Crossing the border from India to Nepal was so much fun! Not many people do it from the west, so we were almost the only foreigners there. It took us forever to get from Haldwani to Banbasa (India) and over to Mahendranagar (Nepal), but it was absolutely one of the experiences to remember.
From Haldwani, we took a long, long bus along the gravel road and got down about 10km before the border in Banbasa. Of course there were many bicycle rickshaw drivers waiting to offer us the ride to the border, and we hired two of them to take us there. We drove through a small and quiet Indian village (no motor rickshaws there!) where everybody seemed to know each other: our drivers were talking to their friends and saluting salesmen on the market; people were greeting us with a smile, asking us for our names, selling “pani” (water) and many other things they had to offer. We reached the Indian border after about 45min when we spotted the most simple immigration office you could imagine: it was situated in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by locals, farms, cows and other animals, and we needed to search around to find the officer who checked our passports. We waited quite some time there so that they did all the necessary procedure, talking about random things with the officer. After a while our drives finally took us to the Nepali side of the border. The officers there were incredibly nice, giving us some useful instructions about Nepal and asking us about our trip. When we managed to do all the official part of the crossing, we boarded our last rickshaw of the day (and the first one in Nepal) that took us to the closest town, Mahendranagar.
At first we didn’t really realise we were in another country: the streets were still full of people, vehicles, trash and dirt; the dust was blowing right into our faces and the honking was still the first thing to hear when on the street. But there was one big difference we noticed as soon as we crossed the border: there was no one pulling our sleeves to get us into their shops and trying to sell us all sorts of things. One thing was clear from the beginning: Nepalis are very nice and respectful people.
It didn’t take us long to find a decent room to spend the night, and the rest of the day was real fun. We spent it with other foreigners we met in our hotel. Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time to rest since the next long bus drive was awaiting us the very next day: a 17h bus drive to Pokhara. It felt like it was going to be the toughest drive ever, but except for a flat tyre, which took another 1,5h to fix, it wasn’t so bad at all.
We woke up the next morning, still on the bus when the sun was just about to rise. We knew our final destination shouldn’t be far anymore, and we started looking through the window with excitement. We couldn’t see much because it had been raining the whole night, but early in the morning the sky started to clear up and in a couple of hours the clouds slowly uncovered the most beautiful mountain in the world. Fish tail, or Machhapuchhre, the Nepali holy mountain, was the first thing to see when arriving in the mountain area, and we couldn’t believe our eyes: it was the most majestic mountain we have ever seen. Pokhara welcomed us with an amazing view, and we immediately felt it was going to be a very special place for us. And so it was.
We found a room in a very quiet area in the city, and the first couple of days it was almost a bit too quiet for us. We were used to loud Indian cities, so we felt like there was something missing in Pokhara. This might sound funny, but after spending more than three months in India, we were really missing its entire chaotic atmosphere. Although India sometimes makes you feel like running away and never coming back, we only knew how powerful it is once getting out of the country. We felt confused, and it took us about a week to get used to the new environment.
The first few days we were just resting, but soon we started to feel very excited to see the beautiful mountains of Nepal. From Pokhara, you can visit the World Peace Pagoda from where you can get a beautiful panoramic view of the Himalaya, but unfortunately the visibility was only nice the day we got here. After the dry season, the air in Nepal fills up with dust, and the sky only clears up after a day or two of rain. We waited the whole week to get the opportunity to climb up to the pagoda, but with no luck. However, we spent our time preparing everything we needed for probably one of the most beautiful experiences of our trip: trekking in the Nepali mountains. We chose to do the Annapurna circuit, one of the longest and the most challenging treks in Nepal. The highest point of the trek – a pass that you need to cross – reaches 5400m, so you need to plan your acclimatisation very carefully. It takes three weeks to complete the trek, and we really wanted to get well prepared. First of all, we needed two permits for each of us, which we got on the other side of the city (click here to read all you need to know about trekking permits in Nepal). Second, we needed to extend our visa for 15 days (you only get a 30 day visa on arrival). It was quite a walk to get all this things, but we also needed some additional things to buy for the trek, and walking along the main street of Pokhara offered us a whole range of different types of fake mountaineering shops. After we got the permits, the visa and some more equipment, we were ready to head off to one of the most beautiful places in the world – the Himalaya.
