Losar Tibetan New Year Nepal Guide

Overview

Losar falls in January or February depending on the Tibetan lunar calendar and is celebrated for 15 days, with the first three days being the most festive. In Nepal, the celebrations are centred on Boudhanath and Swayambhunath in Kathmandu, and in Tibetan communities across the Khumbu, Manang, and Mustang regions. The festival marks the end of the old year and the beginning of the new with ritual cleaning, new clothes, elaborate food offerings, and monastery prayers.

In the days before Losar, homes and monasteries are cleaned thoroughly and decorated with new prayer flags. Families prepare a traditional dish called Guthuk — a thick soup containing dough balls with hidden objects that predict your fortune for the coming year. On the first day of Losar, monks perform Cham dances (sacred masked ritual dances) in the monastery courtyard. Butter sculptures (torma) depicting protective deities are displayed and then ceremonially destroyed at midnight to expel negative forces.

For visitors, Boudhanath on Losar morning is one of the most moving experiences Kathmandu offers — thousands of Tibetan and Nepali Buddhists circling the stupa in new clothes, burning juniper incense, and releasing white khata scarves into the crowd below the stupa tower.

FAQ

When exactly is Losar in 2026?
Losar 2026 falls on February 17. The date shifts each year — check a Tibetan lunar calendar for future years.

Where is the best place in Nepal to experience Losar?
Boudhanath in Kathmandu is the most accessible and spectacular. For a more intimate experience, travel to Lo Manthang in Upper Mustang, where the king still presides over traditional Losar ceremonies.