India and Nepal Tour: The Essential 2027 Guide to Planning Both

By Khem “Babu” Khadaka, founder, driving these roads since 1996 · Last updated: 2027 season (October 2026 – June 2027)

An India and Nepal tour puts the Taj Mahal and the Himalaya into one trip, and the hardest part isn’t the travelling. It’s the planning decisions you make before you book a single flight.

Which country first? Fly between them or cross by road? One visa or two? Rupees or dollars? Can you trek and see Rajasthan in the same three weeks? Get those choices right and the trip almost plans itself. Get them wrong and you spend days backtracking to Delhi.

The two countries sit side by side and share a long, open border, but they feel very different. India is vast, fast-moving and intense. Nepal is smaller, slower and mountainous. A good combined trip uses that contrast rather than fighting it.

So instead of asking only “Can I combine India and Nepal in one trip?”, it helps to ask a better question:

How long do I have, what matters most to me in each country, and which order, crossing and season will join them with the least wasted time?

That’s what this guide is built around. It covers how long an India and Nepal tour should be, which country to start in, flying versus crossing by road, visas for both countries, money (including the rules on Indian ₹500 notes in Nepal), SIM cards, the seasons and festivals that suit both, cultural differences, adventure add-ons, health and safety, and what the whole trip costs.

1. Is an India and Nepal Tour Worth It?

Yes, if you have the time. The two countries complement each other: India’s great monuments, cities and holy rivers, then Nepal’s mountains, lakes and jungle. Many of our guests say the second half feels like a holiday after the first.

It also makes sense geographically. Kathmandu is one of the shortest international flights from Delhi, and the Buddhist sites of both countries, from Sarnath and Bodh Gaya to Lumbini, form one natural circuit.

The one thing an India and Nepal tour can’t do is everything. Pick the two or three things you most want from each country and build around those.

2. How Long Should an India and Nepal Tour Be?

This is the first decision, and it shapes all the others. Here’s what realistically fits:

Less than ten days isn’t worth it. You’d spend too much of it in airports. If you only have a week, choose one country and come back for the other.

For the two-week version day by day, see our 14-day India Nepal itinerary, which lays out an overland route and a fly-in route in full.

3. India First or Nepal First?

Most India and Nepal tours start in India and end in Nepal. There are good reasons:

• Flights: Delhi has far more long-haul connections than Kathmandu, so arriving there is usually cheaper and easier.
• Pace: India is more intense. Finishing in Nepal, by a lake in Pokhara or in the quiet lanes of Bhaktapur, is a gentler end to the trip.
• Visas: leaving India overland is simple; coming back into India by land has more restrictions (see section 6).
• Season: in spring, starting in India in February or March and moving to Nepal as the mountains warm up works well.

Start in Nepal if you’re trekking and want to do it while you’re fresh, or if you’re flying in from South-East Asia and it’s cheaper to land in Kathmandu. In that case, fly from Kathmandu to Delhi or Varanasi and finish with the Taj Mahal.

Whichever order you choose, keep your India and Nepal tour moving in one direction. Every backtrack costs a day.

4. Fly or Drive? Getting Between India and Nepal

There are three practical ways to link the two halves of an India and Nepal tour:

Flying is the right choice for most people. It saves two long driving days and puts you straight into the Kathmandu Valley. Buddha Air has flown a direct Varanasi–Kathmandu route; check the current schedule, because it changes with the season.

Driving is the richer experience, and it’s the only way to include Lumbini naturally. You watch the Gangetic plain turn into the Terai and then the hills. It does add at least one long day and a border crossing to your India and Nepal tour.

5. India to Nepal Border Crossing: What to Expect

The Sunauli–Belahiya crossing near Gorakhpur is the one most tourists use. It’s busy but simple. Foreigners stop at the Indian immigration office in Sunauli for an exit stamp, walk or drive through the border arch, then buy a visa on arrival at Nepali immigration in Belahiya. Allow 30 minutes to two hours.

A few rules that matter:

• Don’t miss the Indian exit stamp. The office is small and easy to drive past.
• Cross in daylight and ignore anyone selling onward tickets at the border.
• Indian citizens cross freely with a passport or voter ID and need no visa or stamp.
• Your vehicle: we usually arrange a handover, with your India driver on one side and your Nepal driver on the other.

Lumbini, the Buddha’s birthplace, is about 30 km from the border, so it’s the natural first night in Nepal. Our India Nepal itinerary guide covers all five main crossings and the step-by-step process.

