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Bhaktapur Durbar Square
A UNESCO World Heritage Site

Set east of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur (’City of Devotees’) is a well-preserved medieval town on the ancient India-Tibet trade route. One of the three main Kathmandu Valley Newari kingdoms, it was the capital of the Malla kingdom for several centuries. Although only a short drive east of the capital, Bhaktapur feels far removed as if time has passed it by. Traffic-free, it is a lovely, peaceful place that features the snow-capped Himalayas as a backdrop.

From the famous Golden Gate to the remarkable Peacock Window, Bhaktapur boasts temples, shrines, traditional houses and a magnificent 55-window 15th century palace that now houses the National Art Gallery. The town itself is in fact often referred to as one big ‘open-air museum’. Traditional livelihoods are in evidence wherever one looks; visitors can admire the centuries-old craftsmanship of potters, woodcarvers and weavers, and see rice laid out to dry, people collecting water from communal taps, and colorful dyed yarns hanging out to dry.

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