Today is the Dashain tika. Across Nepal families are sitting down in order of age to receive the red mark on the forehead, and nothing that needs a counter, a stamp or a bus driver is going to happen before the weekend.
Then the country comes back. Over the next few days the buses fill in the opposite direction, the shutters go up, and Nepal settles into the sixteen days that people who know it guard for themselves: the gap before Tihar. The monsoon dust is long washed out, the rice is turning gold, the mountains are sharp from every hilltop, and everything works. In 2026 the window runs from Thursday 22 October to Friday 6 November.
What Reopens, and When
| From about | Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| Tourist shops, restaurants, gear stores | 22 October | Thamel and Lakeside barely closed in the first place |
| Local shops and markets | 23 – 25 October | Family businesses reopen as people return from their villages |
| Banks | 25 – 26 October | ATMs are refilled; queues on the first day |
| Government offices, including immigration | 25 – 26 October | The first working day after the holiday is slow — go on the second |
| Restricted-area permits | 26 October onwards | Manaslu, Upper Mustang, Tsum and the rest can be issued again |
| Long-distance buses | Running, but full until about 27 October | The return flow into Kathmandu peaks two to five days after the tika |
The festival itself runs on quietly until the full moon of Kojagrat Purnima on Sunday 25 October — tika continues to be given to relatives who could not come on the day — but for a visitor the disruption is over by then. The closures in detail are in what is open and closed during Dashain.
Why This Window Is Special
- The weather peaks. Late October into early November is the statistical sweet spot: after the last monsoon showers, before the real cold.
- Everything is open. No office holidays, no permit freeze, banks working.
- The country is in a good mood. People are back from two weeks with their families, the swings are still up in the villages, and Tihar is already being planned.
- The fields are at their most beautiful. The rice harvest is under way across the middle hills — see harvest season in Nepal.
- You can finish with a festival. A two-week trek started now ends just as Tihar begins on 7 November.
The catch is that the same reasoning brings everyone else. These are the busiest weeks of the year on the Everest and Annapurna trails. That is manageable — see avoiding the crowds in peak season — but it means booking flights and lodges rather than hoping.
On the Trail
Every route in the country is in condition. The useful question is which ones this window suits better than the weeks either side of it.
| Trek | Why now |
|---|---|
| Manaslu Circuit | Permits can be issued again from 26 October and the Larke La is at its most reliable. Start by 28 October and you are out before Tihar closes the office again. |
| Upper Mustang | The last comfortable weeks before the lodges close for winter. |
| Everest Base Camp | Mani Rimdu at Tengboche on 26 – 28 October, then the clearest fortnight at Kala Patthar. |
| Annapurna Circuit | Thorong La in its best condition of the year. |
| Annapurna Base Camp | Nine days starting on 28 October brings you into Pokhara for the lights on 8 November. |
| Langtang Valley | The quiet choice in the busiest fortnight. |
For the restricted areas in particular this is the window. The immigration office that issues their permits was closed for Dashain and will close again for Tihar on about 8 November, so the working days in between are when the paperwork gets done. Our guide to restricted-area permits explains what is needed.
In the Kathmandu Valley
The first two or three days after the tika are the best time of the year to see Kathmandu itself. The city is still half empty, the air is the cleanest it will be until next Dashain, and the mountains are visible from the ring road — which residents will tell you almost never happens.
- Walk the old city from Durbar Square through Indra Chowk to Ason while the traffic is away.
- Go up to a viewpoint. Nagarkot, Chandragiri or Dhulikhel at dawn, with a horizon from Annapurna to Everest. See sunrise viewpoints near Kathmandu.
- Take a mountain flight. Mornings are reliably clear; the Everest mountain flight rarely cancels in these weeks.
- See Bhaktapur and Patan before the tour groups return in force — the Kathmandu Valley Tour covers both.
- Walk a day hike on the rim. The Dhulikhel to Namobuddha hike runs through terraced fields in mid-harvest.
By about the 26th the traffic is back and the valley is its usual self. From the first days of November the markets begin to fill with marigolds, lamps and coloured powder for Tihar, which is its own reason to be there.
In the Lowlands
The national parks of the Terai reopen fully after the monsoon in October, and the weeks before the grass is cut in winter are green, warm and uncrowded. Days in Chitwan and Bardia are around 28 to 30°C, mornings are misty, and the rivers have dropped enough for canoe trips. Wildlife is harder to see in the tall grass than it will be in February, but rhinos in Chitwan are close to guaranteed at any time.
A three-day Chitwan tour fits neatly before or after a trek. Our guides to Chitwan and jungle safaris compare the parks.
Sample Plans for 2026
Sixteen days: a trek that ends in lights
| Dates | Plan |
|---|---|
| 22 – 23 October | Kathmandu while it is quiet: old city, Boudhanath, a sunrise viewpoint |
| 24 October – 5 November | Everest Base Camp, with Mani Rimdu at Tengboche on the way up |
| 6 November | Buffer day for the Lukla flight |
| 7 – 8 November | Kaag Tihar, Kukur Tihar and Laxmi Puja in Kathmandu |
Ten days: valley, village and jungle
| Dates | Plan |
|---|---|
| 24 – 26 October | Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan |
| 27 – 29 October | A hill village homestay in harvest — Ghalegaun or Sirubari |
| 30 October – 1 November | Pokhara, with a sunrise from Sarangkot |
| 2 – 4 November | Chitwan National Park |
If your dates run later, the festival at the end of the window is covered in our Tihar guide, and the weeks after it in trekking in November.
