Nagarkot & Dhulikhel Sunrise Tour

Overview

The Kathmandu valley is ringed by hills at around 2,100 metres, and from the eastern rim on a clear morning you look north across a hundred kilometres of foothills at the Himalaya. Nagarkot is the best-known viewpoint; Dhulikhel, a genuine Newar town rather than a hotel strip, is the better place to end up.

Two days, no altitude, no walking harder than a farm track.

What you actually see

From west to east: Langtang Lirung, Dorje Lakpa, Ganesh Himal, Gauri Shankar and, in good conditions, Manaslu. In midwinter, on a handful of mornings, a distant point of Everest — 160 kilometres away and far less impressive than the peaks you are guaranteed.

The ridge walk

The second morning walks the rim from Nagarkot to Dhulikhel — about five hours through terraced fields, pine and hamlets, with the mountains on your left the whole way. It is undulating and easy, and children manage it.

Dhulikhel at the far end is an old Newar trading town on the road to Tibet, with a square, temples and none of Nagarkot's hotel sprawl.

Practicalities

Book an east-facing room and confirm it — the view is the entire product, and hotels are not always careful about which room they assign.

Bhaktapur sits between Dhulikhel and Kathmandu and is worth adding on the way back if you have not already seen it.

Best season

December and January for the clearest air of the year, October and November close behind. From March the haze builds and by April and May the mountains are usually invisible. The monsoon is green and cloudy, and beautiful in a different way, but you will not see a peak.