Traditional Homes Swotha, Patan, Nepal

One of the many great things about travelling is that you get to see new places and meet great people. Our trip to Nepal started on a rough start with porters in the airport, the air pollution, the non stop locals haggling with you to be their tour guide for a fee and the good food that was quite hard to find. On our 5th day, we arrived in Patan was literally enchanted by this small but amazing hotel, the Traditional Homes Swotha. We only got one night to stay here because it was quite difficult to book a room here as they only have 6 rooms.

The place is wonderful. It is a very simple traditional home made of brick walls, wood and cement flooring but it is decorated with even simpler furnishings, frames and other cute displays. They have a simple heating system that uses gas tank. The bathroom is not that big but very functional. There was an absence of wardrobe but they provide a makeshift clothes hanging area on top of a table where you can lay your luggage. The height of ceiling is a little over 6 feet which maybe difficult for westerners but still, the general atmosphere of your room, the hotel and the cafe makes up for it.

We learned about this hotel as a top choice of stay in Patan area in the Lonely Planet guide. It recently placed 15 out of the best B&Bs and Inns in all of Nepal by TripAdvisor. If this place was already on the top of my list, I wonder what the other 14 has to offer.

We also met with the hotel manager Mr Shyam. He was kind and very helpful to us even though we only stayed for a night. I fell sick the following day and he was still helpful in arranging our transport even though we were already staying in another inn near Swotha. He was also very helpful in enlightening us about how Swotha started and about the traditional homes of Nepal.

Here are some of the pictures of the hotel for you to see.

The room of Traditional Homes Swotha

The main entrance to Swotha

Cafe Swotha

Cafe Swotha

Traditional Homes Swotha is located near Narayan Temple, Patan, Nepal and you may email them at info@traditionalhomes.com.np

We visited Nepal in December 2013 and stayed there on Christmas Day for one night.
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jigomeister
01.20.2014

J Gerald C Legaspi is the Filipino author of pinoyjourneys.blogspot.com and is currently working and travelling in and around South East Asia but spends most of his time in Jakarta, Manila and Singapore.