5 Days in Kathmandu: First-Timer
Correction up front, because I’ve seen this itinerary written wrong more than once: Swayambhunath and the Monkey Temple are the same place, not two separate stops. Get that straight and five days in the Kathmandu Valley turns into one of the best-paced trips in the region, all seven UNESCO zones done properly, no rushing. This stays valley-focused, for the Everest and Pokhara side of things see our Nepal gateway itinerary , and the full guide has more depth on everything below.
Book these before you go
- A Thamel or Patan hotel room on Booking.com : rooms in the Dashain/Tihar weeks and the October-November peak sell out first.
- A guided Durbar Square heritage tour on GetYourGuide : skips the separate ticket queues at each square.
| Day | Focus | Entry fees (NPR) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thamel, Garden of Dreams | 400 |
| 2 | Boudhanath, Pashupatinath | 400 + 1,000 |
| 3 | Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square | 1,000 + 1,500 |
| 4 | Swayambhunath, Kirtipur/Bungamati/Khokana loop | 200 |
| 5 | Bhaktapur, Changu Narayan | 1,800-2,000 + 350-400 |
Day 1: arrival and Thamel
Handle your visa on arrival before baggage claim, 15 days for $30, 30 days for $50, or a 90-day multi-entry for $125, crisp US cash since card machines here are unreliable. Bring a passport photo or use the airport booth, and fill out the online arrival form ahead of time if you want to shave time off the queue, which can run 45-90 minutes during the October-November peak. Take the prepaid taxi counter into Thamel rather than haggling with curbside touts quoting double while gripping your luggage. Watch for the classic scam too: a driver claiming your hotel is closed or burned down to redirect you toward a commission guesthouse. Save your hotel’s address and number, refuse the detour, call ahead if anything feels off.
Spend the rest of the day wandering Thamel’s narrow lanes, trekking shops, and rooftop bars, it’s the densest tourist zone in the city and also the densest scam zone, so keep your guard up while you enjoy it. Duck into the Garden of Dreams nearby, a restored 1920s private garden for NPR 400, if you want a genuinely calm hour away from the noise. Dinner in Thamel tonight is fine but forgettable, save your appetite for Patan later in the trip.
Day 2: Boudhanath and Pashupatinath
Morning at Boudhanath Stupa , NPR 400, walking the kora clockwise past the monasteries and Tibetan shops ringing the stupa. Afternoon at Pashupatinath, NPR 1,000, the Bagmati’s Hindu cremation site. Non-Hindus can’t enter the main temple’s inner sanctum but the whole complex and the cremation ghats are viewable from across the river, so don’t write it off as inaccessible, just stay respectful and keep cameras away from grieving families. For dinner, cross to Patan and eat proper Newari food, chhoila and bara, genuinely better than anything Thamel offers.
Day 3: durbar squares
Kathmandu Durbar Square in the morning, about NPR 1,000. A correction worth repeating: this square isn’t fully restored, Kasthamandap reopened in 2022 and the Trailokya Mohan Narayan Temple finished in early 2024, but the Nine-Story Tower’s interior is still closed and parts of Hanuman Dhoka remain under active work, you’ll see scaffolding. Patan Durbar Square in the afternoon, a three-day ticket that also gets you into the excellent Patan Museum, better preserved, fewer crowds, and my clear favorite of the two if you’re comparing. Both are independently ticketed, there’s no combo pass covering all seven zones, so budget for each separately.
Day 4: the actual Monkey Temple, and the valley’s hidden villages
Swayambhunath, NPR 200, roughly 365 steps up the east side, is the real Monkey Temple, and it earns its own morning rather than a rushed afternoon add-on. The views over the valley from the top are worth the climb alone, and the monkeys living on site will absolutely try to steal anything edible you’re carrying. Spend the afternoon on the Kirtipur, Bungamati, and Khokana loop, a 20-40 minute drive south, Newar villages known for woodcarving, mustard-oil pressing, and valley views with a fraction of the visitors the Durbar Squares see, genuinely the strongest hidden-gem cluster in the whole valley. Head back to Durbar Marg for dinner, the quieter upscale boulevard near the old Royal Palace, for fine dining that’s a step up from the backpacker circuit.
Day 5: Bhaktapur, and the oldest temple in the valley
This is where five days beats four: Bhaktapur gets a full day instead of a rushed stop. It’s a separate medieval town 45-90 minutes out depending on traffic, entry runs NPR 1,800-2,000 and keeps creeping toward the higher figure, covering the whole entry-controlled town, and the ticket has multi-day validity if you want to linger. The Nyatapola temple survived the earthquake standing, exterior viewing only, and the pottery square rewards slow wandering over a quick photo stop, try the Juju Dhau yogurt here specifically, it’s Bhaktapur’s own specialty. Late afternoon, a short taxi ride gets you to Changu Narayan, widely considered the oldest Hindu temple in the valley, parts dating to the 4th or 5th century, and the least crowded of all seven UNESCO zones by a wide margin, roughly NPR 350-400 entry. Head back into Kathmandu in the evening for a final dinner before departure.
Practical notes
No metro exists in Kathmandu, don’t plan around one, and don’t trust any guide that mentions one. Taxi meters are required by law and ignored in practice, agree your fare up front or use Pathao or InDrive for a locked app price, watching for surge pricing or drivers asking for extra cash at drop-off that doesn’t match the quote. Verify any Thamel trekking agency is TAAN or NTB registered before booking, unlicensed storefronts are common and a vetted operator booked before arrival is worth paying more for. Dress modestly at temples, remove shoes before entering, and pack layers, mornings run noticeably colder than midday streets even outside winter. Best months for the whole trip are October-November and March-April for clear mountain views, though that’s also the valley’s worst stretch for air quality, worth checking the daily AQI if you have sensitive lungs. Monsoon season from June through September brings landslides and daily rain but far fewer crowds and steep hotel discounts if you don’t mind getting wet. Occasional power cuts still happen despite huge improvements since 2016, but hotels run backup generators as standard so it’s rarely worth worrying about.