Nepal is a country most people have heard of, primarily due to Mt. Everest being located there. There is a lot more to Nepal than Mt. Everest and Kathmandu. About 200 km west of Nepal’s capital lies its second largest city, Pokhara.

Pokhara – Nepal’s second city and trekking hotspot

When we were mapping out our Nepal itinerary, we had always planned to go to Pokhara. We just weren’t sure for how long or what we would do there. After completing three enjoyable days in Kathmandu, we headed to Pokhara.

There are two ways to get between Nepal’s two biggest cities. You can go by road which requires a bus or a private taxi. Driving in Nepal is not recommended, hence the taxi. The other option is to fly. The bus between the two cities will take about ten hours to travel the 200 km. The traffic congestion along with the never-ending road work and restaurant/nature breaks, means your average speed is 20 km/hr for ten hours. That sounds painful. A private taxi will take about 6 – 7 hours and cost more than a flight. There are about 20 – 30 flights each way every day and they only take about 30 minutes.

Flying vs Driving between cities

We opted to fly on Yeti Airlines. Despite the flight being a bit late, were pleased with our decision. Once we started exploring Pokhara, we realized it was a special place. It has a more laid-back vibe than its larger neighbour and was a lot quieter. We were surprised by the sheer number of hotels in and around the Lake District, which is the area we were staying in. Most of the hotels were very empty as we were here in the “off-season”. Things do not start to pick up until March when the weather gets warmer.

Our hotel was great and, the manager, who arranged excursions for us was awesome. We outlined what we wanted to do and were quoted prices that were better than what I had seen online. There was a one day driving trip to some of the local “highlights” and must see’s. Of course, our overnight hike, as detailed in our previous post was a great memory.

Yoga in Nepal seemed natural

We also did a yoga class, it only seemed fitting to do one in Nepal. It was a private class, not that we wanted a private class, however we were the only people who showed up. The view of the lake in the morning sun was awesome. The class was just meh.

After eight days in Pokhara, we returned to Kathmandu, via Yeti airlines and this time we were appreciative of their tardiness. Our flight was scheduled for a 13:40 departure. We arrived at the airport at 12:00 and were told our flight was delayed by an hour. Then, despite it being noon, we asked if we could go on the 11:30 flight. That flight was also an hour late, now departing at 12:30. As it is a small airport, dropping of luggage as close to 10 minutes in advance is fine. There was no charge for this flight change (take note Air Canada). Clear weather gave us to wonderful mountain views while flying. It is, however, a bit disconcerting to be flying so close to the tops of various hills. I guess the pilots do this enough they know what they are doing.

We spent our last day and a half wandering around Kathmandu enjoying life. We also acquired some souvenirs that we likely did not need. As we wound down our time, we headed to the airport for what we could only describe as the biggest airport cluster I have ever seen.

The biggest airport cluster ever

We left downtown at 8:30 PM for our 11:30 PM overnight flight. Arriving at the airport at 8:50, we stared, in horror, at the mass confusion and chaos that was Kathmandu’s airport. We had difficulty exiting our taxi due to the sheer number of people crowding the curb and sidewalk. We waded through the huge crowds towards the terminal, only to arrive at a long line to get into the terminal. Prior to entering, you had to show your boarding passr. 

We located our check-in gate and joined what could only be described as a throng. There was no order and we waited about 45 minutes to drop our luggage off. Then we headed to the escalator to go towards the gates. That line was five minutes long, however, we needed to show our boarding passes and passports to get on the escalator. From here, it was 75 minutes in the immigration line. If you overstay your visa, there is a fine. Everyone, including Nepali residents, are “stamped” out when leaving Nepal.

Security may not meet North American standards

As the immigration line moved at a glacial pace, I thought it would mean no line-ups at security. I then recalled something from my recent post – “never assume”. The line for security, while shorter, was still painfully slow. In Nepal, there is really no point in emptying your pockets. I went through the scanner and did not “beep”. I was still searched. My ½ filled water bottle in my backpack went through without issues. 

After exiting security, well past the time for boarding, we located our gate. Lining up at our gate, we waited another 15 minutes for a bus to take us 200 meters to the plane. Shortly after boarding, the Captain came on and said there were still people in the immigration line and we would be delayed a bit. Taking off at 00:10, 40 minutes late, we headed to Kuala Lumpur (KL), arriving only 15 minutes late. KL’s airport was an ultra-modern, beautiful airport with high end shops and spotlessly clean facilities. We had a short layover then on to Penang.

Our time in Nepal was wonderful and we have put it down on the list of places to visit again. The warmth of the people, the scenery as well as the value all make it a top destination. The air quality and difficulty getting as well as the absolute gong show of flying out of there, are the only drawbacks. Pokhara’s air is better than Kathmandu’s and we like Pokhara more than its noisy neighbour.

Thanks for reading, we’ll post more later this week.

Feel free to leave any comments or ask any questions.

Cam and Meg

Bob Seger, in his 1976 hit song Katmandu said – “I think I’m going to Katmandu”. I remember listening and singing that phrase as a youth back in the day. It is a place that is so far from “safe” Mississauga where I grew up that it held mystery. I never knew where it was and I didn’t think I would get there, and yet, here I am!

Nepal Visa Process

We arrived from Delhi over three hours late, (thank you Air India). Instead of arriving in the early afternoon, we arrived after sunset. There was the initial immigration processing and $30US fee for a 15-day visa. This had to be filled out at one of their six kiosks, half of which did not work. When we got that done, we went to the Immigration “bank” where we paid, in US dollars. It turned out that we made a mistake and I had to do mine again but surprise – this could be done online and there was free Wi-Fi in the arrival’s hall. 3 minutes later my form was redone, vs 45 painful process at the quirky kiosk. 

