Kathmandu Day Tour – 1 Day

• Swayambhunath: Climb to the 2,000-year-old hilltop stupa with its painted eyes over the whole valley.

• Kathmandu Durbar Square: The Malla palace complex, the Kumari's house and the temples still being rebuilt after 2015.

• Pashupatinath: Nepal's holiest Shiva temple on the Bagmati, with its ghats, sadhus and evening aarati.

• Boudhanath at Dusk: Join the kora at the largest stupa in Nepal as the butter lamps are lit.

• A Licensed Guide All Day: Someone to explain what you are looking at, which these sites badly need.

Everything on these tours is reached by private vehicle with a driver, which matters more in Kathmandu than most cities — the traffic is heavy, the one-way system changes, and parking near the monuments is difficult. Your guide travels with you and the vehicle waits while you walk each site.

Distances look small on a map and take longer than they should. Boudhanath to Swayambhunath is nine kilometres and forty minutes in the middle of the day. The itineraries are sequenced to work with the traffic rather than against it, which is why the order of sites is not always the obvious one.

Every UNESCO site in the valley charges foreign visitors an entry fee, and they are included in your tour price — Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur Durbar Squares, Swayambhunath, Boudhanath, Pashupatinath and Changunarayan. Keep the ticket; Bhaktapur's is valid for several days and can be extended free of charge if you tell the office.

Photography is allowed in the squares and courtyards but not in most inner sanctums, and never at the Pashupatinath cremation ghats. Ask before photographing people, particularly sadhus, who will usually ask for money afterwards — agree it first or decline politely.

Comfortable shoes that slip off easily, since you will remove them at temples. Modest clothing covering shoulders and knees is expected at religious sites and appreciated everywhere. Leather belts and bags are not permitted inside some Hindu shrines, so carry a cloth bag on temple days.

Bring sunscreen, a hat and water; the valley sits at 1,400 m and the sun is stronger than the temperature suggests. Small notes are useful for offerings, tea and the occasional donation box. A mask is worth having between January and April when the valley air is at its worst.

October to March is the most comfortable, with clear air, mild days and, from the valley rim, mountain views. Early morning is the best time at every site — Boudhanath, Pashupatinath and the Durbar Squares are all at their most alive and least crowded before nine.

The monsoon from June to September brings heavy afternoon rain, though mornings are often clear and the light is dramatic. Festival dates transform the sites they belong to: Indra Jatra in September fills Kathmandu Durbar Square, Bisket Jatra takes over Bhaktapur in April, and Maha Shivaratri brings a hundred thousand pilgrims to Pashupatinath.

• Arriving in Kathmandu: Your First 48 Hours — What to do between landing at Kathmandu airport and starting your trek — airport arrival, SIM cards, money, the pre-trek briefing, gear shopping in Thamel.

• Where to Meditate in Kathmandu Before a Trek — Kathmandu is loud, dusty and one of the great meditation cities of the world.

• Kathmandu During Dashain: What the City Is Like and What to See — Kathmandu has two Dashains.

• Kathmandu Valley UNESCO Sites: A Guide to All Seven — Seven monument zones in one valley — three royal squares, two Buddhist stupas, a Hindu cremation temple and the oldest shrine in Nepal.

• Buying Medicine in Kathmandu and Pokhara: Pharmacies and Clinics — Forgot something, or need a doctor before or after your trek?

• Pre-Trek Meditation: Preparing Your Mind for the Himalaya — You train your legs for twelve weeks and your mind for none.