Sharing is caring!

Kathmandu Durbar Square: Lucky Glimpse Before 2015 Nepal Earthquake

Take a peek at ancient temples and palaces of the famous Kathmandu Durbar Square – one of UNESCO's iconic heritage sites that got completely ruined by the massive Nepal earthquake in 2015.

Hundreds of ancient temples – large and small – are scattered around Nepal. While probably the most iconic image of Nepal is Swayambhunath Monkey Temple, Kathmandu Durbar Square located at the heart of Nepal capital has the firm second spot in our Nepal travel experience. Unfortunately, the devastating earthquake in 2015 destroyed many historical sites, levelling Durbar Square palaces and ancient temples to the ground. In this post I share travel photos from our visit to Kathmandu, Nepal in 2013, so you can see the iconic Kathmandu Durbar Square and its many palaces as they stood before the earthquake. 

***This post may contain affiliate links and we may earn compensation when you click on the links at no additional cost to you. All product recommendations and feedback are ours and based on personal experience. Please refer to our Disclosure Policy. 

.

Kathmandu Durbar Square 

Curiously, there is not just one, but many Durbar Squares in the Kathmandu Valley. The most famous are Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square, and Bhaktapur Durbar Square – all three are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Kathmandu's Durbar Square hosts the Hanuman Dhoka Palace Complex – the royal Nepalese residence until the 19th century. All the important traditional ceremonies, such as the coronation of the Nepalese monarch, took place here at Kathmandu Durbar Square.

.

Historical Images of Kathmandu Durbar Square

The Digital Archaeology Foundation holds a great collection of historical images of Kathmandu, including one of the oldest photos of Kathmandu Durbar Square. Here, on the right is the old palace building before the existing neoclassical Palace (Gaddhi Baithak) was built in 1908, a few years after the Kangra earthquake (1905).

There are many more old images and historical photos of Kathmandu Durbar Square and old Nepal collected from locals and travel missions alike that can be found at the Foundation website.

.

.

.

Our Trip to Nepal in 2013: Photos of Durbar Square before the 2015 Earthquake

We travelled to Nepal in winter 2013 as a short 3-day layover in Kathmandu coming from Canada and moving further to India to attend a grandiose Indian Wedding.

In addition to a flight tour to see Mt. Everest, and the Himalayan Sunrise bucket list adventures, we planned some time to enjoy Kathmandu visiting the famous Durbar Square and Swayambhunath Monkey Temple.

Here is what the Durbar Square looked like back in 2013:

.

.

.

.

2015 Earthquake in Kathmandu, Nepal

At 11:56 am on April 25, 2015, a severe earthquake of 8.1M magnitude shook Nepal – later named the Gorkha Earthquake, due to the location of its epicentre. Close to 9,000 people were killed, over 22,000 injured, and hundreds were missing. It was the worst natural disaster that hit Nepal in over 100 years. In the Himalayas, the Gorkha Earthquake triggered multiple avalanches, including on Mt. Everest that killed 22. 

“Centuries-old buildings were destroyed at UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Kathmandu Valley, including some at the Kathmandu Durbar Square, the Patan Durbar Square, the Bhaktapur Durbar Square, the Changu Narayan Temple, the Boudhanath stupa and the Swayambhunath stupa.”  

from Wikipedia

Many of Durbar Square structures suffered considerable damage. 

Here is video footage and News Articles with evidence of the 2015 earthquake damage to Kathmandu Durbar Square.

.

WARNING – SENSITIVE CONTENT: RAW VIDEO OF the 2015 EARTHQUAKE:

.

Restoring Nepal's Historical Sites in the 2015 Earthquake Aftermath

The massive devastation of Nepal's cultural treasures and heritage sites came as a shock for the whole World. The Nepalese government and local residents' efforts were joined by many volunteer groups, world foundations, UNESCO, and even countries, …and even by the travel blogger and digital nomads communities across the globe.

Hence, the US Embassy committed to restoring the stunning Gaddi Baithak palace at the Kathmandu Durbar Square.

While UNESCO initially picked up the restoration tap on some of the temples all around Kathmandu. Yet unfortunately, in 2018/2019 due to, in my opinion extremely shortsighted, local influence, UNESCO had officially withdrawn from the restoration of major palaces of Kathmandu’s Durbar squares. 

.

PERSONAL NOTE: Our friends went to Nepal that April to enjoy Annapurna trekking. They came back to Canada just 10 days before the Gorkha Earthquake struck, narrowly escaping the disaster. To this day I am thankful to all the Gods out there that our friends are safe and alive. 

.

.

Concluding Notes

Nepal is one of those places that made it to our hearts dearly. I am happy we extended our layover in Kathmandu to 3 full days and explored the country, and had a rare chance to see and document Kathmandu’s temples and palaces before those were destroyed in the 2015 earthquake. 

I believe that some of them, at least, like Boudhanath, were restored already. Yet many of the ancient spiritual monuments and temples are now lost forever.

By the way, you can DOWNLOAD our Nepal 3-day trip itinerary below completely free. This way you'll know you made the best of your limited time in Nepal!

.

If you plan to travel to Nepal, or to any other place in the World, do take in all the uniqueness and the beauty of your surroundings! Do photograph and take videos of stunning nature, monuments, temples, local people, animals, food, everything you find curious. You never know when it all will disappear from existence.

.

Don’t miss out on the new exciting outdoor adventures in Nepal or anywhere else in the World! Sign-up for our newsletter!

.

.

Latest travel experiences in Nepal:

.

Enjoy!

Cheerfully yours,

Alexandra, Alex & Cosmos

.

Share your pictures on social media! tag #PerfectDayToPlayHike to be featured on our Instagram! 

Sharing is caring!