Once we had receipts for the payment of our visas on arrival, we could go to immigration where the standard passport stamping took place. Then a photo was taken. Interestingly, you did not need a passport photo for immigration. More on where you need photos later. We collected our luggage and then through security. That was not a type-o. You need to go through security to enter Nepal. Their process was a lot more professional than India.

Getting a Nepali SIM card

We were now in Nepal. First thing, get a SIM card. There was a lineup at the cell phone place we saw, so we joined it. If we had known there were other carriers, we would have gone around the corner and gotten a similar SIM card where there was no line. One thing you need to get a SIM card is a passport photo. If you don’t have one, no big deal, they will take one for you for 50 rupees, which is about $0.50 CDN. That’s a lot cheaper than getting it done at London Drugs.

The SIM card clicked and we had internet and a Nepali phone number. Then came the arranging transport. There were various “pre-paid” taxis booths, and of course they were all calling out to you. In the end we booked one for 900 rupees. The tout who took our money took us to a taxi, exchanged some paperwork with a guy who had a clipboard and then we got into a cab with both the tout and driver.

The Touts are everywhere

On the drive into town, our tout let us know that he had a tour company and he could “help” us book some tours the next day. How convenient. As it was now 19:00, we said we would meet him tomorrow, in the hotel lobby at 10:00 and he could take us to his office, which he said was only a two-minute walk from out hotel. That made him happy and the rest of the 30-minute ride to the hotel was fine.

Our first taste of Mo-Mo’s

Once we checked into our hotel, we searched on-line for a restaurant and selected one that served Mo-Mo’s, the local specialty, and was nearby. A five-minute walk took us down a labyrinth of alleys into an outdoor restaurant. Now normally, I love outdoor restaurants and patios, however it was 5C, dark and had no view other than the walls of other buildings. As we were tired, we ordered and kept our coats on. We both had hot tea with our mo-mo’s which were delicious. 

When we finished our dinner, we walked around the Thamel district, where we were staying. We found the shops, the people, the atmosphere and generally everything was nicer than India. One thing we noticed, almost all restaurants, if not outdoors, had all the windows open despite the cold temperature. Everyone, locals and tourists alike, were bundled up to eat. I guess that’s how they do it here.

We called it a night and headed to bed. The next morning, we headed out again and found a breakfast place that wasn’t totally outside, although it was still colder than we would have liked. Meg was happy as she got French press coffee. I had mango juice; it was the best option if you didn’t want tea or coffee.

You can tour Nepal and “my friend” will give you a good deal…

At 10:00 we met our “taxi driver arranger” and walked for about five minutes, then up two flights of stairs to a travel office. Our tout told us this was his office, however we would be better dealing with his manager and our tout left, closing the door. Our “new” friend asked a number of questions about how long we would be in Nepal, what we wanted to do, etc.

As we were talking, he drafted a plan and then presented it to us. We would have two days in Kathmandu with a car and driver and would see everything that we “should” see. The problem is, those would be 6 – 8-hour days. Not what we were looking for after the breakneck pace we had been going. We would then fly to Pokhara and tour there, followed by an overnight hike, staying a tea house in the mountains. The shock was the price, it would be $1,285 USD, not including accommodations. We were offered hotels, however we weren’t keen to book without reading reviews, we’ve been burned before.

Of course, there was high pressure to close the deal, but we stuck firm and said we’d think about it. As we left the office, we noticed our tout sitting on a milk crate outside the boss’s office. Things became a bit clearer then. Our tout was going to get a commission, that’s how it works in this part of the world.

Back in our hotel, we priced out some of the “package” and found we could do most of it for a lot less. We spent the rest of the day wandering Thamel, looking at monuments and other historical buildings. There were souvenirs to look at, spices, scenery, mountains et al. Lunch was on a rooftop restaurant in the sunshine with mountain views. The rest of the day was quiet as we mapped out how we wanted to spend our time in Nepal.

Traveling in Nepal

We booked our flight to Pokhara and found a highly rated hotel. We didn’t book any tours for Pokhara. We’ve learned you can book the day before, so we’ll watch the weather and do that when the weather is good. There are countless trekking outfits, travel agents, ticket vendors and others around. Every hotel has a tour desk. We’re planning to take it one day at a time.

One thing that made us laugh, is our flight to Pokhara from Kathmandu. It is on Yeti Airlines – seriously. We’ve captured a picture of the aircraft tailfin as a memory. Of course, being Nepal, our flight was late. We were scheduled to depart at 12:40. When we checked in at the airport, (there is no on-line check in), we were moved to an early flight as our 12:40 flight was “very delayed”. The 11:50 flight we were moved to did not depart until 13:40.

We remained in touch with our Pokhara hotel as they were sending a taxi for us. Sometimes, rather than dealing with the touts and haggling, it’s easier to pre arrange.

Our flight was fine, other than it was totally in the clouds and we didn’t see any mountains. Once we landed, we waited for our luggage. Picture the luggage carts the airlines use to move luggage to/from the airplane/terminal in Canada, or any major airport. Now, picture the truck that moves those luggage carts. In Nepal, there is no truck – a couple of baggage handlers push the truck to the terminal. Then they toss it on to a conveyor belt.

We collected our luggage, met up with our taxi driver and headed to the hotel. We were pleasantly surprised with our $25/night hotel. It was clean and quiet with a large room and wonderful staff. We will now settle into Pokhara for a week or so, including an overnight trek with a stay at a mountain tea house.

Thanks for reading, feel free to leave any comments or questions.

Cam and Meg