I’ll admit that I never quite considered traveling to Pakistan until I heard that a Maltese travel agency was organising Malta’s first group tour there. My knowledge of the country was fairly poor; I knew it mostly as the birthplace of Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, and her history coupled with my sprinkling of the political history of the country relegated it to an ‘unfit for travel’ one in my subconscious.
It’s only when I heard the news about the upcoming tour that I properly looked into it. My research results were surprising – a vivid, interesting country with breathtaking, untouched nature, coupled with delicious food and hospitable people, and one that was – with respect to the areas on the itinerary, at least – considered by those who had actually been there as safe to visit. My interest was piqued, and what I had learned coupled with the fact that I did not know anyone who had been there, appeared to be a travel recipe for success in my book.
I booked the tour with Global Travel Book and didn’t look back, even when every person I spoke to questioned my choice with a generous dose of shock and horror. That is not to say that I did not have any nerves about the upcoming trip, but I also had plenty of excitement about what was to come.
My trip exceeded my expectations on all the above points. I like enjoying a good plate of carbonara in Rome as much as the next gal, but what I really crave during my day-to-day is stepping outside of my comfort zone – of going somewhere completely foreign and new; of immersing myself in a culture that is different to mine; of meeting people who have a different reality and understanding our differences and, more importantly, our similarities; of eating food the flavours of which I do not know how to put together myself – in other words, a complete adventure. That is what Pakistan provided me with. If that is something that appeals to you, this is a country to seriously consider.
I felt completely safe at all times – at least from the concerns that most of my friends and family had, being terror attacks or other crime. The region of of Gilgit-Baltistan in the north of Pakistan, where we spent most of our time, has practically a non-existent crime rate. The people we met were so honest and genuine that when one of us forgot his bag with his passport and all his money in a shop, he later found it untouched; and when another person left her jacket behind at a restaurant, the staff chased us down for half an hour on motorbike so that they could return it to her. The cities of Islamabad and Lahore also felt safe – safer than certain European countries that I’ve traveled to. I must mention that I was traveling in a group, which may or may not have contributed to the feeling of safety.
Probably the highest risk, when traveling to the areas I did, is the north’s treacherous terrain. We spent most of our days traveling in our bus to remote areas of raw beauty, which involves driving through many single-track mountain roads with sheer drops and which experience random landslides. Certain factors (such as heavy rainfall) exacerbate the chances of this happening, but they cannot be predicted. It is, therefore, imperative to have capable, experienced drivers who know the terrain well – something which we had on this tour. Adrenaline junkies will undoubtedly love these drives; me, not so much … but the scenery and experience is definitely worth it.
As someone who enjoys traveling alone, I must admit this is not the easiest country to navigate independently. It is large and the places we visited were remote. You would definitely need to hire drivers for the many long, difficult drives, and I am not sure how easy that is to coordinate or how it will work out price-wise. It also provided peace of mind to have someone in the know to inform us of and coordinate last-minute changes we had to make to flight plans and road travel due to mother nature – having contacts definitely helps here. Our great local guide Talha also added a lot to the experience, including taking us to some authentic, fantastic food spots. The organisers also arranged our visa and a sim card to stay (somewhat) connected there. I also formed some great friendships with the lovely people in my group, although traveling in a group requires you to let go of doing things your way and is an exercise in patience (which is not necessarily a bad thing for someone like me).
In short, I have no regrets about this trip, and if you are considering a group trip to Pakistan (or elsewhere), you can check out Global Travel Book’s upcoming ones on their website. Outside of what you pay for the tour and your flights, you will not need to spend much. Almost everything is included, save for lunches, which will cost next to nothing. Do keep in mind that I joined the first tour, and the organisers might have changed a few things here and there to improve the itinerary, so best to check the latest itinerary before booking.