Se mi zdi, da je bil tak občutek pri nas po drugi svetovni vojni, le da so bile meje bolj zaprte. Amak ker nobeden ni imel nič, se nam je zdelo, da imamo vsi dovolj. Pip
Hi
I am rajendra darji from Nepal dauli gaon jila dadendhura
I am 29 year old
I was very little when I come India from Nepal,
Now I want to go back Nepal but I don’t have any legal documents like no id proof or no address proof
But I have my school living certificate.
So please somebody give me idea how to go Nepal without any trouble
I really wants to go back because its so long time that I haven’t seen my parents
Please help me
Thank you
you don’t need anything to cross india boarder to reach nepal
It takes to a long breathe and thanks to the who written the word for my home yard Gaddachauki.
Dear Rajender. Please send me a copy of all the valid certificates like : Date of Birth or School Leaving certificate or any id proof you may have to my e mail id :
eefbmt@gmail.com
I will try to arrange some sort of exit document by Indian govt that will help you legally cross India Border and enter into Nepal.
Regards
Ashish
Hi. Thank you for this post. I am currently in the Himalayas and I will be crossing Haldwani over to Mahendranagar (Nepal) as I’ve been in India 6 months and will cross over for a day to renew my multiple entry visa for India. You mentioned the immigration office is very simple and that you were the only foreigners crossing. Would it be safe to do this in the evening, or even possible? Do they only keep general government office hours? I am a female traveling with a local driver, who is not knowledgeable in this area. I prefer to only do this during the day for safety, but someone is suggesting otherwise. Also do you happen to know about how long one needs to stay in Nepal before recrossing into India? Thank you.
Hi Leah, thanks for your comment. I wouldn’t be too sure about crossing the border in the evening, besides I don’t know why would this even be a good idea. Crossing through Banbassa is a long process, it involves a lot of walking and driving with rickshaws, waiting at the so-called immigration office etc. I would say that the office has its opening and closing hours, and crossing in the evening is probably not possible, and if it is, could be a bit dubious. Don’t get me wrong, it is completely safe, but as you will see this border is very unlike any other one and I wouldn’t do it in the evening.
Regarding the question about how long you must stay in Nepal to recross to India I am not really sure about it, but we met people who were doing the same as you and I think they only stayed one night.
Hope this is helpful.
Good luck!
Hi Rea and Nejc, Thank you for your reply about when to cross. I have been in India for a year and have finished my American dollars. I have read that you cannot pay for the Visa with Indian Rupees. What was your experience and how can this be? I only have Indian Rupees. Kindly advise and thanks again.
Hi Leah,
sorry for the delay, we’ve been quite busy these days. I believe that what you’re saying is true, you can only pay for the visa with USD.
I’m sure it will all work out ok for you 🙂
Safe travels!
Hi guys, great post!
I’m thinking of doing exactly the same cause I’ll be in Rishikesh and want to go to Pokhara.
I have a question, do u need anything in advance to get the visa on the border? Did u already have it before arriving there?
Thanks!!!
Dear Tomas
You do not need any other documents than your original passport. bring passport size of picture in case. and bring USD cash for Nepali visa. that will be more easy to pay in Nepal side.
Nepali visa ost for 15 days is USD 15
Nepali visa for a month is USD 25
Thank you
Hi Tomas,
thanks for your comment, we missed it somehow 🙁 As Hemanta already pointed out in the comment below, you don’t need anything else but your passport and US dollars. You can also extend your visa while in Nepal if you’d wish so.
Wish you a great time in the Himalayas! Cheers
It is good post and bioinformatic too. Thank you
Hey! Thanks for the info. I am trying to find bus times for the bus Mahendranagar to Pokhara. How did you find this information out? Thank you 🙂
I have the same question
Specifically I need to know when does the last bus to Pokhara/Kathmandu leave each day
(Depending on which I’ll have to decide whether or not to spend a night at Mahendranagar)
there was no one pulling our sleeves to get us into their shops and trying to sell us all sorts of things. – I am not sure if you are a traveller within or you would not have written this. You should saty at home. This does not mean that all Indians do that and if we did that, I guess you could not have reached there. And where are you from? Is it a perfect country? Would like to know.
