How do I get to Nepal?
In order to fly directly to Nepal from your
home country, Tribhuvan International Airport
(TIA) in Kathmandu is the only international
airport in Nepal. TIA has direct air link with
Osaka, Shanghai, London, Hong Kong, Singapore,
Bangkok, Malaysia, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Bhutan,
Dubai, Dhaka, Lhasa, Banglore, Delhi, Amsterdam,
Bombay, Calcutta and Varanasi. Royal Nepal Airlines
(RNAC), Air India, Jet Air, Saraha Air, Austrian
Airlines, Thai Air, Qatar Airlines, Gulf Air,
Biman Bangladesh, Pakistan Airlines, China South
Airlines and Druk Air are the airlines that
carry most of the foreign travelers into Kathmandu;
and if you buy tickets from any other airlines,
you will probably connect with one of these
airlines for the final leg of your flight.
What are my options to come to Nepal
from India?
You can fly between Delhi and Kathmandu for
about $150 with RNAC or Air India, Jet Airways
and Sahara Airlines. However, note that Delhi-Kathmandu-Delhi
flight is very busy and without proper reservations
can be booked weeks in advance. Make your reservations
and buy your ticket well in advance.
Alternatively, you can travel overland to Nepal
from India. Buses are usually the quickest and
easiest form of transport for this. There are
three main crossing points: Sunauli-Bhairawa,
Birgunj -Raxaul and Kakarbhitta-Silguri. The
Sunauli border crossing is the best one from
Varanasi, the Birgunj crossing is the easiest
from Calcutta; and Kakarbhitta is the best crossing
from Darjeeling. These trips can be quite long
and stressful, both in terms of time (it takes
about two days and nights) and what you may
go through during the trip (with tickets, safety,
weather, border harassment etc). Not recommended
for those people who want to have carefree traveling.
What about getting to Nepal from Tibet?
The crossing between Nepal and Tibet via Kodari
is only open to organized groups but not to
individual travelers heading north. Be prepared
with alternative plans if you're thinking about
using this route, because landslides regularly
make it impassable during the monsoon.
