5 Nepal tours for Christmas - New Year holiday

The vertically rising landscape of Nepal has something to offer throughout the year. While December is the beginning of winter, the cooler temperature makes it the perfect time to visit the Himalayan foothills and the tropical lowland. Winter days are warm and sunny with crisp sky for short treks, spiritual tours, jungle safari and cultural tours. It is a shoulder season of Autumn which sees reduced numbers of high altitude trekkers. Within a week's holiday, one can visit the most popular attractions or go on a short trek. December and January is also a peak season for Buddhist pilgrimage tours of India and Nepal.

Travel tips for Christmas and New Year

• Book your logistics in advance as the number of domestic and international tourists increase around the time.
• You can walk in shorts during the day but need some warm cloth handy in a daypack.
• Pack the best for the cold. Pack warm clothes in layers for short treks. You need down jackets for trek to base camp.
• Carry a hot bag / flask to warm your bed at night in the mountains.
• While trekkers thin out in the main trails, it is still the season for short treks and tropical destinations like Lumbini, Chitwan, Bardia and other Buddhist sites.

Five Nepal tours for Christmas and New Year holiday :

The five tours listed below visit the tropical plains and the foothills, which are perfect for winter. Watching the New year sunrise over the Himalayas has been a popular thing to do. These tours are listed based on previous years experiences and increased bookings during the Christmas and New year holiday.

Glimpse of Nepal - 7 day

The seven days' tour visits the three most popular destinations of Nepal, namely - Kathmandu, Pokhara and Chitwan national park. All of the places in the tour are in tropical and subtropical regions, making it perfect for winter. Both Kathmandu and Chitwan are UNESCO Heritage sites. Kathmandu has seven groups of monuments depicting medieval art, craft and culture. Chitwan National Park shelters the last numbers of Rhinos, Tigers and many other endangered species from the region. Similarly the lake city of Pokhara is known as the natural capital of Nepal. Visits to these three places give you a glimpse of Nepal's rich cultural and natural heritage. Thus this tour is also known as the golden triangle tour of Nepal.

Nepal walking holiday

There are several hill stations with luxury hotels and boutique resorts. Nepal walking holiday is a combination of several day hikes with comfortable stay away from the busting cities. This tour allows you to walk comfortable distances into the pristine nature, charming villages with up close view of the Himalayas and come back to the luxury you wished for a holiday. This is for those looking for an active holiday in nature. Day walks around Kathmandu and Pokhara are connected by drives and flights. You can also do cultural sightseeing in between and drive to the popular hill stations for night stay before going on a hike. This holiday could be customized for families with kids and senior citizens.

Ghorepani - Poon Hill Trek

Watching the New Year's sunrise from Poon Hill (3,200 m) has been a popular thing to do in previous years. This is a short but scenic trek for those looking for more adventure during the Christmas and New year holiday. One can see over a dozen of peaks from Ghorepani - Poon Hill which includes a view of Annapurna I and Dhaulagiri. A sunrise view from Poon Hill is the most beautiful sunrise in the entire Himalayas. Moreover it is a short and sweet trek in the foothills of the Himalayas. This trek could be planned within a week's holiday in Nepal. Yet the trail goes through some of the intact Himalayan villages and ecology. Walking above the clouds through the world's largest Rhododendron forest with cascading waterfalls and crystal clear streams is a lifetime experience.

Buddhist Tour of Nepal

Buddhist tour of Nepal mainly includes visits to Lumbini (the birth place of Buddha), meditation caves of Guru Rinpoche and some of the ancient stupas and monasteries. Buddhism was sheltered for centuries during the crisis in India and Tibet. This makes Nepal a country with living Buddhist heritage. There are several meditation caves of Guru Rinpoche ( Padmashambhava ), Naropa, Tilopa and Milarepa. The Himalayan valleys have always been hidden Shangri-la for Buddhist practices. Pilgrimages to Gosaikunda Lake, Muktinath and Mt Kailash were prehistoric and are revered by both Hindus and Buddhists. Guru Rinpoche is believed to hide scriptures for future in some of these valleys known as Beyuls or kyimolung, the happy valleys. All of these yet unexplored pilgrimages and serene valleys make Nepal the best place for spiritual tour.

Buddhist pilgrimage tour of Nepal is about one week’s tour visiting Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha and other important pilgrimage sites of Nepal. Archaeological sites like Tilaurakot palace ruin (where Buddha spent 29 years as prince Siddhartha), Kudan monastery (where Buddha gave 5 sermons) and Ramagram Stupa (only un-open stupa out of the first eight) are the important findings around Lumbini. Similarly Yenglesho cave is known as a place where Guru Rinpoche did a retreat of Yangdak Heruka and Vajrakilaya. Maratika is another cave where he attained the teachings of longevity from Buddha Amitayus. Namobuddha, Boudhanath and Swayambhunath stupas are some of the must to visit pilgrimages for Buddhists.

Wellness tour

The natural ambiance of Nepal is also a perfect place for wellness and spiritual experience. A week in wellness resorts and Yoga Ashrams with relaxed sightseeing activities in between will give you sensual, philosophical and experiential betterment. The objective of the tour is to give you a break from work stress and rediscover yourself.

Experience Kathmandu and Nepal from the spiritual perspective with our Yoga meditation and spiritual experience tour. Unlike its neighbors, Kathmandu nourished the ancient culture and heritage from the Indian subcontinent until the date, for which Kathmandu is known as a living heritage. Moreover, Hinduism, Buddhism, Tantrism and other pagan practices coexisted with great respect for each other. While the pre-Buddhism Bon thrived in the trans-Himalayan region, the newly migrated Tibetan Buddhist also added color to Nepal's spiritual diversity.



About the Author

I am an adventurer from the Himalayas of Nepal. I love exploring reading and writing travel journal. Believe it or not, More you read the less you understand. My blogs about Nepal Tibet Bhtutan tour

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