A word about clothing – Pakistan is an Islamic state, and you should dress accordingly. I mostly wore leggings with oversized, long tops or baggy trousers / maxi skirts with long-sleeved shirts (save for in Lahore, which was sweltering, where I switched to oversized t-shirts). In brief, cover your shoulders and ideally the top part of your arm, your cleavage and your legs, and you’re good to go. Head coverings are not mandated in Pakistan, but carry a scarf with you if you’re a woman, for whenever you visit a mosque. You should also note that the weather is likely to change drastically depending on which area you visit – in one trip we went from minus 4 to 40 plus degrees celsius – so you might have to pack a variety of clothing.
You should also note that a trip like the below will involve a substantial amount of travel, particularly many hours spent driving. Patience is key to exploring such vast countries, and it will be rewarded with some fantastic scenery along the way.
Oh, and expect a lot of stares and people (mostly men – simply because most of the people you will meet will be men) asking to take selfies with you. Tourists are still few and far in between in Pakistan, and you will feel like a celebrity. While this can be a little strange or unnerving for those not used to travel outside of Europe, the Pakistanis are generally very respectful.
If you’re interested in learning more about our adventures, keep scrolling.
.
Islamabad
We landed, and spent one day, in Islamabad – the capital city of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It is the country’s ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and was surprisingly green and serene compared to what I was imagining.
First on our itinerary, after a stop in a mall to exchange our cash into Pakistani rupees, was a visit to Faisal Mosque, Pakistan’s national mosque. Shaped like a desert Bedouin’s tent, it is an iconic symbol of Islamabad throughout the world, although if you’ve visited ornate mosques such as those in Istanbul, this might leave you underwhelmed. Still, walking around barefoot on that slippery marble (particularly after a spot of rain, like in our case) and joining the hundreds gathered in prayer is something you might wish to tick off your Islamabad list. If you’re a man, you can head into the main floor of the mosque, while women must climb to a balcony which looks down onto the main floor.
We then went for a stroll in the lovely Lake View Park, located on the edge of Rawal lake. The park contains the third-largest walk-in bird aviary in the world, where I truly enjoyed some serene moments surrounded by all sorts of birdsong from the multitude of species present.
Nearby, one finds the striking Pakistan Monument. The four large petals represent each of Pakistan’s four main provinces and cultures – Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The three smaller ones reflect the minorities of Gilgit Baltistan, Azad Jammu, and Kashmir. It was erected to reflect Pakistanis’ unity and patriotism, and honour those who laid down their lives for the country. Its position on the Western Shakarparian Hills make it visible from multiple spots in Islamabad. While we did not have time to visit the Pakistan Heritage Museum located near the monument, this explains much of the country’s turbulent history, including the events that led to the subcontinent’s partition into India and Pakistan.
We enjoyed an extensive buffet with an impressive view at Monal, high up on the Margalla hills. Kabab Karahi, Mutton Paya, Beef Pulao and plenty of naan are just some of the dishes I loved trying. However, it appears that the Supreme Court has since ordered the closure of all restaurants operating within the national park.
.
Gilgit, Hunza & the surrounds
The next morning we were off to the main leg of our tour, exploring the Gilgit-Baltistan northern region, but not before some last-minute changes the previous evening. We were scheduled to fly into Gilgit airport, being in the area where we would be spending the first few days. Unfortunately, bad weather resulted in our flight into Gilgit being cancelled – the flight only operates in good weather due to the technically-difficult landing amongst the mountains. Our options were a 12-hour+ drive to Gilgit from Islamabad or a short flight to Skardu airport (we would be flying out of this airport at the end of our North Pakistan leg) and a 4+ hour drive (without stops) from there to Gilgit – we opted for the second and our leaders very efficiently managed to arrange the change.
The flight was one to remember. I had never before experienced a descent with such scenery, up close to the impressive mountain faces. While the increased turbulence which can come with such surroundings was unnerving to a bad flier like myself, I forgot about it once the beauty of our surroundings came into view. A shout out to the very talented pilots executing these difficult landings with such ease – the smoothest landing I’ve ever had, in fact! This is a pretty special airport to fly in and out of, and a great introduction to North Pakistan.
