Janakpur sits on the flat Terai plain at 74 m, about 20 km from the Indian border in Dhanusha District. In the Ramayana this is the capital of King Janak, Sita's father, and the place where Rama broke Shiva's bow to win her hand. For Indian and Nepali pilgrims, a visit to Janakpur completes a circuit that begins at Ayodhya, Rama's birthplace; the cities were linked by a direct bus in 2018 and have a long tradition of exchanging wedding processions at Vivah Panchami.
The centre of everything is the Janaki Mandir, a three-storey temple of white stone and marble completed in 1910 by Queen Vrisha Bhanu of Tikamgarh in central India. Locals still call it the Naulakha Mandir after its reputed cost of nine lakh rupees. Its domes, turrets and 60 rooms look more like a Rajput palace than a Nepali pagoda. Beside it stand the Vivah Mandap, built over the spot where the wedding is said to have taken place, and the older Ram Mandir a few minutes' walk south.
Janakpur is also the cultural capital of Mithila, the Maithili-speaking region that runs across the border into Bihar. Women here paint bold Mithila murals on house walls for weddings and festivals, and the Janakpur Women's Development Centre in nearby Kuwa trains artists in the tradition. The city is dusty and crowded, and hotels are simple compared with Kathmandu, but the evening aarti at the Janaki Mandir, the bells, conch shells and lamps reflected in Ganga Sagar, are why most visitors come.
What to see and do
- Darshan at the Janaki Mandir
The marble sanctum holds images of Sita, Rama and his brothers, and the temple fills with pilgrims at the morning and evening aarti. Even outside festivals the courtyard is busy with families offering sindoor, flowers and red cloth, and priests chanting from the Ramcharitmanas.
- Vivah Mandap wedding pavilion
Next to the main temple, this pavilion marks the spot where Sita and Rama are believed to have married. Glass-fronted rooms show life-size figures of the wedding party. Couples visit for blessings before their own weddings, and the Vivah Panchami re-enactment centres here.
- Ganga Sagar and Dhanush Sagar
Janakpur is known as a city of ponds, and the two largest, Ganga Sagar and Dhanush Sagar, sit close together near the temple. Pilgrims bathe here at dawn, and on many evenings lamps and an aarti are offered at Ganga Sagar's ghats.
- Ram Mandir and older shrines
The pagoda-style Ram Mandir, older than the Janaki Mandir, is the city's main Rama temple and the focus of Ram Navami in spring. Smaller shrines, such as the Hanuman temples and the Lakshman Mandir near the main complex, can be covered on a two-hour walk.
- Mithila painting in Kuwa
At the Janakpur Women's Development Centre, about 2 km south of the city, Maithili women paint, sew and make pottery in the Mithila style. Visitors can watch artists at work and buy paintings directly, a fair way to take home a piece of the region's art.
- Dhanusadham day trip
Eighteen kilometres north, Dhanusadham guards a stone believed to be a fragment of Shiva's bow that Rama broke at Sita's swayamvara. Most pilgrims pair it with Janakpur in a half day by car.
Experiences in Janakpur
How to reach Janakpur
Air
Buddha Air and Shree Airlines fly Kathmandu–Janakpur in about 25 minutes, usually two to four times a day. Janakpur Airport is 2 km from the Janaki Mandir. Winter fog can delay morning flights from mid-December to January, so keep the afternoon free on travel days.
Road
Kathmandu to Janakpur is ≈ 230 km · 7–8 h via Dhulikhel, the BP Highway through Sindhuli, and Bardibas. The road is paved and winds through the Mahabharat hills. From Chitwan it is ≈ 280 km · 7–8 h east along the Mahendra Highway via Hetauda and Bardibas.
Rail
The cross-border railway from Jaynagar in Bihar runs to Janakpur and on to Kurtha, about 35 km, with trains twice a day in each direction. It is used by Indian and Nepali citizens; third-country nationals should use a road border such as Raxaul–Birgunj. Check current status before you travel.
Road
From India, Jaynagar to Janakpur is ≈ 30 km · 1 h by road, and Sitamarhi (Sita's Punaura Dham) to Janakpur is ≈ 50 km · 2 h via Bhitthamore. Ayodhya to Janakpur is ≈ 500 km · 12–14 h by road.
Where to stay
Janakpur's hotels are simple and mostly Indian-run in style: clean rooms, vegetarian kitchens and helpful front desks, but nothing like a resort. The best are within 1–2 km of the Janaki Mandir on Station Road and around Ramanand Chowk, so you can walk to the evening aarti. Expect 2- to 3-star standards, hot water and air conditioning in the better rooms, and full vegetarian menus. During Vivah Panchami and Ram Navami rooms sell out weeks ahead and prices rise, so we block rooms early for festival groups.
Tips from our trip managers
- Attend the evening aarti at the Janaki Mandir; arrive 30 minutes early to find space in the courtyard.
- Leather belts and bags are best left at the hotel, and shoes go to the free stand at the gate.
- From April to June daytime heat passes 40 °C, so plan temple visits for before 9 am and after 5 pm.
- December and January bring dense fog and cold nights near 7 °C; pack a warm layer despite the low altitude.
- Carry small notes for offerings and donation boxes; card machines are rare outside hotels.
