Coworking Space: Innovation Hive in Patan

If you are around kathmandu and looking for a shared space to work, this is the place to go. They got great ambience, internet, coffee and most importantly a great view of the city. The only downside is, you have to share the space in between other companies, which can get little annoying and really noisy at sometimes. Specially when these companies do not realize that its shared working space and not a private space. You should be willing to work when your fellow works are engaging on a conversation or in a meeting. But you have a great pair of headphones, you will have a productive day.

If you're a digital nomad looking to have a few productive months in Nepal, Innovation Hive is for you. As a systems administrator, my biggest concern is quality (read: not speed) of Internet. Low consistency of service, high jitter, and any packet loss are killers for VoIP and-or VPN connections that I need for my work. My first day, I spoke with IT and confirmed that they have dual (redundant) fiber connections through ISPs worldlink and vianet. Ironically, that day, there was a huge downpour (monsoon season) that flooded the basement and, for electrical reasons, they cut power to the building. Over the next 2 months, there was an Internet outage every other week or so. This is less than ideal, but it's about as good as it gets in Nepal. An Internet test showed: Upload Speed: 18.3 Mbps Download Speed: 13.1 Mbps Packet Loss: 0% Min RTT Latency: 296 - 934 ms Jitter: 0-416 ms MOS: 2.1 Download Consistency: 93.9% Download Speed: 1-14 Mbps Download Bufferbloat: 336-463 ms Upload Consistency: 75.1% Upload Speed: 0-24 Mbps Upload Bufferbloat:: 363-537 ms They even wired ethernet ports to every desk. Some aren't functional, but many are. This is a huge plus IMO. The website makes this place look pretty bourgee, but in reality it's pretty standard Nepali (afaik, I was the only foreigner in the coworking space at the time). There's a cafeteria in the adjoining building, which I was afraid would be pricey. In reality, it was quite cheap by comparison to the restaurants nearby--and quite good too. Nothing bourgee about it. Veg fried rice for 70 NPR (0.6258 USD) and daily specials ranging from 120-150 NPR (1.07-1.34 USD). I got a plate of veg Pulaw Set for 150, which had rice w- veggies & spices, potatoes, pulses, and a side-plate of fried mushrooms. It was very nice, a decent-sized portion, and very cheap. It would be hard to find that much food at a restaurant near-by, so the local canteen in this coworking space is definitely a benefit of working here. Pros: 1. Stable Internet 2. Open 24-7 3. Ethernet Ports. 4. Decently ergonomic variable-height chairs and desks 5. A-C 6. Excellent, cheap food 7. Pretty sweet little balcony Cons (note that I was one of the first members of this coworking space after they opened, so I'm hoping these are just growing pains that will have been fixed by the time you read this): 1. The listing on this website advertised "free tea," but there wasn't any. I asked about it, and it finally came after a couple weeks. When it ran out, it wasn't re-stocked until I asked about it again. 2. The listing on this website advertised "bike parking" maybe this is my fault, but I read this as “bicycle parking” which would mean large U-bars bolted to a concrete floor where I can u-lock my bicycle. Instead, they have a parking garage under the building for motorcycle parkingand nothing secure to u-bolt to. People just parked their bicycles in the stairwell without any locks, but this wasn't sufficient for me. Eventually they let me u-lock my bike to a stairwell railing (outside the steps, not obstructing traffic of course), but a dedicated spot with a proper bicycle rack would be nice. 3. The fire alarms don't work. The glass door to the coworking space has a maglock, which necessitates pushing an electric button to exit. Well, many people have confused the fire alarm (the big red box with a white lever that clearly says FIRE ALARM) for the blue-illuminated door exit button. The result: the alarm didn't go off! It's stayed pulled for days at a time. It's a bit concerning.. 4. The coworking space is on a floor shared by a couple other companies whose employees don't think anything of playing music from a speaker. IMHO, it's an implicit etiquette to wear headphones in a coworking space, but this is not enforced (or even advised) at The Innovation Hive. Protip: get a bicycle, live at The Nepali Hive for 7,500 rs-mo and work at The Innovation Hive for 9,000 rs-mo.

excellent co-workers, supportive managements, excellent environment and cool working place.

A good quiet place to work, good location (Pulchowk), good wifi, has good security and is accessible outside the usual work hours and work days. Has a nice cafeteria (reasonably priced and with good food) and a coffee shop. Additionally, the building has great views (esp. the garden balcony). The building also hosts some very interesting young companies. The place has all the necessities covered really well. Have had an incredibly productive month at the Innovation Hive. Would highly recommend.