We spent most of the remainder of the day driving to our Gilgit hotel, but not without a few interesting stops where we got to interact with some locals, including one of the best food stops of our time in the country, at Astak Nala on the Gilgit-Skardu road. These humble, traditional spots are my favourite places to eat when I am traveling. The fresh, warm naan which I saw being pulled out of the tandoor, coupled with the best vegetarian dishes I’ve ever had, were a real treat.
A very interesting stop is just near the town of Jaglot, close to Gilgit. The significance of this place is that it is located at the junction of the three mightiest mountain ranges in the world – the Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindukush. What a humbling experience to stand in such a spot.
Checking into a plush hotel after a long day is a great feeling, and it’s all the better when there’s a sprawling buffet set out for you. While I do not usually eat in hotels on my travels, this was a necessity on most evenings due to the long days we had. This arrangement did not take away from my enjoyment of local food – the hotels we stayed at served up some delicious traditional cuisine.
.
The next morning, in pretty gloomy weather, we headed out towards Hunza Valley.
First stop was Rakaposhi. In the area, we took a quick photo stop in a valley where about 55 million years earlier, the Indian and Eurasian continental plates collided to create the mighty Karakoram mountains.
We also had our first glimpse of the Old Silk Road, which we could spot throughout most of the next days. It was mind boggling to image traders walking hundreds of miles across what only appeared as faint lines in the mountain – see if you can spot them below.
I simply hiked for a short while and enjoy a much-need warm cup of tea at Rakaposhi viewpoint, but you can speed across the valley on zipline.
I very much enjoyed our visit to Baltit Fort, just when the weather started to drastically improve, affording us magnificent views over the Hunza Valley. After a short but steep climb to the fort through the small, charming town of Karimabad, we arrived at the once-royal residence of the Mirs of Hunza, now over 700 years old. The craftsmanship of the artisans of the time can be appreciated in the various chambers, but even more impressive is the structure itself, built on such a precarious position on a pegged timber frame which can handle the seismic activity in the region better than more rigid material.
On our way down from the fort, I really enjoyed our stop at Hunza Food Pavillion. It was lovely sitting on the cushioned floor and enjoying some delicious yak chap shoro (cooked minced meat – in this case, yak – sealed between two whole wheat flatbreads, and then cooked over a skillet) and holoi garma (Hunza style spinach pasta), washed down by fresh apricot juice (Hunza is known for its apricots).
After some shopping for handicrafts, we headed off for our steep drive up to our accommodation – Eagle’s Nest Hotel – sitting at a staggering 2850m above sea level. We arrived in the dark, enjoyed some lively local music and dancing before dinner, then snuggled into our quilts to warm up from the cold.
.
Plans to wake up for a sunrise hike didn’t go to plan due to the weather once more taking a turn. I was about to stay in bed when I realised that what I was seeing out the window wasn’t rain, but light snow. I had never actually seen snow before (!!!) so I had some moments of childlike glee as I watched snowflakes gather on my clothes and eyelashes as I froze my ass off in the dark and silent gardens of the hotel.
As the sun slowly lit up the valley, we caught the first magnificent view from our position. I even braved the cold to take some reading time from my cute porch.
After bidding farewell to our perch for the night, we headed towards Altit Fort. Holding the distinction of being the oldest monument in the valley at about 1100 years old, the fort was built as a palace and stronghold for the Hunza rulers before the construction of Baltit Fort. The fort has been recently restored, and affords a different view over the valley. With most of the sky now a pretty blue, we enjoyed our time on the roof terrace (with probably the largest group of tourists we were to see the entire trip), as well our stroll through the surrounding, fairly modern village with its cute cafes and shops.
We then headed off towards Nagar Valley, where we took the relatively short climb towards the viewpoint over Hoper Glacier. It is quite a site to behold this vast stretch of ice, a remnant of the last Ice Age, surrounded by the towering Karakoram peaks.
For lunch, we tried ibex, one of the region’s wild mountain goats, at the eatery found at the glacier parking lot. While tougher than most game, the flavour is pretty good!
