Travel To Nepal Khatmandu On A Budget

[LivinLOS]

Considering something a little different for my next visa run.. Would like to take the GF to Nepal as I think she would enjoy it and I would imagine that the Nepalese Buddhism aspect and some of the temples would be something she would enjoy..

Considering I seem to hit a brick wall at the possibility of crossing Burma in my own vehicle (different thought but would like to make a journey that way but longer timescale).. I have been checking air routes..

Best flights I see are Thai air at 20k return.. Starts to add up fast if thinking of a short hop couple of days for visa run possibility.. Would probably need to make it a longer tour to make it worthwhile at that price.

Do none of the Budget airlines fly that way ??

Any options or just bite the bullet ??

[chatette]

You could fly to Calcutta, overnight sleeper train up to Siliguri, jeep across the border into Nepal's Biratnagar Airport, and fly into Kathmandu for dinner. You can get an idea of pricing by Googling. It's cheap (but then I think the 20k to Kathmandu is, also). You'll need two visas though, which will probably take longer to get than the round trip itself. If you go this way, be sure to let the embassy officials know what border points you plan to use. I don't know that it matters, but just to be sure. I used to cross the border from Nepal to India near Biratnagar relatively regularly some years ago and it was never a hassle, and I always traveled as a single female.

[ovenman]

Do none of the Budget airlines fly that way ??

No. None of the budget airlines fly to India either.

[LivinLOS]

Seen indian flights at 9k.. Thats kind of budget enough for me.. Just spoilt getting down to Bali and Jakarta etc at 4 - 5k !!

If it was cheper I would hop up for a 5 day weekend.. At 20k and taing my GF I would have to make a holiday of it rather than a visa run..

[dantilley]

Would like to take the GF to Nepal as I think she would enjoy it and I would imagine that the Nepalese Buddhism aspect and some of the temples would be something she would enjoy..

Have you been to Nepal before yourself? Nepal is a Hindu country, by the way, but has strong links with Buddhism due to Buddha's birthplace being there. But it's a predominantly Hindu country and most of the impressive temples are Hindu ones.

Also, are you and your girlfriend quite active, outdoor sort of people? Because, in my opinion, you're much better off getting away from Kathmandu and getting up into the mountains or the national parks. Personally, but I found Kathmandu dirty, unpleasant and overcrowded. Nepal really comes into its own when you get into the Himalayas which are amazing.

Finally, bear in mind that the indigenous Nepali food is extremely limited and quite bland, consisting of just one pretty boring dish: lentil curry and rice. There are some good western and Indian options in Kathmandu though, fortunately, but worth making sure your GF will like that kind of food (i.e. you will find it difficult to get Thai or other east Asian food).

Just a few bits of advice anyway, of course if you've been before yourself I'm sure you have your own opinions and thoughts.

[LivinLOS]

I have not been here no... I had believed that they were very much an intermingling of Hindu and Buddhist belief systems..

Anyway I have an indian tour coming shortly.. Not looking like I will make it for a few months..