Getting There & Away

There are few direct flights to Nepal, which means most travellers from Europe, North America and Australia have to change aircraft and/or airline en route. Nepal's only international airport is Kathmandu's Tribhuvan Airport. If you want to see the mountains as you fly into Kathmandu, make sure you sit on the right-hand side of the plane. The departure tax for international flights is US$10, or US$7 to destinations on the Indian subcontinent.

The classic overland routes between Nepal and India are still popular. Buses are usually the quickest and easiest form of transport between Nepal and India. There are three main crossing points: Sunauli-Bhairawa, Birganj-Raxaul Bazaar and Kakarbhitta-Siliguri. The Sunauli border crossing is the best one from Varanasi; the Birganj crossing is the easiest from Calcutta; and Kakarbhitta is the obvious choice from Darjeeling. A trickle of travellers enter Nepal at the Mahendrenagar-Banbassa border crossing in the extreme west of Nepal, which is handy for travellers coming overland from Delhi who do not want to visit Varanasi. The crossing between Nepal and Tibet via Kodari is open to organised groups but not to individual travellers heading north. Be prepared with alternative plans if you're thinking about using this route, because landslides regularly make it impassable during the monsoon.

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Getting Around

Royal Nepal Airlines and several private companies offer domestic air services, but flights are relatively expensive and often delayed or cancelled due to inopportune weather. It's advisable to book domestic flights a week in advance and keep re-confirming your ticket just to make sure you don't slip off the passenger list if the flight is full. Airlines only accept payment in hard currency from visitors. Kathmandu's domestic airport is a shabby, chaotic place usually full of stressed tourists whose flights have been delayed.

Public buses are the main form of transportation and are incredibly cheap, incredibly uncomfortable and tediously slow. Buses ply almost every paved road (not that there are many), as well as some of the unpaved ones, and nearly every visitor comes back with horror stories about 'almost' plunging into a ravine. There are several services between Kathmandu and Pokhara aimed specifically at tourists. Those who dislike having chickens and goats supplementing their human travelling companions will prefer them. There are no trains and no drive-yourself rental cars in Nepal. Cars with drivers can be hired.

Bike-riding is quickly gaining popularity with visitors for short jaunts and a bike is often quicker than using local buses, especially in the Kathmandu Valley. Walking is still the most important and most reliable method of getting from A to B and for moving cargo. In most of Nepal walking is the only option. More goods are carried by human porters than by every other form of transport combined.

Local transport in the Kathmandu Valley and around Pokhara includes metered and unmetered taxis, buses, tempos (three-wheeled buses), auto-rickshaws, bicycle rickshaws and bicycles.

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Recommended Reading

Click here to view a map of Nepal.
Click here to view a map of Kathmandu.

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