Our final activity for the day was a boat ride over Attabad Lake. The lake itself is pretty enough, if not quite as special as I expected (the partial cloud cover must have lessened the much spoken about bright-blue appearance of the water) – what is more interesting is its history. The lake was formed when a major landslide occurred in 2010, blocking the flow of the Hunza River for months. This resulted in the submersion of Attabad village, killing twenty people and displacing thousands. The lake is now one of the most famous natural landmarks of the region, a display of the terror and magic of mother nature.
We once more arrived at our next hotel at night, so it would not be until morning until we could have a look at our spectacular surroundings.
.
We awoke to a perfectly clear 1st of May day, and the view from my hotel room was pretty great – a view of the most photographed peaks in Hunza Valley, in fact. The Passu Cones are a set of great mountain peaks above 6000 meters high in the Karakoram range, their jagged peaks making them very distinguishable. They gave me some serious Game of Thrones vibes.
We were meant to get a closer look at them on our drive on the famous Karakoram Highway connecting Pakistan and China at the Kunjerab Pass, the highest paved international border crossing in the world, which we were also meant to visit. Unfortunately, a severe landslide in the area impeded us from visiting.
All clouds have a silver lining, however – this bump in our plans actually resulted in one of the most special experiences I’ve ever had. Our organisers managed to organise a last-minute trip to a local school, and what a morning we had! Armed with gifts, we hiked for a few minutes to arrive at this remote school surrounded by magical scenery, and were given an exceptional welcome by the lovely students and teachers who came in on a public holiday just to host us. We sang the Pakistani and Maltese national anthems, danced together, and the children delivered some impressive speeches on global warming, water preservation, biodiversity and various other topics. We also played some cricket together (Pakistan’s national sport) and they even fed us apricots to help with the altitude. The students and staff hike to the school, rain or shine, from the surrounding villages, and the atmosphere of community and appreciation for education there was truly palpable. I shared some lovely moments with Nasiba, Ruby, Suhana and Aqeela Shireen (pictured below, left to right) who very proudly showed me around their classroom, teacher Sabina (also pictured below) who is my age and also a mother to two students, and other students and staff. The whole experience was quite emotional, and recalling it still brings tears to my eyes. These are the moments that make travel so rewarding.
Next up, we visited the Korgah Weaving Diversity Gulmit Carpet Center, where we watched the women who work here make their handmade carpets, and I couldn’t resist purchasing one for home.
Lunch was in the stunning Gulmit countryside, where we enjoyed a sprawling feast including some delicious barbequed yak, and purchased some of the area’s famed apricot products.
A fun next activity was visiting – and walking across – Hussaini Bridge, known by many as the most dangerous bridge in the world, only one of many precarious rope bridges in Northern Pakistan. I think that title was earned by the previous structure, which was far more ramshackle than the one present there today, upgraded after a tourist lost his life some years ago. The crossing (193 m across, plus the same distance to return of course) was mostly fine, save for those moments where the wind makes it shake strongly, but you should definitely concentrate and watch your footing. The scenery is stunning – pastel blues of the river and sky framing the Passu Cones – and still worth visiting even if you don’t intend on crossing.
We closed off the day by driving to our fantastic accommodation for the night, Offto Resort. I really loved my hobbit hut-like room at the top of the resort, nestled amongst the mountains. Dinner, live music and dance around a firepit closed off our night, but the real treat was waking up and spending a quiet hour reading on my porch with the most fantastic view – a true wow moment.
.
The next morning, after breakfast, we headed off towards Naltar Valley. Following a short delay en-route brought about by a ‘small’ landslide (we had a short wait while it was cleared, but had a good time interacting with some locals), on we went towards Naltar. The last portion of the drive has to be done with 4x4s, as you pass through a village with narrow dirt roads an then onwards through some bumpy terrain for about 1.5 hours before reaching the Naltar lakes. While there are 3 lakes in the area, we only had time to visit one due to the long driving times. The surrounding snow capped mountains framing the lush green valley make it quite a sight to behold.
After a long day of driving, it was back to Gilgit to rest before our departure towards Skardu the next morning.
.