6. Visas

You need permission to enter both countries, and the order you visit them in affects which visa you need.

India

Most nationalities apply online for the Indian e-Visa before travelling. Since December 2025 you can choose an arrival date up to 120 days ahead for the e-Tourist Visa.

Leaving India is easy: an e-Visa holder can exit through any authorised checkpoint, including Sunauli. Returning to India is the tricky part. You need a visa that allows another entry, such as the one-year multiple-entry e-Tourist Visa, and you must enter at a port listed for e-Visas. In August 2026 India’s list included the Nepal border posts at Raxaul, Rupaidiha and Jogbani, but not Sunauli. If your India and Nepal tour goes back into India, the simplest answer is to fly.

Nepal

Most nationalities can get a tourist visa on arrival at Kathmandu airport or at the main land borders, or apply online in advance. The Tribhuvan airport immigration office lists USD 30 for 15 days, USD 50 for 30 days and USD 125 for 90 days, with a maximum of 150 days in a calendar year. Carry clean US dollar notes. Indian citizens don’t need a visa.

7. Money: Rupees, Cards, UPI and the ₹500 Rule

Money is the most confusing part of an India and Nepal tour, because the two rupees look alike, share a name and are pegged to each other, yet the rules are different on each side of the border.

• The exchange rate: the Nepali rupee is fixed at 1.6 NPR to 1 INR, so ₹100 is NPR 160.
• Indian notes in Nepal: ₹100 and smaller notes are widely accepted in Nepal. Nepal Rastra Bank now also allows Indian ₹200 and ₹500 notes issued since November 2016, up to ₹25,000 per person in total, according to a Ratopati report on the central bank’s notice. ₹2,000 notes are still not allowed. In practice, many shops outside the border towns and tourist areas still prefer ₹100 notes or Nepali rupees.
• ATMs and cards: both countries have ATMs in every city. Nepali ATMs have low limits per withdrawal and charge a fee, so take out larger amounts less often. Cards work in hotels and larger shops; small places want cash.
• UPI: Indian visitors can pay with UPI at many Nepali shops through the Fonepay network, as announced by NPCI International. Foreign tourists in India can load UPI One World, a prepaid wallet set up with passport and visa details, though availability has been patchy.
• US dollars: bring some for the Nepal visa and emergencies. Change the rest locally.

Spend or change your Indian rupees before you fly out of Nepal. Outside the border region, Indian notes are much harder to use.

8. SIM Cards, Wi-Fi and Staying Connected

On an India and Nepal tour you’ll want a local SIM or eSIM in each country, because roaming is expensive and your driver and hotels will call you on WhatsApp.

In India, the big networks are Jio, Airtel and Vi. Buying a SIM as a foreigner needs your passport, visa and a photo, and activation can take a few hours. An international eSIM bought before you fly is often simpler.

In Nepal, Nepal Telecom (NTC) and Ncell sell tourist SIMs at Kathmandu airport and in town with your passport. Coverage is good in cities and on the main highways, patchy in the mountains, where teahouses sell Wi-Fi.

Download offline maps for both countries before you cross the border. Signal drops in the hills between the Terai and Pokhara.

9. Seasons and Festivals That Work for Both Countries

The weather window for an India and Nepal tour is narrower than for either alone. Autumn and late winter to spring are the sweet spots:

Festival dates follow the lunar calendar; confirm them before you book. Hotels in Pokhara and Kathmandu fill up during Dashain and Tihar, and Delhi’s air is often very poor from late October to January, so if you’re sensitive to pollution, spend fewer nights there in those months.

Avoid May to September for a combined trip. The Indian plains are extremely hot in May and June, and the monsoon then brings landslides to Nepal’s hill roads and hides the mountains.

10. What Changes When You Cross the Border

On the map it’s one step. In daily life, a few things change on an India and Nepal tour, and knowing them makes the second half easier:

• Greeting: “Namaste” with palms together works in both countries.
• Temples: in both, remove shoes and cover shoulders and knees. In Nepal, walk clockwise around stupas and prayer wheels. Non-Hindus can’t enter some Hindu temples, including Pashupatinath’s main shrine.
• Food: Nepal’s staple is dal bhat, lentils and rice with refills; momos are everywhere. It’s generally milder than North Indian food.
• Pace and bargaining: Nepal is calmer, with less hard selling. Bargain politely in markets in both countries.
• Roads: India has fast new expressways; Nepal’s hill roads are narrow, winding and slow. Trust your driver’s timings.
• Tipping: expected for drivers, guides and porters in both, but always your choice. See our tipping guide.

