I visit after recommend from my friend, and book by contact owner. After Everest trip, Pokhara for relax by lake. Raju owner very nice man, with kind family. This good clean place to stay.

The Pokhara Palace is not a palace! - It is a small guest house run in a family way by the owner Raju.

The owner is however very helpful and will arrange anything and everything you need help with - taxis strikes and other irregularities thrown up by the turmoil in Nepal are nothing to him.

The rooms are small but comfortable and it was not too cold in Dec. There is a kind of view from the roof top, but Pokhara is full of impressive viewpoints that this hotel can't compete with.

The food is OK, but there is so much selection in town, even for breakfast. The main street in town is about a 10 minute walk, so the hotel itself is not noisy.

If you do ask Raju to arrange anything, do ask the price beforehand (guides, laundry, transport....) as I was sometimes surprised by the prices, but I had already arranged the times and places.

Overall, for the price, it was a good place to stay.

Stayed with Raju and family at the Pokhara Palace Hotel and had a great time. Hotel is very nice and good value for money and the family make you very welcome. The breakfast is especially good! I would recommend anyone going to Pokhara to stay at the Pokhara Palace Hotel, also if you are going trekking Raju can organise a trekking guide from his extensive list of contacts.

Was recommended to this place by a friend. Have now stayed there before and after treks twice, once in October 2005 and again in April 2006. The guest house is very new and clean, with combo electric/solar showers, and situated in an excellent area - very close to the lake and main tourist thoroughfare, but slightly off it (5 - 15 min walk depending on which end you want), so you're not disturbed by the late bars etc.

The only complaint I have is that if you've come off a trek and need a lie in, it can be quite noisy in the morning, as you get farmyard animals in the area making a racket from daylight. However, I think this is a standard Nepalese thing, so bring earplugs! The rooms all have mosquito grills, windows and curtains, so no worries on that front. First time I went the doors would swing shut very loudly too, but this has been fixed! From the top of the hotel you can see Macchapucchare (okay I had to Google that to spell it right!), some of the Annapurna range and arguably Manaslu, though the weather definitely has to be right for this!

The thing that really makes the place is the owner, Raju, and his family, Sushmita and daughter Ria. They are extremely friendly, excellent cooks, and very hospitable. Both trips they have helped me to arrange local guides without half the money going to one of the big companies - these are local people who invite you to their house for dinner, and really help you to interract with local life.

Raju sorted me out with a "package" where he met us in Kathmandu (the first visit), sorted hotels there, internal flights, guides and all expenses on trek. The first visit I went to Annapurna Sanctuary and Poon Hill. The second, the Langtang Valley and Gosainkund Lake. Both times it was 9-10 days trek with a few days chilling in Pokhara at the end - swimming in the lake, going paragliding, eating yummy cheap food and just generally relaxing!

If you're sorting out guides with him, the guys I had were Ram and Suresh, both entirely commendable. Other general tip regarding Nepal is that like the Indian culture, they aim to please, so everything is "no problem"! Don't ask yes/no questions, ask how!

Finally, if you're thinking about going, go now! Tourism is down because of the troubles, which are all over now (I went at the height in April and it was okay even then), and with numbers down it's much easier trekking. plenty of space in lodges etc.

Have fun!