Explore Nepal: Self-Launched 11-Day Hills, Jungle & Sunrise Adventure

Land at Tribhuvan International Airport, grab a prepaid taxi or ride-hailing app to Thamel (~£3-4). Settle into a guesthouse in Thamel or Paknajal. Spend the late afternoon getting lost in Thamel Bazar — trekking gear shops, bookstores, rooftop bars — and sort out practicalities: a Nepali SIM/eSIM (Ncell or NTC, ~£2-4 for data), cash from an ATM, and buy your bus tickets for the next legs (Kathmandu–Nagarkot/Sundarijal and later Chitwan–Pokhara) at a local travel agency on Thamel Marg. Evening dal bhat at a Thamel dal-bhat house (~£3).

🚌Airport prepaid taxi ~£4; everything else on foot

🛏Thamel guesthouse, private room with hot shower (~£14/night)

• →Thamel Bazar wander
• →Sort SIM card & bus tickets

Take a local bus or shared micro from Ratna Park to Bhaktapur (~£1, 45-60 mins). Pay the Bhaktapur entry fee (~£13 for non-SAARC visitors) and spend 3-4 hours in the old city — Durbar Square, Pottery Square, Nyatapola Temple, and a juju dhau (king curd) stop. In the afternoon take a local bus from Bhaktapur to Nagarkot (~£1, ~1.5 hrs) and check into a simple hilltop guesthouse with a terrace facing the Himalaya. Catch the late-afternoon light over the range and sleep early — sunrise is the main event.

🚌Local bus Kathmandu–Bhaktapur ~£1; Bhaktapur–Nagarkot local bus ~£1

🛏Nagarkot guesthouse, mountain-view room (~£15/night)

• →Bhaktapur Durbar Square & Pottery Square
• →Nyatapola Temple
• →Nagarkot sunset viewpoint

Up at 5am for the classic Nagarkot sunrise over the Himalaya — from the tower or your guesthouse roof, no ticket needed. After breakfast, get a local bus or shared jeep down to the Prithvi Highway (~£2), then arrange a day rafting trip on the Trishuli with one of the riverside operators at Fishling/Kurintar (book ahead via GetYourGuide or a Thamel agency, ~£25-35 including lunch, safety gear and guide). Class II-III rapids are ideal for first-timers. Overnight in a riverside guesthouse or resort near Fishling — or push straight on to Sauraha by late-afternoon local bus if you prefer.

🚌Local bus/jeep Nagarkot–Prithvi Highway ~£2; raft operator transfer included

🛏Riverside guesthouse near Fishling/Kurintar (~£15/night)

• →Nagarkot sunrise viewpoint
• →Trishuli River white-water rafting (Class II-III)

Take a local or tourist bus from the highway down to Sauraha, the gateway village for Chitwan (~£4-5, 2-3 hrs). Check into a budget guesthouse in Sauraha — plenty of family-run options with garden restaurants. Optional detour en route: the Manakamana cable car (~£8 return plus bus connections) if you leave early. Afternoon free to wander the village, then in the evening head to the Tharu Cultural House in Sauraha for the stick-dance show (~£2-3, nightly around 7pm). Optional sunset kayak or boat on the Narayani/Rapti River (~£4).

🚌Local bus to Sauraha ~£5

🛏Sauraha guesthouse, garden room (~£12/night)

• →Tharu cultural stick-dance show in Sauraha
• →Optional kayaking on the Narayani River
• →Optional Manakamana cable car detour

Book a full-day jeep safari inside Chitwan National Park direct with a Sauraha operator or via GetYourGuide (~£30-40 per person including park permit, jeep and guide) — you'll head deep into the park for one-horned rhino, deer, monkeys, gharial crocodiles and, with luck, a sloth bear or tiger. Cheaper alternative: a half-day guided jungle walk plus canoe trip (~£15-20). Birdwatchers should add an early-morning birding walk along the Rapti (~£8). Optional: the Gharial Breeding Centre and elephant-breeding centre near Sauraha (~£2-3 each). Evening free in Sauraha.

🚌On foot / jeep included in safari

🛏Sauraha guesthouse, garden room (~£12/night)

• →Full-day Chitwan jeep safari
• →Optional guided jungle walk & canoe
• →Gharial breeding centre visit

Early tourist bus from Sauraha towards Dumre (~£4, ~2 hrs), then a shared jeep/local bus up the hill to Bandipur (~£2, 30 mins). Drop your bag at a guesthouse and walk the car-free Newari bazaar, the Siddha Gufa cave (2-hr return walk, ~£3 entry) or the Thani Mai viewpoint for ridge-top Himalaya views. Mid-afternoon, descend to the highway and take a local bus to Pokhara (~£3, 2 hrs). Stay in Lakeside (Baidam) — quieter north Lakeside is better value than central. Evening stroll along Phewa Lake.

