i want to know that if anyone has visited kaghan and naran after the earth -quake 2005.how are the road conditions?are there enough good hotels for stay with a family?please share your experiences,as we want to go there by car during summer vacations.how is the weather there in june and july?your suggetions will be very helpful for us.i hope so.
I tried to visit Shogran/Naran/Kaghan in July 2006 but the rains truned me back. landsliding was a problem then but now I think theres no issue. i hope to go there myself insha allah!
This is a photography group on flickr.com dedicated to Kaghan
Flickr: Kaghan Valley Pakistan
If you have a Yahoo ID sign in and maybe you can ask some questions about visits to kaghan valley.
Or better still why dont you join these groups for information:-
trekking : For trekking and outdoor enthusiasts
If you join both groups, all you need is a yahoo id, then you should be ableto get up to date information from active trekkers.
other places to get up-to-date information include Orkut, a similar community to facebook and there are many pakistan outdoor groups which you can join and get information from.
thanks alot for your useful information.anyone else with more personal experiences?
I went there before the quake and almost just after the new road network was laid out. I was there for only one night, great experience back then but I have no idea of the road conditions now. Hmm and I guess better take some warm clothing cos even in summers these areas tend to get chilli in evenings.
And yea while you are there don't forget to try the trout fish..fresh from the river Kunhar..ive never tasted fish this good!!
Re: naran,kaghan?
Do check out the road conditions and obviously be careful while driving, quite sharp blind corners on the track specially even more dangerous as the traffic is also two-way..
Re: naran,kaghan?
Hi There,
I have been to Kaghan Valley two times.. First in July 2005 (Just 3 months before earthquake) and second time on July 2008
According to July 2008 experiences, The road from Islamabad (Islamabad - Abbottabad - Mansehra - Balakot) is fully paved and in very good condition. However, road from Balakot - Kiwai - Paras - Mahandri is not so good and is being re-constructed. It seemed like the road was fully destroyed because of the earthquake. The road is often closed during working hours for repair and their is long queue of cars/jeeps/buses. The road is not paved but it is flat.
After Mahandri (Mahandri - Kaghan Town - Naran), the road is perfectly OK, the quake luckily didn't hurt it.
If you want to go further than Naran then its also good road till JalKhad (Naran - BattaKundi - JalKhad). There is no paved road after Jalkhad.. The further road is only accessible via 4x4 Jeep (if you want to go to Basel and Lulupatsar Lake).
I didn't go to Shoogran in July 2008 so I can't tell you about its condition but I think it is also destroyed and right now only reachable by 4x4 Jeep from Kiwai.
Conclusion: If you are going on your car, its perfectly alright.. However, Radial tyres and small air compresser is must incase of flat tyre. If you are going by public transport and on a tight budget, then you can reach to Abbottabad via Daewoo Bus (from Lahore or Islamabad) and then you can reach Balakot on a HIACE van or a Taxi. And from Balakot, you can get a BUS to reach Naran. Bus is prefered over HIACE on Balakot-Naran route because it is open and you wouldn't feel suffocated in it. In HIACE, you feel to vomit becoz of suffocation and you also feel dizzy if you are not a frequent traveler of HIACE.
For your convenience, I'm posting link to the photo album of my both tours so that you can see & judge the area. Happy Traveling...
July 2005 Tour: facebook.com/album.php?aid=5219&id=666727175&l=18e0a72aba
July 2008 Tour: facebook.com/album.php?aid=48782&id=666727175&l=3b493eeb91
*** Please put http www because it wouldn't allow me to post it before 25 posts. I'm sorry mods if I broken rules by posting urls in this way. You can edit them out if it is not allowed.**
P.s. Especially watch Pic # 52 in July 2008 album to know about the current road condition.
Have a great journey :)
- Sufian The travel maniac
you people have given me very good and up to date information.Thanks alot+jazakAllah.but i could not open those pics on face book as im not the member of it.so could not log in.please send your pics on this forum directly.an other question i want to ask that how are these naran kaghan areas if kids and toddlers are with us?are facalities up to date or not specially like medical and food items?
Re: naran,kaghan?
I've made these public galleries, so you will be able to see these even if you are not a member of Facebook. Just add www before the URL.
Till Balakot, medical facilities are very good. After Balakot (like Naran, Kaghan), the facilities are available but I am not sure if they will be of very high standard. Luckily I didn't have to go to any doctor in my both trips so I don't know much about it. However, I definitely remember watching few clinics and medical stores in main Naran bazar.
Food items aren't a problem. You can get anything in main Naran bazar like bakery items, ready made food, fast food, desi food, fruits, vegetables etc etc. Everything is available.
