Around n About Pokhara

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Half of the rooms have excellent views of the mountains so ask for one on arrival - there are all on the front right of the building. There's also a rooftop terrace which is a great place to view the sunrise and an outdoor pool. Food costs aren't too bad but you'll easily get a better deal in town. Still, quality and service were very good. Bar prices were very high and served in a lifeless bar.

At the end of the track, climb the steps to reach the summit viewpoint - a fairly neglected lookout platform which obviously once had a really nice garden laid out around it but has been left to overgrow. Here you will be encouraged to make a donation to the local village but it's not an entrance fee so you can give what you want. The walk itself is an easy going legstretcher and probably a good way to warm up before hitting the major trekking routes.

Whilst walking along you are likely to be approached by locals who offer you various bits of information about the area - the info is usually worth listening to but, of course, there's a catch - the bags they are carrying are full of potential souvenirs which they will offer to you as soon as you stop - the more information they have imparted to you then the more persistent they will be to sell something - or the higher the starting price!

Finding the place is a bit awkward. Near the north end of the main Lakeside shops there's a wider area in the street with a chautari tree in the middle. Mike's place is signposted down the lane. Follow the lane to the end and Mikes is on the left just before the boat hire.

The temple itself is a huge white dome which is blinding in the sunlight. On each of the four faces is a Buddha, each donated by a different country, including Thailand - a smaller copy of the reclining Buddha found in Bangkok.

Just below the entrance to the temple are a couple of cafés which are well worth the visit to sit back and admire the views of the Himalayas.

Boats are of varying quality - so check you don’t get a leaking one. Best bet is to take a picnic, row out and let yourself drift for a while. There's a temple in the middle of the lake that’s worth a quick stop - usually surrounded by hundreds of fish.

No motor boats are allowed on the lake so you are guaranteed quiet time.

The Temple in the middle of the lake has special importance. As legend has it, a beggar arrived in Pokhara and asked for help from the townsfolk; all but one family refused to help and the beggar turned out to be one of the gods testing his subjects. The one generous family were then told to leave town for a few days - when they returned they found that the town had been swamped by the river and so the family built the temple as a blessing for their lives that were spared.