Gilgit Tourist Places to Visit in Gilgit, Pakistan, Asia

Gilgit of Pakistan is located in the Northern areas or Gilgit-Baltistan, a non-constitutional province of Pakistan that was occupied by the Pakistan in late 1948.  Gilgit is the capital of Gilgit-Baltistan province of Himalayan mountainous region with over 72000 Sq. Km at an elevation of 1500 meters.  Gilgit to its South East is the Indian territory of Jammu & Kashmir and Azad Kashmir to the South and to the West is the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and to the Northwest is the Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan and to Northeast and East is the autonomous areas of China and the areas ceded by Pakistan to China.

 

Gilgit in the karkoram range of Himalayan Mountains has the K2 Mountain for the adventurers for climbing expedition.  The Gilgit area is hospitable only for a brief period of four months from to June to September that experiences hot weather during summers and cold winters from October to May and is subjected to frequent landslides.

 

 

History of Gilgit in Pakistan:

 

Gilgit was known as Northern territories during the British rule and it was part of the border agreement between the Russian country and British Empire as the region Wakhan Corridor located to the Northeastern tip of Afghanistan and to North of Gilgit in late 19^th century.  Gilgit was part of the great Silk Route from China leading to Afghanistan and beyond to Arab countries.  Gilgit was part of the many dynasties and during the partition of 1947 between India and Pakistan; Gilgit was occupied by the Pakistan troops resulting in United Nations Intervention.

 

Food and Culture in Gilgit in Pakistan:

 

The climatic conditions of the cold Himalayas have made the Gilgit population to consume food that are conducive for adapting to cold weather such as drinking milk of the Yalk and mare and also consumption of meat and dairy products and large quantity of food.

 

Gilgit was predominately a Hindu and Buddhist region before the Islam took routes with occupation of Gilgit by various Muslim clans from across Arab and Afghan countries and lately by the Pakistan army bringing under the control of Pakistan with UN intervention.  The people are generally nomadic tending their cattle and processing the wool from the sheep and dealing in dairy products. These people of mongoloid origin with ethnic mix speaking Balti dialect of Tibetan and Ladakhi language and the Shina language a mixture of various other minor languages are spoken widely in Gilgit.

 

 

Shopping and Things to do in Gilgit in Pakistan:

 

Gilgit being a hill tourist destination in Pakistan has many local artifacts that unique to the Himalayan ranges, for purchasing to keep as memories by the tourists.

 

Gilgit with Skardu are the two hill stations that offer to the tourists many options of trekking and mountain climbing of the K2 and Nanga Parbat and many high altitude lakes, large glaciers, Deosai Plains etc.

 

 

Tourist Attractions in Gilgit in Pakistan:

 

• Mountains: Mountains in Himalayas K2 and Nanga Parbat for climbers and trekkers.
• High Altitude Lakes: Satpara Tso Lake, Shesoar Lake, Zharba Taso Lake, Borith Lake, Rama Lake, Rush Lake etc.

 

• Karkoram Highway: Highest man made road in the mountains passing through picturesque valleys and the mountain rocks on the side of the road contain inscriptions and Petroglyphs of Buddhists.

 

 

 

Connectivity to Gilgit in Pakistan:

 

The mountains terrain of Gilgit is connected by the Karakoram Highway connecting the capital city of Pakistan Islamabad in the South to Gilgit at a distance of 500 Km in the North and the Karakoram Highway extends from Gilgit to the towns and cities of China in the North with regular bus services of NATCO via Kunjerab pass to Kashgar which is around 400 Km, that is always inundated with snowfall and avalanches.  There is no railway network to Gilgit and by flight Gilgit is connected to Islamabad by small aircrafts.

 

 

Hotel Accommodation in Gilgit in Pakistan:

 

• Serena Hotel – 4*
• Bagrote Sarai Hotel
• PTDC Chinar Inn
• JSR Hotel
• Golden Peak Hotel and Restaurant
• Madina Hotel and Guest House

Bannu Tourist Places to Visit in Bannu, Pakistan, Asia

Bannu is one of the 24 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province a Northwest province of Pakistan.  Bannu is a town and a district head quarters of Bannu district with an area of about 1200 Sq. Km is located to the Southeast of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.  To the East, Northeast and South of Bannu is the Punjab province and to the West and Northwest and Southwest of Bannu are the regions of North and South Waziristan.

 

Bannu is located around 300 Km and 290 Km to the Southwest of Islamabad and Rawalpindi via Kohat town.  Peshawar is around 180 Km to the North of Bannu.  The Bannu’s lands are irrigated by the rivers of Kurram and Tochi. The soil of Bannu is very conducive for growing the sugarcane crops.

 

Bannu is an advanced town with industries and educational institutions among other towns of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.  Bannu is populated by the Bannuchi tribe speaking Pashto with Waziri and Khattak dialect along with Urdu and English among the educated class of Bannu.

 

 

History of Bannu in Pakistan:

 

Bannu before Pakistan’s independence in 1947 was known as Edwardsabad named after the British administrator of the region Sir Herbert Edwards during the British reign of the Indian sub-continent in mid 19^th century.  Bannu has the past history dating back to the ancient Indus valley civilization and was frequently invaded by various Central Asian and Arab rulers during the mid centuries due to its strategic location and its connectivity to other countries to the North of Bannu.

 

 

Food and Culture in Bannu in Pakistan:

 

Bannu with its vast agricultural areas cultivated with wheat and sugarcane and rice with fruits, vegetables etc., are grown in large areas and have wheat products for their daily consumption along with preparations of the flavored rice items with the special lime tea.

 

Bannu is inhabited with majority Bannuchi tribe with many sub-castes and also along with Pashtuns and Sikhs speaking the language of Pashto with Waziri dialect and Urdu following the Islamic culture.

