Browse the bazaars and weekend markets

Asan is Kathmandu's oldest market crossroads, where six lanes meet around a small temple. It sells everything a household needs: spices, rice, dried fish, brass pots, fabric and festival supplies, all packed into narrow streets.

Walk south from Asan through Indra Chowk, past bead sellers and shawl shops, and you reach Kathmandu Durbar Square. It is the best walk in the old city, and it costs nothing.

On weekends, farmers' markets and makers' markets pop up in Jhamsikhel and around the city, with organic vegetables, bread, cheese, coffee and crafts from small local brands. In Patan, Mangal Bazaar by the Durbar Square has metalwork and souvenirs.

Pop-up markets, flea markets and festival bazaars are announced through the year, and the listings below show the ones coming up.

In the old bazaars, look for spices, tea, brass and copper pots, singing bowls, pashmina and festival goods you will not find in tourist shops. In Patan the metal workshops sell small statues and bells made on site.

At the weekend markets, the best buys are food: local cheese, honey, coffee, bread and seasonal fruit, often from the farmer who grew it. Small makers sell soap, clothes, ceramics and prints.