Top Destinations to Visit Pakistan

Natural beauty, mighty mountain peaks, lush green meadows, and archaeological sites abound in Pakistan. Travelling to Pakistan’s remote areas is a thrilling and adventurous experience. Let’s look at some of the top destinations to visit in Pakistan.

Chitral

Chitral is a quaint town in a fertile valley beneath the Tirich Mir, the highest mountain in the Hindu Kush at 7,700 metres. A bustling bazaar runs through its heart, connecting the small airstrip at one end to the polo field at the other. On the banks of the Chitral River, the old mud fort, site of the famous British siege, still stands next to the Shahi Mosque. From there, you can reach the Garam Chashma (hot springs), the Kalash Valleys, Mastuj and the Shandur Pass. Chitral has developed its own distinct position, isolated from the rest of the country by high mountains.

Deosai National Park

The Deosai Plains, known for the diverse flora and fauna, is located along the alpine steppes of the Karakoram on the West Tibetan Plateau. These fertile plains are blanketed in millions of colourful wildflowers in the spring, attracting a vast variety of butterflies to their dazzling blooms. The highest plateau on the planet sits at the border of the Karakoram and western Himalayan ranges. Its remarkable biodiversity has the designation of national wilderness park. The park was created to ensure the survival of the Himalayan brown bear, but it is also home to golden marmots, snow leopards and massive soaring lammergeiers.

Fairy Meadows

Fairy Meadows is one of the most beautiful locations in the region and is a must-see on any list of places to visit in Pakistan. The view of Nanga Parbat, the Killer Mountain, is well worth the three-hour hike. From Fairy Meadows, one can have the best views of Nanga Parbat while relaxing in a cosy log cabin.

Gilgit

Gilgit, located in Gilgit-Baltistan, is not a picture-perfect town. It has the oppressive feel of a place cut off from the rest of the world, surrounded by stark black mountains. The old trade route between China and the subcontinent has flourished since the opening of the Karakoram Highway and the Khunjerab Pass. It gives rise to a teeming bazaar packed with goods and people. It’s also an excellent spot to watch frontier polo, a wild version of the spectacular sport with few rules.

Hunza

Hunza is located along the Karakoram Highway that follows the route of old Silk Road, with Karimabad serving as the main town. This small mountainous region was previously a semi autonomous state, but it is fully integrated into Pakistan now. It is one of Pakistan’s most beautiful areas, named after Prince Karim Aga Khan, the spiritual leader of the Shia Ismaili community. People are friendly and hospitable. Brushuski is the primary language spoken there, though locals can speak English and Urdu very well.

Khunjerab Pass

The Khunjerab Pass (4,693 metres) is the world’s highest paved border crossing, connecting Pakistan and China. The pass, which connects the barren lands of Pakistan’s desert gorges with the fertile high altitude plateau of China, where grazing herds of yaks and sheep live. It was completed in 1982 and is located among some of the most spectacular mountain landscapes on the planet.

Skardu

Skardu, perched at an elevation of 2,286 metres in the backdrop of the Karakoram mountain range, is a landscape of towering mountains, deep gorges, resounding waterfalls and lakes. It is a fascinating destination to visit in Pakistan for trekkers and non-trekkers alike because it sits on the old trade routes between China and the subcontinent.

Kalash

The Kalash claimed to be descended from Alexander the Great’s armies, worship a plethora of ancestral gods, hold colourful religious festivals of music and dance. Though the men now wear the standard Pakistani shalwar kameez, the women still dress in traditional garb, voluminous black dresses held tight around the waist with thick red belts, flamboyant wool head-dresses decorated with cowry shells, buttons, beads, bells and strands of coloured beads around their necks. The Kalash people practise the ancient agricultural system of transhumance, spend the summer months herding their goats in the high pastures and tending their wheat and maize crops in the valleys.

Shandur Pass

The Shandur Pass, located between Chitral and Gilgit in the heart of the Hindu Kush, is a spectacular mountain plateau rising to nearly 4,000 metres in elevation. It is surrounded by snow-capped peaks, cut by tumbling rivers teeming with trout and inhabited by grazing yaks, eagles, foxes and the rare snow leopard. It has the highest polo field in the world. The Polo festival is held in July every year.