 

 

Shopping and Things to do in Bannu in Pakistan:

 

Bannu is a great shopping centre and it is supposed to be the central market for the regions around it and also the goods from Bannu move to the central Asian countries.  Bannu is famous for its leather products and woolen and cotton goods and also sugar products as there are many mills processing these products. The Jumma fair is conducted weekly selling the local products.

 

Bannu is a tribal area and not a tourist place as the traveling in these areas are with valid permits as its dangerous place due to gun totting mercenaries moving around and are less tolerant to the outsiders.

 

 

Tourist Attractions in and around Bannu in Pakistan:

 

Tourist attractions around Bannu are mainly in the regions of Kohat and Dera Ismail Khan which are at a distance of 60 Km and 80 Km.  As Bannu comes under the Frontier Region and comes under the Federally Administered Tribal Area, Where travel permits are required to visit the regions of Bannu.

 

 

Connectivity to Bannu in Pakistan:

 

There are transport services from Peshawar the capital city of Kyber Pakhtunkhwa province at a distance of 180 Km to the North via the Indus Highway No. N55. There is no train connectivity to Bannu and by flight the nearest domestic airport is at Dera Ismail Khan Airport at a distance of 80 Km and the international airport is the Bacha Khan near Peshawar at a distance of 150 Km to the North of Bannu.

 

 

Hotel Accommodation in Bannu in Pakistan:

 

Bannu being a tribal area the town has very few hotels and those star quality hotels are mostly in the city of Peshawar around 180 Km to the North of Bannu.

 

• Pearl Continental Hotel 3*
• Emaraat Hotel 2*
• Rose Hotel 2*
• Hotel Grand
• Green’s Hotel Restaurant
• Tourist Inn Motel
• Eagle Nest Hotel
• Hidyat Hotel

Tourist Places to Visit in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, Asia

Bahawalpur is one of the districts of the Punjab province located to the East of Pakistan.  Bahawalpur with around 2400 Sq. Km area, is a administrative capital city of the Bahawalpur district located to Southeast of the Punjab province and is around 400 Km to the Southwest of Lahore, the capital of Punjab province and around 635 Km South of Islamabad the capital of Pakistan, on the Lahore – Islamabad Motorway main road M2.

 

Bahawalpur district with its total area of over 24800 Sq. Km is well known for its agricultural produces such as wheat, rice, cotton, sugarcane, mustard seeds etc. and vegetable and fruits.  Bahawalpur is being developed into an industrial hub by establishing agricultural related industries such as cotton ginning industries, sunflower seed oil extracting mills, paddy de-husking units, flour mills and fruit processing industries.  To the East of Bahawalpur is the Cholistan desert and Thar Desert of India and to the West and South is the Sindh Province and city of Multan at a distance of 95 Km is to the North.

 

 

History of Bahawalpur in Pakistan:

 

Bahawalpur was a princely state ruled by the Nawabs since late 18^th century which was under the control of British Empire and proving allegiance to the British was allowed to rule independently and merging with the Pakistan during the country’s formation in 1947.  Bahawalpur being in Punjab province had a very long history since Indus valley civilization and later being ruled by the various dynasties till the Muslim majority princely state under the British rule was merged with Pakistan during the partition of India-Pakistan in 1947.

 

 

Food and Culture in Bahawalpur in Pakistan:

 

Food in Bahawalpur is mostly the wheat products that are consumed in large quantities as wheat is the main crop grown in the Bahawalpur regions and various local food stuffs such as nan, chappati, tandoori rotis with the drink of Lassi is famous among the local populace.

 

The cultural identity of Bahawalpur is the local people’s coexistence by following their own culture and customs speaking Punjabi and its variant dialects and the language of Saraiki, Haryanvi, Urdu, Baluchi etc. The majority of the people are followers of the Islam religion and all the Muslim festivals are conducted in religious fervor.

 

 

Shopping and Things to do in Bahawalpur in Pakistan:

 

Bahawalpur is located at a very strategic locations and this has made the city of Bahawalpur a shopping hub for its various products.  Bahawalpur has the Ghalla Mandi, the very old and large marketing place and also the Farid gate market where the famous local products filigree potteries, embroidered sandals, carpets and dress materials and jewelry items are purchased.

 

Bahawalpur has many places of tourist interests and those visiting the city can visit various tourist sites around such as palaces, forts, national park, ancient Indus valley civilization etc.

 

 

Tourist Attractions in Bahawalpur in Pakistan:

 

• Palaces: Noor Mahal, Barbar Mahal, Sadiq Ghar Palace. The Noor Mahal is the well known for its Italian architecture, located on the Circular Road around 3 Km from Bahawalpur city.

 

• Derawar Fort: Is and unique fort located around 95 Km in Cholistan Desert.

 

• Indus valley civilization site: Ganweriwala, one of the unexcavated ancient cities of the Indus valley civilization.

 

• Lal Sohanara National Park: The largest natural park having various desert and forest terrains situated around 20 Km from

 

 

Connectivity to Bahawalpur in Pakistan:

 

Bahawalpur is connected to the city of Multan at a distance of 85 Km by the local transports plying on the Route N5 and from the cities to the Northeast that are Islamabad, Rawalpindi and Lahore by the Main Road E5, that are at a distance of 600 Km, 575 Km and 400 Km.   Bahawalpur has the railway station at Mubrakpur with train from Hyderabad in Sindh, Pakistan connecting Multan via Bahawalpur.  The domestic airport at Bahawalpur connects the flights from other cities.

 

 

Hotel Accommodation in Bahawalpur in Pakistan:

 

• Pearl International Hotel’s – Hotel One 3*
• Pak Continental Hotel 2*
• Hotel Abaseen
• New Bahawalpur Hotel
• Luxury Hotel