Pokhara is one of the tourist hub of Nepal. It is the combinatin of nature and culture. Lakeside is one of the happening places of Pokhara, where tourists can find everything. Pokhara is quite a modern city with only few touristic attractions in the town itself. Most interesting is the old centre in the north of the city (purano bazar) where still many old shops and warehouses in the Newari style can be found. Mule caravans still arrive there from Mustang.

On a hill overlooking Phewa Tal from the south is the World Peace Stupa (at 1,113 m) QTVR built in 1996 with a nice view of the lake, across the city and of the snow peaked mountain range consisting of namely, Fishtail, Annapurna and Dhaulagiri Himals (mountains).

Tal Barahi
Temples worth visiting in the older part of town are Bindhyabasini Mandir and Bhimsen Mandir, the latter with erotic carvings; another temple, Barahi Mandir, is located on a tiny island on Phewa Tal. Not accessible and only visible from the lake is the royal summer residence (called Ratna Mandir) at the lake in Lakeside. The best viewpoint of all is Sarangkot (1600 m) to the west of the city. Paths and a road lead to the top from where one can enjoy a spectacular view of the Annapurna range as well as Manaslu, Dhaulagiri and, of course, the city. There are a few little hotels and an overnight stay is recommended.

The modern city centre at Chiple Dhunga and Mahendrapul is halfway between the lake and Purano Bazar. These two joining streets offer all the kinds of shops and services one expects of a town centre. Apart from this busy centre there are several subcentres in other parts of town: in the north in Bagar, in the south between Prithvi Chowk and Srijana Chowk and in the east, on the other side of the Seti, in Ram Bazar.

The shortage of touristic sites in the city of Pokhara is made up by its fantastic scenic views in and around town. Most of them are not mentioned in any guide or map. The Seti Gandaki (White Gandaki) and its tributaries have created spectacular gorges in and around the whole city. The Seti gorge runs through the whole city from north to south. At places it is only a few metres wide, but 100 m deep with a water depth of 20 m.

Bindyabasini
In the middle of the city, the gorge widens to a canyon looking like a crater. In the north and south, just outside town, there are awesome canyons, in some places 100 m deep. These canyons extend through the whole Pokhara Valley. Impressive views are possible from the Prithvi Narayan Campus and from the other side at the foot of Kahu Danda (conjunction of several rivers and canyons). Behind the INF-Compound one can see the Seti River disappear into a slit in an almost 100 m wall, especially impressive in monsoon.

Another place worth visiting is the Patale Chhango (Hell's Falls), more commonly called "Devi's or David's Falls" for the tourist with some melodramatic story behind it. The water from this falls comes from the lake flowing to the Seti. The water plunges into a hole and disappears! In monsoon this sight is most spectacular. Nearby, across the street is a little cave (Gupteshwor Cave). A more exciting cave is at the opposite end of the city in Batulechaur (Mahendra Cave). Betulechaur is known for the musicians caste of the Gaine.