KTM Valley Rim

Permits

Not specified for the day-hike sections — but see the note on Shivapuri National Park below

Guide

Not required

Time

Usually done as individual day trips; 10–13 days if you tried to link the whole rim together

Local dog aggression

Medium/High — worst on the Nagarkot to Changu Narayan section

Other dangers

Leeches (monsoon only)

Can combine with

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Overview

The valley rim isn't really one trek — it's more a series of routes we tend to do as day trips from Kathmandu. Our favourite is Nagarkot to Dhulikhel: there are few dog problems on it, and it's a genuinely beautiful hike, although it can be tough to navigate in places. We also do Champadevi regularly.

We've thought about stringing it together into one longer trek, but found real problems with finding places to stay in some sections, so for now these stay as separate day hikes rather than one continuous route.

Good to know

Worth knowing before you head out: part of the rim runs into Shivapuri National Park, and — like other national parks in Nepal — dogs aren't allowed in, even though you'll actually see plenty of dogs living there. For the park itself, Wikipedia's Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park page has the background.

In some sections, especially Nagarkot to Changu Narayan, the dogs can be genuinely difficult — hence the medium/high rating above. And one specific warning: don't take your dog into Changu Narayan temple itself. There are a lot of wild dogs living inside, and it's not worth the risk.

A good place to start

If you're thinking about taking your dog on a longer trek but aren't sure how they'll cope, some of these day hikes are a good, low-commitment way to find out before you book something bigger.

Photos from the trek

Dog-friendly tea houses on this route

We haven't logged specific tea houses for this route yet — check the Tea Houses page as we add them, or get in touch if you know one that's happy to take dogs.