What cultural etiquette should I know for Kathmandu?

The single most useful phrase in Kathmandu is 'namaste'. Palms together at chest height, slight head bow. That covers hello, goodbye, and a general acknowledgment all at once. Use it when entering a shop in Asan Bazaar, greeting your guesthouse owner in Thamel, or buying tomatoes at Kalimati market. You'll hear it 50 times on your first day. Don't attempt the gesture while holding shopping bags or a steaming plate of momo in each hand. A smile and a nod is fine. Handshakes work in business settings around New Road and Durbar Marg, but between men and women they're still uncommon outside Kathmandu's more cosmopolitan circles. If someone offers you tea or food, accept. Declining feels like a small rejection here, even if you're still full from dal bhat at the last place. To be fair, it's usually Nepali chiya with cardamom and ginger, so saying yes is rarely a hardship.

The Kathmandu Valley holds 7 UNESCO World Heritage monument zones, and temple rules shift between Hindu and Buddhist sites. At Pashupatinath Temple on the Bagmati River's east bank, non-Hindus cannot enter the main pagoda. You can observe the cremation ghats from the opposite bank, but pointing a camera at grieving families from 3 meters away is exactly as thoughtless as it sounds. Ask first, or keep the lens down. At Boudhanath Stupa, roughly 36 meters across, always walk clockwise. This applies to every stupa, every mani wall, every prayer wheel you encounter in Nepal. The same rule holds at Swayambhunath, the hilltop temple where rhesus macaques will steal water bottles from unzipped bags. At Basantapur Durbar Square and Patan Durbar Square, carved wooden temples still function as active worship sites. If you see marigold garlands, vermillion tika powder, and brass bells at a doorway, your shoes come off before you cross the threshold. The smell of sandalwood incense is your cue.

Feet sit at the bottom of the social hierarchy in Nepal, same as across South Asia. Never point your soles at a person, a shrine, or a Ganesh statue on a street corner. Tuck them under you when sitting on the floor at a Newari feast in Bhaktapur, where warm rice beer and mustard-oil-dressed dishes get passed right to left around the circle. The left hand is considered impure. Pass money, food, and business cards with your right hand, or with both. You'll notice Nepalis eating dal bhat with their right hand only, even left-handed ones. Cows wander freely through the lanes of Asan and Indrachowk. They're sacred to Hindus, roughly 80% of Nepal's 30 million people. Don't push them, prod them, or honk at them. Mind you, the cows seem to know the rules well, because they will plant themselves in the middle of a road for as long as they please.

Tipping tends to be about 10% at tourist-facing restaurants along Thamel's main strip, where a plate of chicken chowmein runs about NPR 350, roughly USD 2.30 at the current rate of 150.93 NPR per dollar. At local dal bhat places where lunch costs NPR 150, tipping isn't expected. Porters on the Langtang or Annapurna trails typically receive USD 8-10 per day. Guides expect USD 15-20 per day. Haggling is standard at Asan Bazaar and the shops around Basantapur Durbar Square for pashmina scarves, singing bowls, and thangka paintings. Start at about 40-50% of the quoted price and work up from there. Fixed-price shops along Durbar Marg and in Labim Mall don't negotiate.