Amazing views, incredible hospitality from staff

Great place, but the road is difficult to get through. Ask Raniban to pick you up or drop off, as local taxis can't go to the place itself. It's a little remote, but the morning view is amazing.the $12 fee makes sense for the trip, they aren't ripping you off.

Great place, but the road is difficult to get through. Ask Raniban to pick you up or drop off, as local taxis cant go to the place itself.Its a little remote, but the morning view is amazing.the $12 fee makes sense for the trip, they arent ripping you off.

A must stay ! You have such a beautiful view, its breath taking. You have an enjoyable hike up and its very much worth it. The staff is so friendly, the food is great, and its the best place to relax and take in the beauty of Pokhara and Annapurna.

Raniban really is such a special place. It’s away from all the hustle and bustle of Pokhara and is so high up, perfect for viewing the mountains! Food is great and not too overpriced. The room and bathroom was lovely and comfortable however all rooms are exactly the same, you only pay more for the rooms with the best views...but you can easily look at the views from the communal garden. Beware if the roads are bad you have to walk up a lot of steps to get here! There’s not much to do up here in the day, but I think they are building a pool soon! Amazing time we had here.

If I was aware that it is located so isolated, I wouldn’t have chosen this for a family vacation. The views are extraordinary. Sunrise view was breathtaking. Food is average. Rooms are so so. It is an ideal place for complete leisure. Commuting to the township is expensive and uncomfortable.

After several days trekking, we stayed at the Raniban Retreat. We chose Raniban because we preferred staying in a quiet location (compared to the busy Lakeside area which is very touristy). Getting to the Raniban is quite an experience and we would suggest an SUV type taxi due to the road condition. Our room was wonderful - simple but nice and clean. We chose a room with a mountain view and there is a nice garden area to sit outside the room as well. There is a restaurant with beautiful views but the food is very average. We were only staying for one night so it was fine. You could take a taxi to the Lakeside area for more dining options. We hiked to the World Peace Pagoda. It is an easy 25 minute hike and well worth going. There are some other hikes you can take as well. The staff is excellent - very friendly, helpful and attentive. We highly recommend a stay at the Raniban when in Pokhara.

Amazing place, the best view of pokhara! You definitely need to stay at this place!

Raniban was the perfect place to do nothing but take in the amazing view of Fewa Lake, the Annapurna range and Pokhara. There are 514 steps to climb once the taxi bounces you up a steep mountain road but staff will help with your bags. The food was great so we didnt feel the need to go elsewhere. It is quite remote but we walked down to the world peace pagoda and then the lake to take a boat into Pokhara one Day and caught a taxi back. A stunningly beautiful place to rest after our Everest Base Camp Trek with friendly, helpful staff who organised an in room massage and airport transfers. I will return.

Raniban was the perfect place to do nothing but take in the amazing view of Fewa Lake, the Annapurna range and Pokhara. There are 514 steps to climb once the taxi bounces you up a steep mountain road but staff will help with your bags. The food was great so we didn't feel the need to go elsewhere. It is quite remote but we walked down to the world peace pagoda and then the lake to take a boat into Pokhara one Day and caught a taxi back. A stunningly beautiful place to rest after our Everest Base Camp Trek with friendly, helpful staff who organised an in room massage and airport transfers. I will return.

Good location and very quiet but approach road to the hotel is not in good conditions. No intercoms systems in place. Average food qualities and varieties.

My husband and I spent one night here while in Nepal for our honeymoon. The staff were super friendly and when out of their way to make our stay wonderful. They decorated our room with flowers and set up the cutest dinner table outside for us. In the morning we watched the sunrise and then hiked back down through the forest. Great place! Highly recommended for anyone who wants a relaxing time away from Lakeside.

The tranquility that one experiences when staying at Raniban Retreat is difficult to describe. It is so peaceful and serene that I immediately forgot about any stress I had. There was little reason to leave the hotel especially since the food is fresh and delicious. The staff are very cheery and always there to help. The only constructive criticism that I would provide is that the rooms need a bit of an uplift. I know it is meant to be rustic but some repairs and renovations would certainly help. Also, getting there was very difficult but the new road should help.

not at all recommended...no facilities..no access...almost 30 minutes..hike to reach the hotel..with no service..we checked out next day itself...still awaiting 1 day hotel stay refund...

Nothing wrong with Raniban - reasonable food an amenities, comfortable rooms and magnificent views. But it is way over priced (by Nepal standards) for what you get. The nearby Peace Dragon Hotel further down the same ridge is just as good but about a third the price, although Raniban is more secluded and private than Peace Dragon if that's what you want . Both involve a ten minute walk from nearest vehicle drop-off area but the drive to Raniban is a lot longer and on a very rough track, and with the subsequent walk to Raniban being much steeper and more physically demanding.