You waited because the immigration office opens for limited time which is pre defined. And you find this on Google which is not Indian, lol!
Spread love while travelling and see the brighter side 🙂 else when you exit Nepal, you will point out another difference while writing something idiotic.
Dear Suhel,
You ask us to see the brighter side while travelling, we ask you to see the brighter side while reading. I guess your eyes haven’t reached sentences such as »everybody seemed to know each other: our drivers were talking to their friends and saluting salesmen on the market; people were greeting us with a smile, asking us for our names …«.
»We waited quite some time there so that they did all the necessary procedure, talking about random things with the officer.« – if this looks offending to you, I guess it should be you the one to switch the perspective 🙂
Next time, before you leave some offendig comment, saying that someone is writing »idiotic things«, take a deep breath and … SEE THE BRIGHTER SIDE! 🙂
Much love out your way.
Hello, thanks for this post, very useful! Do you happen to know if there are regular busses from Haldwani to Banbasa? Also, roughly how long did the bus journey take?
Many thanks
Hi Joss, we’re happy that you find our post helpful. Unfortunately I couldn’t tell if there are regular busses from Haldwani to Banbasa as we couldn’t figure out if things like regular bus schedules even exist in India 🙂 For us it turned out that the best technique was asking and asking and asking different people until we got several same answers 🙂 Also, I don’t remember how long the journey was, but if the post says it was a “long. long ride” you have the answer – no exaggeration here 🙂 Wishing you all the best and I hope you enjoy your journey. Just take your time – travelling with busses in India is always fun. Good luck!
Hi Rea & Nejc,
Thanks for the great post, highly appreciate the information. I & my girlfriend are going to try the same route as yours from Delhi.
Delhi to Haldwani
Haldwani to Banbasa
Mahendranagar to Pokhara
Pokhara to Kathmandu
Plan is to leave New Delhi late night then arrive in Haldwani early morning, freshen up there & have breakfast, assuming we find something open in the early hours
Leave from Haldwani In still early hours & reach Banbasa. I read somewhere the immigration office is open from 6-12.30 & then 3-5.30 pm or maybe they are the border opening timings.
In any case we will get the documentation done. Query here is
#1 Since I am Indian, am I still required to care my passport or is my pan or aadhar card ok?
#2 my gf is foreigner on business visa, however she has forgotten to do registration, required to be done in 14 days of arrival in India. It’s been no problem for her trip to Dubai without registration. However the one year business visa is getting over in June.
Will no registration will raise eyebrows at the immigration & cause problems?
Hoping everything goes fine. We will cross border & get my gf the Nepal visa & then reach Mahendranagar.
Now we are clueless from here.
#1 Should we spend night at Mahendranagar? If we do, are there any good places or hotels to spend the night?
# If we don’t spend the night at Mahendranagar, where do we find a bus for Pokhara or when is the last bus for Pokhara from Mahendranagar?
I hope this post finds you guys in good spirits
Thanks & appreciate you providing the guidance for our queries
ASD
Hi ASD, we’re so sorry we didn’t get back to you earlier with the response, do you still need any info or is your trip over yet?
hi my self binay want to visit nepal so hat type od document reqired for that and what are place to viosot in mahendra nager
Hi kindly advice me is it possible for a foreigner to cross border from nepal to uttarrakand by bus using valid E Visa.
I am a foreign hindu wish to go Haridwar for spritual purpose.
I also want to know how to get a genuine and knowledgable spiritual person like pandit, sadhu or rishis who will be able to do pitru dosha and kalsarpa dosha poja and able to check the problem of a person.
If anyone knows anyone or how to get them and the location pls write to me. I wish to meet any rishis if possible. Tq
You can find several buses running between Haldwani and Tanakpur, Banbassa is situated just 10kms. away from the Tanakpur.
Could you please tell about what time your bus from mahendranagar left for pokhara? Like whenis last bus from there..
I am going to cross the same boarder in one way and return to India just to get the stamp for my visa…
“It didn’t take us long to find a decent room to spend the night,”… really ? Do you remember which one ?
Thanks for sharing the informations…if you remember… 😉
Is it safe for kids.
Got 4 months, 8 And 9 year old.would be crossing daytime
Thanks