With an array and variety of shops offering almost everything from local items to imported goods, Nepal is considered a heaven for shoppers. The most popular shopping destination in Nepal is the capital, Kathmandu, with a number of shops on the main street and in the arcades of hotels, along with village shops.
From traditional Nepalese arts and crafts, handmade clothes and pashmina shawls to pottery, jewellery and antiques, every thing is available in the various markets of Kathmandu.
Among the main shopping districts of Kathmandu, Thamel is famous for khukuri knife and sarangi. Indra Chowk, on the other hand, is popular for brassware, ethnic jewellery, traditional glass beads and pashmina shawls, along with scarves and saris.
New Road also houses another street market of Kathmandu, famous for Western-style clothes, gems, cameras and other electronic equipment. A centre for most of the major shopping malls, New Road leads to the Durbar Marg, which is another market street in Kathmandu.
The largest shopping mall of Nepal is in Tripureshwor, while few smaller ones are situated on Kanti Path Road, Thirbam Sadak and Pulchowk Road. Street markets, shopping centres and malls of Kathmandu also offer various handicraft items, such as miniature paintings, stone idols, bronze busts and junk jewellery.
Other popular locations for shopping in Kathmandu include Kingsway (international brands), Asan (brassware), Khichapokhari (musical instruments), Basantapur Square (Tibetan-style curios), Freak Street (woollen clothes) and Ason (caps).
There are certain regional shopping specialities of Nepal as well, such as carpets and traditional crafts of Patan and pottery of Bhaktapur. Patan and Bhaktapur are also popular for brassware and copperware, especially bronze Buddha idols and khukuri knives, available across various shopping streets and markets. Pokhara, on the other hand, is famous for Gorkha symbols such as banners, flags and medals, and Newari artifacts.
The border cities of Birgunj, Biratnagar and Janakpur are popular for buying Chinese, Korean or Japanese electronic items at economical prices. For buying Buddhist paraphernalia, tourists can head to the Buddhist sites of Kathmandu and Lumbini. Cities like Bhaktapur, Lalitpur, Pokhara, Chitwan and Dharan have shopping malls offering everything from clothes to electronics.
Bargaining can be done in the markets of Nepal, however most tourist shops offer items at fixed prices. A tip of 10% to 15% of the final bill is often given to the guards of the shops and showrooms. Shopping hours in Nepal are 10 am and 8 pm, from Sunday to Friday. However, some of the shops also remain open on Saturdays.
A VAT of 13% is charged on goods and services. This VAT however, can be claimed for refund within 60 days from the date of purchase if bought from participating stores, which display the ‘VAT refund for tourists’ sign.
On presenting the passport at the time of purchase, vendors provide a VAT Refund Application form. This form needs to be duly filled and submitted at the time of check-in, with tax invoices, to the customs officer. After certification, this form is presented at the VAT Refund Office.
Tourists departing via land route are not eligible for VAT refund. The minimum amount of purchase required for VAT refund is $208 (excluding VAT), with every invoice not less than $20 (excluding VAT).
Cash refund is available at the Tribhuvan International Airport only for goods not exceeding $277. However, if the refund amount exceeds $277, refund is available via bank draft, which is delivered at the address mentioned in the refund application form.
Antiques bought in Nepal cannot be taken outside the country without a special permission from the Department of Archaeology.
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