I am conflicted in writing this review on the hidden gem that is Panauti. It was one of the highlights of my July 2025 trip to Nepal, but it's partly because of how it's so forgotten and lost in time. World heritage status could change that just as much as it could preserve it. All I can hope is that it continues to stay in its pristine, yet rough, state free of commercialism, overtourism, and urbanization. And for the lucky few who get there, I hope you can enjoy it as I did and help to leave it as it's always been.

Panauti is a living open-air museum and village lying 32 kilometers from Kathmandu, outside the Kathmandu Valley, and at the confluence of the Roshi, Punyamata, and a mythical invisible third river. Around this confluence are the Triveni Ghats, where traditional Hindu cremations happen on occasion, and other pilgrims come to cleanse themselves with the river water. Numerous temple buildings crowd this space, ranging from typical wooden Newari pagodas to stone or brick shrines. One building has a painted facade depicting Hindu gods, while another is decorated with colorful tiles. A bit higher up is Indreshwor Temple, the most important in the town, dating back to at least the 13th century and unaffected by the big earthquakes in the past century. It's a masterpiece of Newari craftsmanship in its own right, being one of the biggest pagodas of its type in all of Nepal, and crowned by a hand-beaten …

Panuati is a jewel of a village for the amount of temples, ghats and old homes with wood carvings still in good condition. However, it is VERY poor and abandoned to its fate. The local conservation trust is doing its utmost but it really requires foreign monies to help the locals and their (and our) heritage. I still cannot understand how 7 sites make up only 1 WHS in the Kathmandu valley, but no doubt Panuati IMHO deserves to be included.