During the Lalitpur Festival in 1998, the concept of an inner city tour for visitors was started by the Lalitpur Sub-Metropolitan City to showcase its achievements and development works in the city. This tour was also intended to highlight and promote the rich cultural and architectural heritage of Patan. This tour later became known as the Alternative Tour of Patan that took a visitor through the narrow lanes and inner courtyards providing an insider’s view of life and activities of the local communities.
Realizing that the success of this novel tour depended on its proper interpretation, about 250 tourist guides have been trained with the Hotel Management and Tourist Training Centre and the Tourist Guide Association. Urban Development through Local Efforts (UDLE), a GTZ project, extended its support for the publication of this tour map.