Skardu & the surrounds
Our drive towards Skardu in the morning ran into a bit of a snag. A large landslide had taken place in the previous days, which had not yet been cleared, impeding our only road back towards Skardu (where we flew in from Islamabad) and where we needed to get to to continue with our itinerary. Our only way forward was to drive to the landslide, get off our bus, somehow climb over the landslide with our luggage, and catch another bus on the other side – we were actually going to do a bus switcheroo with another group of tourists driving in the opposite direction to us. This naturally turned out to be the time when I was hit with a lovely bout of food poisoning or a virus of sorts, making the long day of winding drives a very painful one for me and one requiring a number of stops.
Once we got close to the spot in question, there was the other group patiently waiting for our bus to rescue them. Off they went while we dismounted our luggage and, with the help of porters, dragged them closer to the precise landslide spot, where a number of people were waiting to cross. We arrived just when the authorities were preparing to set off another blast to the fallen mass of rocks, in order to then attempt to clear the way. We, therefore, had to wait about 2 hours while this was carried out … with some trepidation, I might add, as we stood under those vast cliff edges with huge cracks hoping the recent blast would not bring any of them tumbling down on us. The locals seemed very relaxed and, in fact, somewhat amused at our nervousness.
After what seemed like an eternity in my condition (which had admittedly somewhat improved after my body had been emptied of all foreign matter in the previous hours), a path was cleared and through we went, having thankfully been saved from having to lug our luggage and ourselves over giant boulders. There was our bus waiting at the other side and after some traffic, we were on our way.
This probably makes it to the top of my unique life experiences and, having made it out alive and unharmed, I must say I am glad to have had it. I asked for a Pakistan adventure, and I got one!
The above took up our day, but we managed to fit in most of what we had missed in the next few.
.
First off next morning was Katpana Desert, where we walked just for a short look around. The more impressive desert was yet to come later in the day, but it was lovely seeing the desert oasis here, including the grazing buffalo.
Then, we visited Lower Kachura Lake (or Shangrila Lake), a pretty lake in the shape of a heart (which we managed to see with a drone) and, after a short drive, a lovely large stream where we sat back and relaxed in the perfect peacefulness of this vast, empty countryside.
Next up was Upper Kachura Lake where we enjoyed a boat trip around the lake and a lunch of freshly grilled perch caught from the lake itself.
Shigar Fort was another pretty stop, most interesting part of which was standing inside a hollow, living 400-year old maple tree – around 6 of us could stand comfortably inside!
The final stop for the day was the mesmerising Cold Desert, where we had an exhilarating sunset jeep ride and hike up a high dune. I had never before seen desert flanked by snow-capped mountains, and seeing it at this time of day added another dimension.
We closed off our jam-packed day with a delicious home cooked meal with a local family.
.
The next day involved some very long drives to Khaplu Valley. Along the way, we stopped at Mantokha Waterfall – pretty enough if you haven’t seen many waterfalls, but felt lackluster to me after the waterfall wonders I had seen a few months before in Mexico. After a number of hours of driving, we arrived at Khaplu Fort, where we had a tour around and a late lunch. The fort was built in the mid-19th century to replace an earlier-dated nearby fort and served as a royal residence for the Raja of Khaplu. While it is an interesting place, I wouldn’t say it is worth the drive from Skardu town, especially if you’ve already visited some of the previously-mentioned forts.
That said, I did very much enjoy seeing the stunning white beaches along the way – seemingly never-ending, they went on for hours, and I wanted nothing more than to dig my toes into that impossibly white sand and have a dip in that icy water. Instead, we had a pretty stop along the way in a peaceful little rural oasis – some stunning pools surrounded by trees and other vegetation, near a small settlement, with plenty of chickens, goats and sheep lazing around. So you see, sometimes the journey is even more rewarding than the destination.
.
My digestive system hadn’t been too problematic for the past few days, but it seems like two days of eating normally was all I needed for a second, stronger attack. After a sleepless night, I unfortunately had to resign myself to spending the last day in North Pakistan in my room, while the rest of the group went off to explore Bashoo Valley, which they said was beautiful. I did venture out to Skardu town in the evening for a look around. This was probably the most chaotic few hours in Pakistan yet, it being a bustling village filled with vendors of all sorts. I even got to see a football match, with a few hundred spectators – male only – gathered around in the town centre.
