Kathmandu Day Tour - Sightseeing in Kathmandu
Mountain Monarch has specially designed this Kathmandu Day Tour for those who only have a short time in Kathmandu to see its excellent cultural world heritage sites. This is a guided sightseeing cultural day tour in Kathmandu. Our experienced city guide takes you around the world's heritage sites to explore the sights and sounds. Thus, discussing and understanding the bustling city's wonders firsthand.
Five-hour cultural World Heritage site guided day tour in Kathmandu
Our Kathmandu day tour includes visiting all of the city's cultural world heritage sites: Swayambunath, Boudhanath, Pashupatinath, and Kathmandu Durbar Square. Kathmandu is a massive, bustling bazaar with many Hindu temples, Buddhist Stupas, and monasteries. It is often known as an open museum of medieval arts and architecture.
Kathmandu Tours: Places of Interest Details:
Swayambhunath:
It is believed that the original Stupa existed 2000 years ago, but the present Stupa is said to have been built after the 14th century. Swayambhunath means ' The shrine existing by itself. ' Westerners often call it 'The Monkey Temple' because lots of monkeys scamper around the place. Devotees spinning the prayer wheels and monkeys playing around the Stupa make the site exciting and alive.
The panoramic view of the Kathmandu Valley from the Stupa is simply breathtaking. Legend says that once, the Kathmandu Valley was a vast lake with a lotus flower and a white glow in the middle. In the Buddhist version, Majushree, a Bodhisattwa, came from China and drained out the water, and the lotus flower came to rest and stayed where the Stupa exists. In the Hindu version, Lord Krishna drained out the lake.
On the eastern side of the Stupa, there is a long staircase that climbs up the hill. On it is a beautiful pagoda-style temple dedicated to the Mother Goddess Harati. All around the complex are shrines and statues of Buddhist and Hindu deities, illustrating the religious harmony between them. Swayambhunath deserves to be listed as a World Heritage Site and one of the great places to visit in your day Kathmandu tours.
Kathmandu Durbar Square:
This lies in the heart of the city. The locals of Kathmandu call it Hanuman Dhoka, as it is named after the Monkey God, Hanuman. At the main entrance to the palace, you can see the statue of the Monkey God clad in red paint. Durbar Square is a World Heritage Site, and history says that its design goes back to the 9/10th century, at the time of King Gunakama Dev. He was a true devotee of Kali, the goddess of terror, her primary weapon being the sword - hence, the layout of the square is in the sword form.
The complex has a lavish royal palace, and many temples are dedicated to different Hindu gods and goddesses around it. This place used to be the royal seat until the 19th century. Now, the palace is used as a museum for visitors and a coronation place for the kings of Nepal. The last king was crowned here in 2001. The other unique attraction of the square is the Living Goddess - The Kumari, a young girl who goes through the most rigorous selection test. She acknowledges the greetings of visitors from her balcony window, and the shrine is believed to have been built from just a single tree named Kastamandap (the origin of the name Kathmandu). The surrounding area has temples dating from the 15th century to the 18th. Nowadays, we can see lots of restoration as the April 2015 earth has badly damaged this site. Visiting and witnessing the old palace during the Kathmandu sightseeing tour is undoubtedly totally safe.
Pashupatinath:
The name means 'The Lord of all Creatures' and the God of Gods. It is a World Heritage Site and lies on the eastern side of Kathmandu on the banks of the holy River Bagmati. The temple site dates from the 5th/6th century, but the present temple was built in the 16th century. It is one of the most popular and essential Shiva Shrines, and all followers of Hinduism must visit the temple at least once in their lifetime.
During the Maha Shivaratri festival, the temple is full of devotees worshiping the stone Linga as Shiva. Non-Hindus are not allowed to enter the main temple complex, but they can still view the two-tier pagoda-style temple from the eastern side of the river and see the funeral pyres on the banks. The platforms along the Bagmati holy river are famous for ritual baths and cremating the bodies of Hindus who have died. It is an honor for Hindus to be cremated here as it is believed to ensure the soul rests in peace and is kept safely away from the rebirth cycle. A different and must-visit site on a Kathmandu day tour while in Nepal.
Boudhanath:
Boudhanath means 'The Lord of Wisdom' and is the biggest Stupa in the Asian subcontinent. All followers of Buddhism must visit it once in their lifetime. The Stupa is believed to have been built in the 5th century because there had been twelve years of drought, so the king made the Stupa hoping that this would help to restore the water, and it did so with the help of the dew drops - for this reason; it is also called the Dew Stupa.
Nepal used to be the transit point for Tibet and India - there was trade with Tibet from ancient times. Traders traveling to Tibet used to stop and give their greetings to the Stupa and ask for the blessing of a safe journey and return. The complex is often called a mini Tibet as many Tibetans live around the Stupa, reflecting the Tibetan form of Buddhism. There are many monasteries around Bouddhanath, a center for learning and practicing Buddhism. Visitors should go around the Stupa clockwise, spinning the prayer wheels as it brings more happiness, infinite merits, and good luck—a heritage site - not to miss in your day tour in Kathmandu.