex built by the Manangey tribe of Nepal.



This Stupa Built by the Nepalese government



A picture of the Thai Monastery. There were many more monasteries but I wont post pictures of them all. Some surprising countries with monasteries in Lumbini include Austria, France to name a few. I really wanted to see all the monasteries after dark but due to acute electricity shortage in Nepal the monasteries were not lit up after dark.



We were there in the 2nd week of March and on our drive from Lumbini to Kathmandu we encountered heavy fog.



With so many rivers in Nepal every road side eatery has got fried fish on their menu.



Typical roads you will find in the central parts of Nepal. Winding roads wide enough for 2 way traffic.


Short Trip to Pokhara coming up in the next part.
To be continued....

[andyonwheels]

Hey Guys - we are on our way to Nepal and 'further' from Bangalore.
We are driving, starting from Bangalore and looking to enter Nepal after visiting Varanasi.

Looking for suggestion on best route options from Varanasi into Nepal. We would love to visit places of scenic beauty in Nepal and it's our first visit there. I am looking for a 8-day itinerary. Any suggestions on places to visit and family-budget hotels to stay will be greatly helpful.
Thanks,

[amrisharm]

Originally Posted by andyonwheels

Hey Guys - we are on our way to Nepal and 'further' from Bangalore.
We are driving, starting from Bangalore and looking to enter Nepal after visiting Varanasi.

Looking for suggestion on best route options from Varanasi into Nepal. We would love to visit places of scenic beauty in Nepal and it's our first visit there. I am looking for a 8-day itinerary. Any suggestions on places to visit and family-budget hotels to stay will be greatly helpful.
Thanks,

Hi there, Just giving you some basic info with regards to what and where to visit inside Nepal.

1) Lumbini
2)Chitwan N.P(National Park)
3) Pokhara
4) Kathmandu
5) China Border

1) Lumbini: From Varanasi, you can easily go to Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha. Its a nice peaceful place to visit. But 1 full day should be enough. Once you enter nepal, it should take you approx 1 hr to reach here. Note, Tuesdays the museum is closed.

2) Chitwan National Park: A beautiful national park, worth a visit if time and budget permits. Small by Indian Parks standards, but density of wild animals is high. Park is famous for One horned rhinos and Bengal Tigers. Lumbini to Chitwan is approx 4 hrs, self drive.

3) Pokhara: Absolutely worth a visit. Very clean and not to crowded city. With a beautiful lake in the center of the city. Breath taking views of the mountains. Chitwan to Pokhara is approx 4 hrs self drive.

4) Kathmandu: A little dirty and crowded, but a historical city. Lots to see and do if you like old architecture. Details in the above pages. Pokhara to kathmandu is 6-7 hrs self drive.

China Border: A nice drive. Total time approx 4-5 hrs. This is one of those drives where the journey is better than the destination. Kathmandu to China border is 5-7 hrs self drive.

Also on the half way point from Pokhara to Kathmandu, right on the half way mark is a ropeway to a revered Temple of Mankamana. Its a 30-40min ropeway ride, worth a visit.

So these are all basic info I have provided, please do have a look on google for detailed info of the places mentioned above.