The Godawari Botanical Garden is very green, pristine natural garden spread over an area of about 82 hectares with a few streams flowing through it in the southeastern edge of the valley about 16 km south of Kathmandu city. It lies at the base of the Pulchowki, which is with its 2,765 m the largest mountain in the Kathmandu valley. The garden is a nice place for a day trip to escape the cacophony of the valley city life with its traffic jams and pollution. Enjoy the trip from Kathmandu to Godawari, which leads you through some authentic Newari villages on the road.
Godawari Botanical Garden
An island of tranquility in the Kathmandu valley
The Godawari Botanical Garden was established in 1962, following a design by British horticulturists Geoffrey Herklots and Tony Schilling. The garden has continuously developed since and is divided in several thematic areas where you can wander around in all tranquility. You will find a physic garden, rock garden, taxonomic family garden, fern garden, Japanese style garden and a garden where VIPs and visiting world leaders planted trees. The garden is internationally recognized and conserves about 1,000 plant species, including large varieties of orchids. In 2016, a Biodeversity Education Garden was added as well.
Explore the different botanical garden units; learn about the diversity of flora in Nepal
The plant species you will find in the Godawari Botaninical Garden include Ferns, Gymnosperms, Angiosperms, Cactus and Succulents, Medicinal and Ornamental plants. These plants are distributed over different thematic gardens;
The Physic Garden covers an area of 1.3 hectares with 107 species of plants that cover the alpine, temperate and tropical ecological zones. In the Rock Garden, a rock setting has been mixed with different species of Agave, Juniperus, Opuntia, Sansevieria, Yucca and other plants. In the Fern Garden 42 different species are conserved, including the endangered Tree fern (Cyathea spinulosa).
In the Special Garden you will find both native and exotic plants, as well as several green houses for Orchids, Cactus, Bonsai and Cyclamen. The garden also has water fountain in a pond. The Orchid house has more than 40 species of epihytic orchids. The Cactus house has a large collection of cacti and succulent plants.
In the Nepalese Style Terrrace Garden you will find a number of native plants, including the Buddleja asiatica, Mahonia nepaulensis and Osbeckia nepalensis. The Japanese Style Garden is a pleasant place to relax in an environment with boulders scattered among bushes and a waterfall.
The Taxonomic Family Garden can be found near the lily garden, and has a selection of plant species of more than 40 families. The Tropical House is a large glass house with tropical plants like the Dalbergia latifolia, Santalum album and Shorea robusta can be found among other plants, conserved for education and research.
A wetland ecosystem with small pond including wetland Lotus plants like the Rotala rotundifolia can be found in the Wetland Garden. If you are interested in seeing some trees planted by high dignitaries from all over the globe, you can visit the VVIP Garden.
The book “Flora of Nepal” provides a good overview of plants that can be found in the country.
As the elevation of the country ranges from 60 meters above sea level to the highest mountains of the world with a height of above 8,000 meters, the climate varies from place to place. Consequently, different flora of every corner of the world can be found here.
The botanical garden and its surroundings is home to a rich bird life
The area north of Godavari towards the Phulchowki peak has a particular rich bird life with an estimated 270 bird species, of which 17 are listed as endangered. About 100 different bird species have been spotted in Godawari itself, making it an excellent location to start a bird watching tour.
Some of the bird species you can expect to see are, including the smaller racket-tailed drongo, Tibetan siskin and spotted fork tail.
Possible side activities and visit which you can combine with your trip to the botanical gardens
While traveling from the city of Patan to Godawari, you will pass through a few traditional Newari small towns; Harisiddhi and Thaiba. In Harisiddhi, you can visit the pagoda-style Bal Kumari Temple, and in Thaiba you can take a brief uphill hike of 20 minutes to the Mahadev temple, from where you have a nice view over the valley.
Enjoy your visit to the botanical garden; a moment of tranquility during your Nepal visit
There are different ways you can enjoy the botanical garden. You can just stroll around there and sit in a quiet corner to rest or read a book. If you like to learn more about the flora on offer in the botanical garden, you can plan your visit with a local guide who will explain you about all the plants you see. The place is also excellent for photography, more or less throughout all seasons.
A visit to the botanical garden will give you a good taste of the flora that you will encounter while traveling through the country. The bio-diversity of the Himalayas that you will witness during a trek include spine forests, conifers, maples, rhododendrons in the mountains to Sal forests in the southern lowland Terai.