Bandipur
A car-free Newar hill bazaar of the 19th century, perfectly preserved on a ridge with a Himalayan skyline.
Newar traders from Bhaktapur settled Bandipur on the trade route between India and Tibet, and in the 19th century it flourished. When the Prithvi Highway bypassed it in the 1970s the town declined — and so its handsome three-storey houses, shuttered shopfronts and flagstone main street survived.
Today the bazaar is closed to traffic and has become one of Nepal's favourite places to slow down, with guesthouses in old merchant homes. Walk to Tundikhel for the mountain view, Thani Mai temple for sunrise, the Siddha Gufa cave below, and Magar villages like Ramkot.
