"Hop on-Hop off" bus service starts in Nepal, connecting five world heritage sites

May 24, 2023

Lalitpur (Nepal), May 24 (ANI): The Nepal Tourism Board and Lalitpur Metropolitan City, in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism, have launched a "Hop on-Hop off" bus service connecting five world heritage sites. Lalitpur Mayor and the Minister for Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation started the service for tourism promotion. Hop-on, hop-off bus service is popular in cities like London and Paris. Such services allow tourists to visit the city's tourist destinations for a day on a single ticket. The new bus, the first of its kind in Nepal, is set to connect five UNESCO World Heritage sites in Kathmandu and Lalitpur. The route starts from Sajha Yatayat in Pulchowk, which reaches Patan Durbar Square, Basantapur Durbar Square, Pashupatinath Temple, Bauddhanath Stupa, and Swayambhu. Also, those buses will make rounds of other important places such as the Narayanhiti Palace Museum, the National Museum at Chhauni in Swayambhu, and the Taragaon Museum at Bauddha. The authorities have tied up with Sajha Yatayat, a cooperative-operated shuttle service, to run the buses on the road. Two electric buses with semi-low flow that are easy to get on and off for people with different abilities will provide services free-of-charge for a week, as the rates for the service are yet to be finalised. The ticket prices will be fixed by the Department of Transport at a later date. As per the plan, visitors can spend 45 minutes or about an hour at a particular site, and they will get picked up by the next bus that reaches the area every 45 minutes. Earlier, in 2018, the late Rabindra Adhikari, the then Minister for Culture and Tourism and Civil Aviation, on the first day of his office, had proposed to launch such a bus service in the Valley. But it could not materialise then. As a pilot project, the Sajha Yatayat is operating two electric buses along the 45-kilometre route, which will take around three hours to complete. However, for now, those buses will not be reaching Bhaktapur Durbar Square and Changu Narayan, which also fall under World Heritage Sites. At one time, 46 people could travel on the hop-on, hop-off bus. Inside the bus, the visitors can get information about the sites they are visiting through video clips and brochures.