Lumbini is one place rather than a city, and almost everything to do here is religious or contemplative. The Lumbini Development Trust's master plan divides the 4 km × 1.5 km zone into three: the Sacred Garden at the south end (Mayadevi Temple, Ashoka Pillar, Puskarini Pond, ancient ruins); the Monastic Zone in the middle (international monasteries on either side of a long canal, accessible by rickshaw or bicycle); and the Tourism Village at the north end (hotels and the World Peace Pagoda).
Allow a full day to see the sacred core and the most important monasteries. Two days lets you visit at a slower pace and also include the Tilaurakot ruins — the likely site of the Buddha's family palace — a thirty-kilometre drive west.