If you have kids, it is not a problem but you should take care because kids are sensitive of weather and a quick change in weather (like summer season in Islamabad but cold in Naran) can cause some problem. However, if you take care, it won't be a problem. Another advice would be not to travel too much when u have kids with you. Instead of a long journey, break your journey into parts (like instead of going from Islamabad to Naran you could go from Islamabad to Balakot, have a night stay there.. Balakot to Shoogran... a night stay there.. Shoogran to Naran.. etc etc. Do take a baby stroller with you if you have toddlers with you. That way you can easily move them around and also keep them warm if weather is cold.
Re: naran,kaghan?
Wow.. your pics are amazing. I am planning go to Pakistan in August and really want to visit the Northern Areas. I have never been there, and don't really know much about it.
I was wondering if you could tell me any nice places you know of that are close to Islamabad/Murree, because I will not have that much time. Also, how far is Naran/Kaghan from Islamabad?
Re: naran,kaghan?
Thank you Sarah for appreciating my pics.
The month of August is best time to visit these areas. I've been to Murree 4 times but it's charm is no longer because it has been developed into fully commercial city. The rent of hotels, traveling is very high and there is not much sight seeing left because everywhere you would see tall buildings, houses and also lots of human garbage which is indeed very sad :( If you go further from Murree, there is Ayubia and Nathiagali which are better for sightseeing
If you are want to experience true nature then Northern Areas are the best especially the Kaghan valley. The nature is at its best when you will see beautiful landscapes alongside the River Kunhar (Pic #6, Album 2). Naran/Kaghan is about 280 kilometers from Islamabad and if you are on your own car then it would take about 7-8 hours to reach Naran from Islamabad. The accomodation is not a problem, you will find luxurious hotels to camps.. now its your choice what to choose. The hotel rent is also reasonable... We got an average looking hotel room for 350 Rupees per night (Pic #44 - Album 2). In Murree we had to pay Rs 1200 for hotel room worse than it.
If you have 4 days, you can easily enjoy the Naran valley. I can also help you to plan your tour :p
Day 1 - You can leave your home from Islamabad early in morning (like at 7 A.M) and reach Abbottabad at around 11 AM.. Have lunch there and continue your journey and you will reach Naran at about 4 PM. Take a rest on that day.. Walk up the Naran Bazar, enjoy the stream coming from Lake Saif ul Maluk
Day 2 - Visit Lalazar Valley (18 km from Naran). You can reach there by Jeep. It's very beautiful valley and a great waterfall too.
Day 3 - Visit Saif Ul Maluk lake .. The beauty of Naran valley.. You can reach there by Jeep. It is only 8 Km form Naran but it takes couple of hours because the road is not paved.
Day 4 - Leave Naran early and reach Islamabad before evening.
Have a nice traveling experience :)
Awesome pics Sufi_Bhai!
I really wanna go to Naran, Kaghan area but the nearest I got was Malam Jabba in August 2004 as my great uncle did not want us travelling on the roads after dark.
Anyway grapefruit do take some jumpers with you as it can get cold up there and have a great trip!
Re: naran,kaghan?
yaar what happens after dark in those areas? wild animals or something?
Thanks uzzybuzzy for liking my pics :)
yaar what happens after dark in those areas? wild animals or something?
It is not advisable to travel in night in these areas because the road is dangerous.. you have many sharp turns with deep drops which can be oversight in dark and might result in bad experience. There is also no street lights on the main roads.
yaar what happens after dark in those areas? wild animals or something?
I dunno. I think it may have been to do with the roads plus we had my cousin's baby with us.
Re: naran,kaghan?
Thank you very much for your help Sufi Bhai. But my dad said we cannot go to Naran/Kaghan this year because it is close to the Swat violence and there are probably many refugees there right now. So we are thinking of going to Nathia Gali, Ayubia, and Kashmir (maybe Neelum valley). Has anyone been to any of these places?
Hi,
Nara and Kaghan are the beautiful places in Pakistan and it is the best place to go with family, hotels there are quite good and are family hotels, the road after earthquake was damaged but now they rebuilt it and its ok now.
this is my experince of naran and kaghan valley as i am going many many time a year there coz i am working for tourism in Pakistan
You can PM me if you need more information
regards
is naran close to swat valley?if there are refugees then there can be those so called taliban also.confusing situation.i am very sad for people of swat.we visited there 10 years back.beautiful valley and very nice people.we thought in those days that we would re-visit this place but who knows the future?we could not go to mahodand lake.but now it looks far away.prays and hopes for the best for swat valley and its residents.
to get from kaghan to swat it takes minimum of 4-5 hours - probably 6-8 hours. the refugees wont b going to kaghan as theres lesschance of employment, its off the radar
there have even very little problems in kaghan with regards to militancy.