Tribhuvan International Airport — Kathmandu, Nepal

KTM sits in the Kathmandu Valley, ringed by foothills that make approach and departure genuinely dramatic, especially on clear mornings when distant Himalayan peaks become visible from the cabin window. Named for King Tribhuvan, the monarch credited with ending Rana family rule in the mid-twentieth century, the airport served for decades as Nepal's principal, and for much of that time essentially only, connection to international air travel. It remains the country's busiest airport by a wide margin, handling everything from long-haul carriers to small charter planes bound for mountain airstrips serving trekkers headed toward Everest Base Camp and other Himalayan destinations. Its single runway and constrained valley location have long created operational bottlenecks during peak climbing and tourist seasons. Mountain flightseeing trips offering close-up aerial views of Everest without a trek often depart from here, making KTM as much a starting point for adventure as a transit hub for the capital.