🚌Tourist bus Sauraha–Dumre ~£4; shared jeep Dumre–Bandipur ~£2; local bus Bandipur–Pokhara ~£3

🛏Pokhara Lakeside guesthouse, private room (~£14/night)

• →Bandipur Newari bazaar walk
• →Siddha Gufa cave hike
• →Thani Mai viewpoint

Sort your ACAP entry permit and TIMS card at the Nepal Tourism Board office in Pokhara (~£25 combined for ACAP + TIMS) — do this on arrival day 6 if possible. Take a local bus or shared taxi from Pokhara's Baglung Bus Park to Dhampus Phedi (~£1, 30 mins), then walk up the stone steps to Dhampus village (1,650m, 2-2.5 hrs, steep but straightforward). Check into a Gurung family homestay (~£12-15 with dinner and breakfast) — these can be booked direct through your Pokhara guesthouse or on arrival at Dhampus. Afternoon free for views of Annapurna South, Machhapuchhre and Dhaulagiri from the ridge.

🚌Local bus Pokhara–Dhampus Phedi ~£1; trek on foot

🛏Gurung family homestay in Dhampus, dinner & breakfast included (~£14/night)

• →Trek Dhampus Phedi to Dhampus village
• →Gurung homestay evening
• →Annapurna & Machhapuchhre viewpoints

Walk the ridge from Dhampus to Sarangkot (3-4 hrs, rolling ups and downs through forest and terraced villages, with Manaslu, Ganesh Himal and Machhapuchhre on show). Store your main luggage at your Pokhara hotel before you set off — don't carry it. At Sarangkot, reward yourself with paragliding from the world-famous launch site (book direct with a Sarangkot operator or GetYourGuide, ~£55-75 for a 30-min tandem flight including photos), or the zip-line (~£25). Descend to Pokhara by local bus or shared jeep (~£1). Overnight Lakeside; optional sunset boat on Phewa Lake (~£3).

🚌Trek on foot; local bus/jeep Sarangkot–Pokhara ~£1

🛏Pokhara Lakeside guesthouse, private room (~£14/night)

• →Trek Dhampus–Sarangkot ridge
• →Tandem paragliding from Sarangkot
• →Optional Phewa Lake sunset boat

Morning free in Pokhara: hire a kayak or rowboat on Phewa Lake (~£3), cycle to Begnas Lake (~£3 bike hire), or visit the World Peace Pagoda (hike up ~45 mins, free) and Devi's Falls/Gupteshwor Cave (~£1 each). Grab a long lunch at a Lakeside café. Then take the afternoon tourist bus back to Kathmandu (~£8-10, 7-8 hrs) or spend the extra (~£45-60) on a 25-min flight if time is tight. Arrive Kathmandu evening, check back into Thamel.

🚌Tourist bus Pokhara–Kathmandu ~£9 (or domestic flight ~£55)

🛏Thamel guesthouse, private room (~£14/night)

• →World Peace Pagoda hike
• →Phewa Lake kayak/boat
• →Begnas Lake cycle

Self-guided city day — all four sites are easy to reach independently. Start at Swayambhunath (Monkey Temple), a 20-min walk or ~£1 taxi from Thamel. Then take a local bus/taxi (~£1) to Kathmandu Durbar Square or straight to Pashupatinath (~£7 entry) to catch the riverside rituals. Continue to Boudhanath Stupa (~£2.50 entry) for the kora circuit and momos, then finish at Patan Durbar Square (~£7 entry) and the Patan Museum. Entry to all four roughly £18-20 total. Farewell dinner at a cultural restaurant with live Nepali folk music, e.g. in Thamel or at Patan's Nepali Chulo (~£10-14).

🚌Local buses and short taxis ~£3 total

🛏Thamel guesthouse, private room (~£14/night)

• →Swayambhunath (Monkey Temple)
• →Pashupatinath Temple
• →Boudhanath Stupa kora
• →Patan Durbar Square & Museum
• →Farewell dinner with live folk music

Final morning for Thamel shopping — pashmina, singing bowls, trekking gear, coffee. Pre-booked airport taxi (~£4) to Tribhuvan International Airport for your flight. If you have time, a sunrise Everest scenic flight (~£150-180) can be arranged the day before through a Thamel agency.

🚌Airport taxi ~£4

🛏—

• →Thamel souvenir shopping
• →Optional Everest scenic mountain flight