Destination Profile
Calling all trekkers and intrepid types – cheap flights to Kathmandu from New Zealand are your ticket to the ice-caked wonderland of the high Himalaya. They'll put you on the doorstep of Dingboche and Annapurna, where wild expeditions to Everest and the Khumbu await. (Be sure to look for bargains in the peak hiking seasons of spring and autumn if you're eager to hit the trails). Of course, you might want to spend some time lingering in Kathmandu itself. An ancient city, it's riddled with UNESCO sites and steamy curry bazaars, awash with metallic stupas and meditative Hindu shrines.
Durbar Square hosts some of Kathmandu's most famous buildings. They include the stepped-roof Taleju Temple and the Kotilingeshwara Mahadev dedicated to Shiva.
Thamel is a gritty and buzzy district where curry houses tumble onto streets laden with outdoors outfitters and backpackers sipping warm tea.
The holy Buddhist pagoda of Swayambhunath crowns a hillside in the Kathmandu Valley. As prayer flags flutter in the breezes, you can learn all about the country's deep religiosity.
No airlines have direct flights from New Zealand to Kathmandu.
The best airline to fly from New Zealand to Kathmandu is Singapore Airlines.