Looking north from the plinth of the wrecked Maju Deval, a pair of much-photographed white images of Shiva and his consort look out from the upstairs window. The temple was built in the late 1700s by Bahadur Shah, the son of Prithvi Narayan Shah. It stands on a two-stage platform that may have been an open dancing stage hundreds of years earlier. There are some worrying cracks in the brick walls, which are supported by braces.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
3.6 MILES
The first stupa at Boudhanath was built sometime after AD 600, when the Tibetan king, Songtsen Gampo, converted to Buddhism. In terms of grace and purity…
1.24 MILES
The Swayambhunath Stupa is one of the crowning glories of Kathmandu Valley architecture. This perfectly proportioned monument rises through a whitewashed…
0.07 MILES
Kathmandu's royal palace, known as the Hanuman Dhoka, was originally founded during the Licchavi period (4th to 8th centuries AD), but the compound was…
2.3 MILES
This unique Buddhist monastery is just north of Durbar Sq. It was allegedly founded in the 12th century, and it has existed in its current form since 1409…
7.8 MILES
The magnificent Golden Gate is a visual highlight of Durbar Sq. Set into a bright red gatehouse surrounded by white palace walls, the fabulous golden…
0.21 MILES
The long, rectangular courtyard of the Itum Bahal is the largest bahal (Buddhist monastery courtyard) in the old town and remains a haven of tranquillity…
7.87 MILES
You should be able to see the sky-high rooftop of the Nyatapola Temple long before you reach Taumadhi Tole. With five storeys towering 30m above the…
0.83 MILES
The beautifully restored Swapna Bagaicha (Garden of Dreams) remains one of the most serene and beautiful enclaves in Kathmandu. It's two minutes' walk and…
Nearby Kathmandu attractions
0.01 MILES
This three-tiered Narayan (Vishnu) temple to the west of the Shiva-Parvati Temple was destroyed in the 2015 earthquake. A pile of bricks sits unattended…
0.01 MILES
On your left as you leave the southern part of Durbar Sq along Makhan Tole is the Great Bell. The bell’s ring drives off evil spirits, but it is only rung…
0.02 MILES
On the northwest corner of the Gaddhi Baithak, this triple-storey, triple-roofed temple is easily missed because it surmounts the building below it. The…
0.02 MILES
This 17th-century temple was destroyed in the 2015 earthquake. All that remains is the temple's nine-stage ochre platform.
0.02 MILES
Kathmandu’s Durbar Sq was where the city’s kings were once crowned and legitimised, and from where they ruled (durbar means palace). As such, the square…
0.03 MILES
Seto (White) Bhairab’s horrible face is hidden away behind a grille in an earthquake-damaged pavilion opposite King Pratap Malla’s Column. The huge mask…
0.03 MILES
Dominating the eastern side of Durbar Sq, this white neoclassical building lost large chunks of its once elegant facade during the earthquake and is…
0.03 MILES
The octagonal Krishna Temple was built in 1648–49 by Pratap Malla, perhaps as a response to rival Siddhinarsingh’s magnificent Krishna Temple in Patan…