11. Adventure Add-ons: Treks, Safaris and Paragliding

Nepal is where an India and Nepal tour can turn active. Even a few days give you a real taste of the mountains.

• Paragliding in Pokhara: tandem flights from Sarangkot above Phewa Lake, usually 20 to 30 minutes in the air. Book a morning slot, and keep a spare day in case of wind.
• Short treks: Poon Hill (4–5 days from Pokhara) gives you sunrise over the Annapurnas without extreme altitude. See our best treks for beginners.
• Big treks: our Annapurna Base Camp Trek, 11 days (from USD 1,005 per person) or our Everest Base Camp Trek, 14 days (from USD 1,320 per person). Read our Everest Base Camp guide first.
• Wildlife: Chitwan for rhinos in Nepal, and Ranthambore for tigers in India, can bookend a trip beautifully.
• Rafting: the Trishuli river, on the road between Kathmandu and Pokhara or Chitwan, has easy day trips outside the monsoon.

12. Health, Safety and Insurance

Both halves of an India and Nepal tour are safe for travellers with ordinary care. The risks are mostly practical: road travel, stomach upsets, heat and altitude.

• Roads: the biggest real risk. A private car with a professional driver who doesn’t drive at night on hill roads is the safest way to travel.
• Food and water: drink bottled or filtered water, eat freshly cooked food, and ease into street food.
• Altitude: Kathmandu (about 1,400 m) and Pokhara (about 800 m) are no problem. Treks above 3,000 m need a slow ascent and rest days.
• Insurance: essential. If you’re trekking, check it covers the altitude you’ll reach and helicopter evacuation.
• Nepal politics: after the youth-led protests of September 2025, Nepal held a general election on 5 March 2026 that returned a single-party majority government. Tourism has continued to grow in 2026. Check your government’s travel advice before you go, as you would anywhere.

See our travellers’ information page for more practical advice.

13. What an India and Nepal Tour Costs

Our trips are priced for the whole vehicle, with the driver, not per person. Here are the published prices that most India and Nepal tours are built from:

In India, the price covers the car, driver, fuel, tolls, parking and state taxes; in Nepal, the car, driver, fuel, tolls and parking. Your drivers’ food and lodging are included. Hotels, meals, entry fees, guides, flights and visas are extra, and we’re happy to recommend hotels and book licensed local guides. Treks are priced per person and include the guide, porter, permits, lodging and meals.

See our guide to car and driver costs in India for how pricing works, or our India and Nepal tours page for more routes.

Get Your Personal Itinerary

Tell us how long you have, when you’re travelling and what matters most in each country. We reply within 24 hours with a fixed price for the car and driver. If you’d like a detailed day-by-day itinerary, it costs €100, and the full €100 is deducted from your tour price when you book. There is no obligation.

Your Planning Checklist

Before you book, run through these eight questions:

1. Do I have at least 12 to 14 days, or am I trying to squeeze two countries into a week?
2. Have I chosen which country to start in, and does my route run in one direction?
3. Have I decided whether to fly between Delhi and Kathmandu or cross by road?
4. Does my Indian visa allow re-entry, if my trip goes back into India?
5. Am I carrying US dollars for the Nepal visa, and small Indian notes for the border area?
6. Am I travelling between October and March, avoiding the heat and the monsoon?
7. If I’m trekking, is there a spare day for flights and weather?
8. Is my insurance valid for both countries and any trekking altitude?

If you can answer yes to most of these, your India and Nepal tour is well planned.

Summary: A Simple Way to Think About It

Think of the trip as four decisions.

How long: two weeks for the classics, three for Rajasthan or a trek. Which order: usually India first, Nepal to finish. How to cross: fly for speed, drive via Sunauli for Lumbini and the journey. When: October to November, or February to March.

Settle those four, sort the visas and the rupees, and the rest of your India and Nepal tour falls into place.

Frequently Asked Questions

Before You Go

A good India and Nepal trip isn’t about seeing everything. It’s about a few clear decisions made early.

Enough days? The right order? Flight or border? The right visa for India? Dollars for Nepal? The right months?

If the answer is yes, you’ll get the best of both: the Taj Mahal at sunrise and the Annapurnas from a lakeside café. If not, you’ll spend your holiday undoing mistakes in airports.

Once you plan around those things, organising an India and Nepal tour becomes simple. For the day-by-day version, read our 14-day India Nepal itinerary, our guide to the best places to visit in Nepal or our India and Nepal pilgrimage guide.