6 Best activities to do in Pokhara on a budget

Pokhara is the 2nd biggest city of Nepal after Kathmandu and quite popular among trekkers departing or returning from the mountains. It is quite a small town, and its touristic center, located on the shore of a small lake called Phewa, is completely walkable making it a perfect stop to relax a few days. It is very touristy and far from being an hippie center as the old days, however we found it still quite pleasant and with a good mix of activities.
It is not as developed as cities in south east Asia, however you can find there a good mix of activities, restaurants and cafes to keep you entertained. 
We spent there around 5 days in our 1 month Nepal trip, to recover after our Manaslu circuit trek, and below you can find our highlights and the activities we enjoyed the most in Pokhara. There are tons of different things to do in Pokhara and we came up with this short list after reviewing dozens of them. We don't like endless list of things to do, which leave you even more confused than before (do you?!), therefore we decided to streamline it to only the best 6. 

2- Enjoy the international food scene (+ best place in Pokhara for a cheap breakfast)

More and more restaurants are opening in Pokhara making it quite interesting food-wise, especially if you happen to be in town after a trekking. The trek we did was amazing, however we cannot say it was a delight culinary wise: the options up in the mountains are quite limited and oftentimes the Dal Bat was the best the kitchen had to offer. As much as I like Dal Bat, I was happy to discover that Pokhara has many international restaurants. 
Some we would recommend are: 

• Cafe Concerto: it is slightly expensive, however the pizza is good. If you crave a pizza we recommend this cosy place 
• Utopia Garden and snacks bar: great welcoming and great food. Right in front of the lake this Indian restaurant is a delight 
• Natssul Korean Restaurant: : Good Korean barbecue and food  with a great view of the lake if you sit on the 3rd floor. 
• Best breakfast deal: Rosemary Kitchen Pokhara. It is not the cheapest but definitely on the low-end and a great deal. With just few Euros you will get a big breakfast that keep you filled for hours.

3- Sarangot hill viewpoint 

If you didn’t have enough of hiking or if you are training for your upcoming big trek, the Sarangot view point is a great option just outside Pokhara. You can reach the viewpoint either hiking, by car or by cable car (round trip price: 12$ per person).
The view on top of the Sarangot in a sunny day is absolutely amazing: you can see the whole range of the Annapurna, the Fishtail Mountain (Machhapuchhare) and several other Himalayan peaks. If the sky is perfectly clear (and you are lucky enough) you can even spot 3 >8000m mountains: Manaslu, Annapurna and  the Dhalaugiri. 
Since we were quite lazy, we decided to go up to the top by taxi and hike only the way down: we found this combination perfect for us since it was not tiring and allowed up to explore around on the way back to Pokhara. We paid a very small entry fee at the viewpoint just to go on top of the tower: if you are extremely on a budget you can skip it, since going up will only give you a slightly more open view of the range. 
We decided to go there early in the morning, when there are better chances of a clear sky. After admiring the panorama, we found a nice cafe close to the top where to have a breakfast over a beautiful view. On the way down we passed by small little villages (or rather just some aggregations of houses), and two schools full of small students. We also met randomly Omi, a Nepalese farmer who invited for a tea at his farm. Omi presented his family to us, passionately told us all he was growing and gave us an interesting tour of his house. He was extremely welcoming, smiling and with a good heart. We discovered he has also a guesthouse: it is extremely simple and basic, but if you want to experience a true Nepalese family, here you don’t go wrong. 

All in all it took us few hours to get down: I would recommend a whole day for hiking up and down and at least half a day if you want to hike it partially as we did. 
If you have to pick only one hike around Pokhara, I would definitely recommend this one rather than hiking up to the World Peace Pagoda because it is more scenic and rural in our opinion.

4- Get a Nepalese massage at Jiva Spa in the center of Pokhara

While walking lazily around town on the morning of the 2nd day, Sofia suddenly told me: “it would be really nice to get a massage here”. We searched on Google while sipping our coffee, and given the promixity and the good reviews we opted for the Jiva Spa, right in front of the lake in the center of Pokhara. The atmosphere is immediately relaxing, while you enter the tranquil garden of the spa, and you are welcomed with a refreshing drink. We both decided for the Nepalese traditional massage and we both enjoyed it a lot. After the massage we could stay in the garden to relax and read a book. 
If you are muscles are sore and tired, this is definitely a great spot in Pokhara. 

5- Rafting the Upper Sethi just outside Pokhara

There are many activities around Pokhara ranging from paragliding, mountain biking, trekking and rafting, making it a paradise for outdoors lovers. 
After checking all the options, we found the rafting was probably the best value for money and we decided to book with Rafting adventure Nepal, one of the highest google-rated shop in Pokhara and also one of the cheapest we found. 
We spent around 40$ for half a day tour, including pickup, drop off, snacks, pictures with a GoPro and obviously all the safety equipment necessary for the rafting.
We recommend not to book with your hotel, because usually it add a markup and book the activity with one of the operators you can find in town. 
It was the first time ever for us, way more adrenalinic and thrilling than we thought and also super fun! After a short and bumpy bus ride, the crew took us on the shore of the river and explained us all the instructions before jumping into the water. Followed, the adventure began! I cannot hide that it was quite scary at the beginning, and we had to be very careful not to fall into the water. However it soon became of the funniest activity we had in Nepal: 100% recommended! 

6- Hike to World Peace Pagoda and get back by boat 

The World Peace Pagoda or Pokhara Shanti Stupa is a Bhuddist-style Pagoda on top of a hill overlooking the Phewa Lake and the Himalayan mountains. It is not as high as the Sarangot hill viewpoint, however if you have time it’s nice half day activity. There are several ways to reach the top: by taxi, walking, by boat or a mix of them. We decided to go there walking from the lake shore and hiking through the Queen Forest up to the top. Once there, we went down through a different path and took a boat to get back on the city center’s lake shore. On top you can relax and soak up the views while sipping a coffee or eating an ice-cream in one of the cafes there. 

1 Activity I would not recommend: visit to the International Mountain Museum

The International Mountain Museum is as the name suggests, a museum about the mountains and the people who live them.  Unfortunately the museum is situated at the outskirt of the city, and you need to take a taxi to get there if you do not have a bike. 
Even though the topics addressed are quite interesting, ranging from the mountain tribes of Nepal to famous mountaineers and alpinists, at the time of our visit (end of 2023) we found it very old fashioned and a bit run-down, giving us the impression of something not many people actually visit. It felt like the museum has not changed since its inceptions more than 20 years go.
For this reason and for the fact that it’s quite far from the city center, I would not recommend going there, unless you are really into this topic and perhaps it’s a rainy day outside. 

I hope you enjoy our 6 best activities to do in Pokhara and as usual, if you have any other recommendations we should add here, don’t hesitate to get in touch!