The Tarai, slowly.
Temples of Mithila, the Buddha's birthplace, rhino and tiger country, Tharu villages and forgotten capitals — famous places and hidden ones across the whole southern plains of Nepal, in English and Nepali.
- Places
- 45
- Districts covered
- 21
- Festivals
- 11
- minutes of reading
- 71
Why the Tarai?
Most visitors cross the Tarai on the way to somewhere else — a border crossing, a flight to the mountains, a bus to Kathmandu. Yet half of Nepal lives here, and the plains hold some of the oldest history in South Asia: the birthplace of the Buddha, the Mithila of the Ramayana, the capital of the Karnat kings and the forts that stopped the East India Company.
This guide covers the whole belt, district by district. Every place has a short summary and a long read, practical notes for visiting, and a clear mark when it is a hidden gem that few travellers know.
Five regions, one belt of plains
The Tarai runs about 800 km along the India border, from the Mechi river in the east to the Mahakali in the west. Pick a region to start.
Koshi ProvinceKoshiTea gardens of Jhapa, the industrial city of Biratnagar, Dharan at the foot of the hills and the great Koshi river with its bird-filled floodplain.Jhapa · Morang · Sunsari · Udayapur
Madhesh ProvinceMadheshThe heart of Mithila and Bhojpur: Janakpur's temples and ponds, Nepal's only passenger railway, the ruined Karnat capital of Simraungadh and the gateway city of Birgunj.Saptari · Siraha · Dhanusha · Mahottari · Sarlahi · Rautahat · Bara · Parsa
Bagmati & Gandaki ProvincesChitwan & inner TaraiRhino and tiger forests of Chitwan, Tharu villages, holy river confluences and the hill forts that guarded the road to Kathmandu.Chitwan · Makwanpur · Sindhuli · Nawalpur
Lumbini ProvinceLumbiniThe Buddha's homeland — Lumbini, Kapilavastu, Ramgram, Devdaha — plus the Tharu heartland of Dang, Nepalgunj's bazaars and the tigers of Bardiya.Parasi · Rupandehi · Kapilvastu · Dang · Banke · Bardiya
Sudurpashchim ProvinceFar-WestLotus lakes, the grasslands of Shuklaphanta with the world's largest herd of swamp deer, Rana Tharu villages and the Mahakali river border.Kailali · KanchanpurStart with these
See all →Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve
Grassy islands and braided channels of the Koshi river, protected since 1976 for Nepal's last wild water buffalo (arna) and famous for birds — hundreds of species, and huge flocks of ducks and geese in winter.
Ramsar wetland & bird paradise1 min →Janaki Mandir, Janakpur
The white, domed temple of Sita (Janaki) that marks Janakpur as the capital of ancient Mithila and King Janaka's city. Built in the 1900s by a queen from central India, it stands among the Vivah Mandap, Ram Mandir and the sacred ponds of Nepal's 'city of ponds'.
Sita's temple in the heart of Mithila2 min →
◆ Hidden gemSimraungadh
For over two centuries (1097–1324) the capital of the Karnat kings of Mithila, then sacked by the Delhi Sultanate and swallowed by forest. Today: brick ramparts, moats, scattered sculpture and two restored temples in quiet villages on the Bara border — one of the great untold stories of the Tarai.
Lost capital of the Karnat kings2 min →Chitwan National Park
Nepal's first national park (1973) and a World Heritage Site since 1984: sal forest, tall grassland and rivers that shelter greater one-horned rhinos, Bengal tigers, gharials and over 500 kinds of birds — the best-known wildlife destination in the country.
UNESCO World Heritage · rhino & tiger country2 min →Lumbini — the Sacred Garden
The place where Queen Maya Devi gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha. The Maya Devi Temple covers the ancient birth site, beside the Ashoka Pillar of 249 BCE whose inscription names Lumbini — one of the holiest places on Earth for Buddhists, and a World Heritage Site since 1997.
UNESCO World Heritage · birthplace of the Buddha2 min →
Tilaurakot (ancient Kapilavastu)
The walled, moated ruins that Nepali archaeologists identify with Kapilavastu, capital of the Shakyas, where Prince Siddhartha spent his first 29 years before leaving through the eastern gate on his search for truth. Brick foundations under old trees, a small museum and a quiet atmosphere far from Lumbini's crowds.
Where the Buddha grew up2 min →
Bardiya National Park
The largest national park of the lowlands — wild, remote and far less visited than Chitwan — with a strong population of Bengal tigers, wild elephants, rhinos, and Ganges river dolphins in the Karnali.