.
Lahore
Most of the next day was spent in getting south to the city of Lahore, our last stop. The second largest Pakistani city after Karachi and the capital of the Punjab region, Lahore is home to over 13 million people … and the only place I visited in Pakistan that had a similar look and feel to what I had pictured, in that it took me back to my time in New Delhi. That is not to say that all the city looks like this; we did drive by some upscale, modern areas.
We flew out of Skardu airport to Islamabad, then took a long bus south to Lahore, arriving in time for dinner. Direct flights from Skardu to Lahore operate on some days.
We had an interesting walk around the bustling, chaotic roads – a shock to those who had not experienced such a place before, but which I love in small doses (my lungs were not happy with the pollution after days in the fresh air of the North, however). We then enjoyed a delicious chicken dinner at Butt Karahi (well, I had a few, cautious bites), before calling it a night.
.
The next morning, we were off to explore the city of Lahore. The 40+ degrees celsius weather was infernal, somewhat taking away from the enjoyment of an otherwise very interesting day. To put you in the picture of just how hot it was, I drank about 5 litres of water during our sightseeing that day, and went to the bathroom not once. Damn.
Our first stop was the Walled City of Lahore; the historic centre. This cultural centre of the Punjab region exhibits the grandeur of the Mughal era, with plenty of intricate architecture and vibrant bazaars. Lahore, in fact, served as the capital of the Mughal empire for a time. Apart from walking around the interesting roads, we visited the Shahi Hamman (Turkish baths) and Wazir Khan Mosque.
We also paid a visit to the Lahore Fort – a great example of Mughal architecture, particularly to those who are new to it – including the Shish Mahal (Palace of Mirrors) and the Badshahi Mosque, one of Punjab’s most iconic landmarks images. The fort mostly has an ‘abandoned’ atmosphere and is considerably less elaborate than most of India’s main forts, but still worth a look around.
We also visited Shalimar Gardens, an impressive Mughal garden complex with an extensive system of fountains which we were lucky enough to see being switched on.
We closed off our culture-packed day with a visit to the extremely interesting Lowering of the Flags Ceremony at the Wagah-Attari border between Pakistan and India. The ceremony has been taking place daily since 1959 between the Pakistan Rangers and Border Security Force (the security forces of Pakistan and India respectively). It symbolises the two countries’ rivalry while displaying brotherhood and cooperation. Those who are familiar with the history of Pakistan and India will definitely find the ceremony poignant.
.
Our final day in Pakistan was a pretty special one.
We started off with a visit to the Tomb of Jahangir complex, the 17th-century mausoleum built for the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. The marble work of the mausoleum’s interior, with its intricate inlays, is truly impressive.
Then came the unique part of our day. As the first Maltese group with a travel agency to visit Pakistan, one of the organisers’ contacts had arranged a visit to the Governor’s House, where we were hosted by the Punjab Governor, as well as to the Punjab Assembly, where we met the Assembly Speaker. Two rounds of tea service, paparazzi aplenty, private tours of both the Governor’s House and the Assembly (one of the largest in India) and we were left feeling like quite the VIPs. The most significant moment for me was speaking to some of the female assembly members and discussing current affairs and the role of women in politics in Pakistan, especially after having interacted almost exclusively with men throughout our stay. Speaking with Zakia Shahnawaz, the eldest female member at 78, and learning about her life in politics and how far women have come in the field, was especially rewarding.
We closed off our day and time in Pakistan with some souvenir shopping and a dinner at Haveli, a colourful, bustling eatery offering great food and outstanding views of Badshahi Mosque – a perfectly atmospheric ending to a great trip.
.
I am very grateful for my time in Pakistan, and look forward to exploring more of what Central Asia – so often overlooked – has to offer. Feel free to get in touch on my Instagram (@katyagatt) if you have any questions.