Visiting Places
Kathmandu Valley
Patan (Lalitpur)
The valley's city of fine arts — its loveliest Durbar Square and living Newar craft.
Kathmandu ValleyBagmati Province
Patan, the city of fine arts, holds the most balanced of the three royal Durbar Squares and a celebrated museum inside the old palace. Its lanes are still home to Newar metal-casters and the gilded Hiranya Varna Mahavihar (Golden Temple). It is an easy crossing of the Bagmati from central Kathmandu.
Known for
- Patan Durbar Square
- metalwork
- Golden Temple
At a glance
- Region
- Kathmandu Valley
- Province
- Bagmati
- Getting there
- Just across the Bagmati from central Kathmandu; 20–30 min by taxi from Thamel.
- Best time
- October–March for clear weather; Krishna Janmashtami (Aug) for the all-night temple vigil.
Things to see & do
- Patan Durbar Square and the excellent Patan Museum inside the old palace
- The Hiranya Varna Mahavihar (Golden Temple), a working Buddhist courtyard
- Backstreet workshops of Newar metal-casters and stone carvers