Nepal's best chance to see a wild tiger1 min →Ghodaghodi Tal
A chain of forest lakes right beside the East–West Highway in Kailali — the largest natural lake complex of the Tarai and a Ramsar wetland since 2003, covered in lotus and water lilies and rich in birds and turtles.
Lotus lakes in the forest1 min →
Shuklaphanta National Park
Nepal's westernmost park, famous for the vast Shukla Phanta grassland and the largest herd of swamp deer (barasingha) in the world — plus tigers, wild elephants, rare grassland birds and the legendary Rani Tal lake.
Grasslands of the swamp deer1 min →Every place on the map
Dots are approximate. Tap one to open the place.
◆ Hidden gems
Places that rarely make it into guidebooks.
◆ Hidden gemKichakbadh
Excavated brick ruins in southern Jhapa that tradition names as the place where Bhima killed the villain Kichak — one of the few archaeological sites of the far-eastern Tarai, and almost unknown to travellers.
Mahabharata legend & brick ruins1 min →Kechana Kawal
For decades the official lowest point of Nepal, at about 70 m above sea level, marked by a pillar among rice fields in the far south-eastern tip of Jhapa. A 2017 survey moved the title to Dhanusha — but this is still the symbolic bottom of a country famous for its tops.
Nepal's lowest ground (formerly)1 min →
◆ Hidden gemBetana Wetland
A small forest-ringed lake beside the East–West Highway at Belbari, managed by the local community — boating, birds, monkeys and a shady break on the long drive across the east.
Forest lake on the highway1 min →
◆ Hidden gemChhinnamasta Bhagawati, Sakhada
A revered goddess temple near the India border in Saptari, dedicated to Chhinnamasta — the fierce form of Devi who cuts off her own head. Quiet most of the year, packed with pilgrims from both sides of the border at Dashain.
Shrine of the headless goddess1 min →
◆ Hidden gemSalhesh Phulbari
A small sacred grove in Lahan linked to Raja Salhesh, the beloved folk hero of Mithila. An orchid on one old tree is said to bloom only on the eve and morning of the Nepali New Year — and thousands come to see it.
Folk hero's garden & New Year orchid1 min →
◆ Hidden gemJaleshwar Mahadev
The temple that names the town of Jaleshwar, Mahottari's border capital: its Shiva linga sits below ground level in a sanctum filled with water — 'Lord of the Waters'. A major Shivaratri site of Mithila.
Shiva in the water1 min →Upcoming festivals
See all →Dashain: Jhijhiya & Sakhiya dances
Nepal's biggest festival takes its own forms on the plains: Maithil women dance the Jhijhiya with lamp-lit clay pots on their heads, while Tharu girls in the west perform the Sakhiya through the nights of Dashain.
In 12 days12 November 2026 – 15 November 2026Chhath
The great festival of the Madhesh: devotees, mostly women, fast without water and stand in rivers and ponds to offer prayers to the setting and rising sun, surrounded by lamps, fruit baskets and songs.
In 44 days15 November 2026 – 24 November 2026Sama-Chakeva
From the end of Chhath to the full moon of Kartik, Maithil girls model little clay birds and figures, sing to them each evening and finally 'send them away' — a festival of the bond between brothers and sisters and of migrating birds.
In 47 days24 November 2026Kartik Purnima at Barahakshetra
On the full moon of Kartik, pilgrims from eastern Nepal, Bihar and West Bengal bathe at the Koshi–Koka confluence and worship Vishnu as Varaha — the biggest day of the year at Barahakshetra.
In 56 daysFestival dates follow the lunar calendar. Dates shown are approximate — confirm with a Nepali calendar (patro) before you travel.
Stories
See all →
Who are the Tharu?
The oldest inhabitants of the inner Tarai, the Tharu lived for centuries in forests others feared. A short guide to their groups, homes, food, festivals and recent history.
2 min →
17 July 2000: the day the Kamaiya were freed
For generations, thousands of Tharu families in western Nepal worked as bonded labourers, tied by debts they could never repay. How the Kamaiya system ended — and why freedom was only the beginning.
2 min →
How the end of malaria remade the Tarai
Until the 1950s the Tarai's forests were a feared 'aul' — a malaria belt that protected the hills and kept settlers out. The DDT campaigns that followed changed the population, landscape and politics of Nepal.
2 min →Latest updates
- Tarai Nepal is live: 45 places across 21 districts, 11 festivals, 5 long reads, a map of the whole belt and six ready-made trip plans. More districts coming.