How to Get to Kathmandu: Tribhuvan Airport, Visas and Valley Transport

Unlike many capitals whose airports sit an hour out in the countryside, Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport (KTM) lies right inside the eastern edge of the city next to Pashupatinath and Less than four kilometres south of Boudhanath.

Nepal Visa on Arrival and airport entry

Most nationalities can obtain a Nepal Tourist Visa on Arrival (available for fifteen, thirty or ninety days) right inside the international arrivals hall. To save twenty minutes in the queue, complete the official online Tourist Visa Application form on the Department of Immigration portal within fifteen days before your flight and print or save the barcode receipt on your phone; alternatively, use the digital self-service kiosks at the airport. Keep crisp, undamaged US dollar notes (or major international payment cards when the counter terminal is online) ready for the visa fee counter before clearing immigration.

Getting from Tribhuvan Airport into Kathmandu, Boudha or Patan

Once you collect your bags and step past customs, pick up a local data SIM card at the Ncell or Nepal Telecom counter inside the terminal, then choose between three transport options:

• Pre-paid Airport Taxi Counter: located inside the arrivals exit hall, issuing fixed-rate vouchers by destination zone (roughly fifteen minutes to Boudha, twenty-five to thirty-five minutes to Thamel, Lazimpat or Patan depending on Ring Road traffic).
• Pathao and InDrive Ride-Hailing Apps: Nepal's two everyday ride-hailing apps let you pin your exact hotel, see the fare in Nepali rupees upfront, and book either a small hatchback car or a motorbike taxi without haggling.
• Hotel Airport Transfers: because many boutique hotels in Thamel, Boudha and Patan sit down narrow pedestrian-only brick alleys or monastic lanes where cars cannot turn, booking your hotel's airport pickup guarantees a driver who knows the exact courtyard gate and helps carry luggage the final hundred metres.

Domestic mountain flights and intercity tourist coaches

The separate Domestic Terminal sits immediately adjacent to the international terminal at KTM, handling short-haul flights to Pokhara, Bharatpur (for Chitwan) and Lukla/Ramechhap, as well as early-morning Everest scenic mountain flights that cruise parallel to the high Himalaya and return to Kathmandu an hour later. Tourist sofa-buses to Pokhara and Chitwan depart early in the morning from Sorakhutte just north of Thamel. Read practical cash and stupa tips.