Nothing wrong with Raniban - reasonable food an amenities, comfortable rooms and magnificent views. But it is way over priced (by Nepal standards) for what you get. The nearby Peace Dragon Hotel further down the same ridge is just as good but about a third the price, although Raniban is more secluded and private than Peace Dragon if thats what you want . Both involve a ten minute walk from nearest vehicle drop-off area but the drive to Raniban is a lot longer and on a very rough track, and with the subsequent walk to Raniban being much steeper and more physically demanding.

I normally don't write or rate but for this place Im going to express. Pokhara doesn't have much culture, it's just trekking and some other activities. This place has the best view, room and staff. Don't event hesitate!!!!

Nice view

Astonishing view. Great service. Beautiful rooms. Even the 506 steps to get tho the hotel are a pleasant way to get fit....... Very bad road from the highway to the beginning of the walkway.Restaurant not top choice in particular considering that you have no other options: it would be difficult to get back to hotel at dark.Price reasonable. We strongly suggest to go to Raniban Retreat if you are not scared by the steps

Astonishing view. Great service. Beautiful rooms. Even the 506 steps to get tho the hotel are a pleasant way to get fit....... Very bad road from the "highway" to the beginning of the walkway. Restaurant not top choice in particular considering that you have no other options: it would be difficult to get back to hotel at dark. Price reasonable. We strongly suggest to go to Raniban Retreat if you are not scared by the steps

Clean, comfortable rooms and food okay. Most dissapointing aspect was amount of visible rubbish on and around the walking track leading up to the hotel and the rubbish at rear of main complex visible to those exploring the grounds. Most outstanding feature are the magnificent views. The overall standard is marginally better than other hotels/guesthouses along the same ridge, but those others are less than half the price of Raniban and offer the same views.

The hotel has only about 10 rooms and the staff there are really nice and friendly. The staff have helped to decorate one of their customer room based on request and also held a small party which we were also invited. I've stayed for only one night but it was really an enjoyable time spent there.

The hotel has only about 10 rooms and the staff there are really nice and friendly. The staff have helped to decorate one of their customer room based on request and also held a small party which we were also invited. I've stayed for only one night but it was really an enjoyable time spent there.

The view from Raniban is spectacular. The facilities are 1 star - similar to camping. Doors did not lock. Toilet did not flush. Spiders everywhere. Hotel run by a few teenagers who speak only a few words of English or Nepali ... if you speak Hindi, you might be in luck. They were very pleasant, however. Most of the rooms are being renovated now - but can't even venture to guess what level of quality will be achieved. We got the best rooms available (after changing from an even worse room) - and they were 1 star. In addition to 500 stairs, we had to hike more than a mile uphill with our luggage in order to get to Raniban since the road had been wiped out by an avalanche. Neither the hotel nor Expedia contacted us in advance to let us know about this or offer to help us with other accommodations.

The view from Raniban is spectacular.The facilities are 1 star - similar to camping. Doors did not lock. Toilet did not flush. Spiders everywhere.Hotel run by a few teenagers who speak only a few words of English or Nepali ... if you speak Hindi, you might be in luck. They were very pleasant, however.Most of the rooms are being renovated now - but can't even venture to guess what level of quality will be achieved. We got the best rooms available (after changing from an even worse room) - and they were 1 star.In addition to 500 stairs, we had to hike more than a mile uphill with our luggage in order to get to Raniban since the road had been wiped out by an avalanche.Neither the hotel nor Expedia contacted us in advance to let us know about this or offer to help us with other accommodations.

Beautiful location, even with the 500 steps and !,000 NR taxi ride one way to/from town. Sadly, management and staff lack training and follow through on basic requests is absent. Over our three day stay, the fan and door were left broken after repeated promises to repair and we could not get anyone to freshen linens or provide room straightening. Lots of friendly smiles and a birthday cake to honor my husband were unexpected surprises. They mean well - just not trained in service and execution.

If you visit Pokhara for the mountain views, this is the place to stay. Staffs were friendly and accommodating at all times. Recommended.

Raniban was truly magical ! Nepal is definitely underrated !!! We had an awesome time !!!!! :-)

Never mind if you have to climb a couple of hundred steps to get to the retreat. The journey and its end are worth it! Even if you have to rest during the climb up, there is the gorgeous view to admire. The porters met us where the taxi had dropped us off and carried our backpacks. We knew we would be slower than them by a mile and told them to go on up but they just smiled and politely waited for us when we stopped to rest (I know, we are so out of shape!). My booking said 'luxury tent' but I was given room 102 and had a great view of the valley Fewa Lake below. I am not sure if it could be considered a 'tent' because we had four walls. No cloth ceiling either. Maybe we were upgraded, I don't know. But we didn't complain because we loved the room and the view! The service is top-notch. My friend fell sick at Raniban and the manager there said to call him any time if we needed medicine or a doctor. No words can describe the view. Best you see it for yourself!