Thamel () is a commercial neighborhood located in
Kathmandu
Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...
, the capital of
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
. The name comes from Tha Bahi (थ: बहि), indicating its root origin to have come from the Newa community, the indigenous people of Kathmandu Valley. Tha Bahi has been the centre of the
tourist industry in Kathmandu for over four decades, starting from the
hippie
A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
days, when many artists came to Nepal and spent weeks in Thamel. It is considered the hotspot for tourism inside the
Kathmandu valley
The Kathmandu Valley (), also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley (, Newar language, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः), National Capital Area, is a bowl-shaped valley located in the Himalayas, Hima ...
.
Thamel is known for its narrow alleys crowded with various shops and vendors. Commonly sold goods include food, fresh vegetables/fruits, pastries, trekking gear, walking gear, music, DVDs, handicrafts, souvenirs, woolen items and clothes. Travel agencies, small grocery stores, budget hotels, restaurants, pubs and clubs also line the streets. Cars, cycle rickshaws, two-wheelers and taxis ply these narrow streets alongside hundreds of pedestrians.
Many restaurants in Thamel serve traditional and continental cuisine. Thamel also acts as the pre-base camp for mountaineers. It boasts a wide range of mountaineering gear shops, foreign money exchange booths, mobile phone shops, and numerous travel agents and guest houses.
Thamel is widely regarded as the center of Kathmandu's nightlife and is also popular for its wide range of restaurants and cafés, live music and other attractions frequented by both tourists and locals.
The places near Thamel are Kwabahal, JP Road, Paknajol, Sanchaya Kosh road.
Thamel declared WiFi Zone
See also
*Hippie trail
The hippie trail (also the overland) was an overland journey taken by members of the hippie subculture and others from the mid-1950s to the late 1970s travelling from Europe and Western Asia, West Asia through South Asia via countries such a ...
References
External links
Thamel Tourism Development Council
Tourism in Nepal
Neighbourhoods in Kathmandu
{{KathmanduDistrict-geo-stub