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PAKISTAN HOLIDAYS > ASIA
Provinces in Pakistan: Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal Areas,
Islamabad Capital Territory, North-West Frontier, Punjab, Sindh
Cities in Pakistan : Faisalabad, Gilgit, Hyderabad, Karachi, Lahore, Murree, Peshawar, Quetta, Rawalpindi, Swat
Pakistan
borders India, Iran, Afghanistan, China and the Arabian Sea.
Second largest Muslim country in the world [ after Indonesia ].
Capital City of Pakistan: Islamabad
car hire, hotels, tour operators - pakistan tours, travel guides, travel to pakistan
links
Car Rental Pakistan
 Holiday Autos -
Holiday Autos offers the best fully inclusive car hire prices. Get cheap car hire quickly and securely online with holidayautos.co.uk, the experts in online car rental.
Hotels in Pakistan
Himalayan Kingdoms
Worlds Apart Travel
'The rugged mountains of the Karakorum make this an ideal summer trekking destination. An amazing road system also make many beautiful remote valleys open to non trekkers.'
Trans Pakistan Adventure Services - based at Islamabad
all-inclusive services for tours, treks, safaris and beach-adventure trips with featurable snorkeling, fishing,
boating & crabbing, mountaineering expeditions, film/fashion photography shoots and logistical support for
scientific research projects. Tours can easily be tailored according to the requirements and wishes of our
valued clients; for both groups and FIT's. Extensions and combination tours with regional countries like China, Nepal, India, Central Asia and Iran are also offered.
Travel Guides Pakistan / Related books
Pakistan and the Karakoram Highway (Lonely Planet)
Paul Clammer
Paperback: 432 pages; Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications; 7th Revised edition edition (1 May 2008); ISBN-10: 1741045428; ISBN-13: 978-1741045420.
Pakistan Insight Guide - Tony Halliday (Editor)
The Insight Guide to Pakistan provides the complete picture through expert and informative text and remarkable photography. It is an inspiring background read
, serving as an invaluable, on-the-spot companion - but can also be kept as a superb, visual souvenir of a visit. Expert local writers bring to life each
destination's history, culture, arts and people. It contains detailed, cross-reference maps which means that areas and sites mentioned can be quickly
pin pointed. A new section highlights the best of Pakistan and section of Travel Tips incorporates all the travel details and contact numbers visitors will need.
Paperback: 300 pages; Publisher: APA Publications Pte Ltd; Revised edition edition (10 Jan 2007); ISBN-10: 9812585532; ISBN-13: 978-9812585530.
Three Cups of Tea
Greg Mortenson, Sarah L. Thomson and David Oliver Relin
'Here we drink three cups of tea to do business; the first you are a stranger, the second you become a friend
, and the third, you join our family, and for our family we are prepared to do anything - even die' - Haji Ali,
Korphe Village Chief, Karakoram mountains, Pakistan. In 1993, after a terrifying and disastrous attempt to
climb K2, a mountaineer called Greg Mortenson drifted, cold and dehydrated, into an impoverished Pakistan
village in the Karakoram Mountains. Moved by the inhabitants' kindness, he promised to return and build a
school. "Three Cups of Tea" is the story of that promise and its extraordinary outcome. Over the next decade
Mortenson built not just one but fifty-five schools - especially for girls - in remote villages across the
forbidding and breathtaking landscape of Pakistan and Afghanistan, just as the Taliban rose to power. His
story is at once a riveting adventure and a testament to the power of the humanitarian spirit.
Paperback: 368 pages; Publisher: Penguin (3 Jan 2008); ISBN-10: 0141034262; ISBN-13: 978-0141034263.
Transportation / How do I travel to Pakistan
Islamabad / Rawalpindi Airport ???
Karachi Airport - Karachi International Airport
Lahore Airport
British Airways - Flights to Islamabad
 - Flights to Pakistan
Book cheap flights to Pakistan at ebookers and benefit from discounted airfares. View their latest offers and book your flights, accommodation, car hire and insurance online
Airline Tickets / Bargain Flights
Flight tickets Pakistan / Price comparison possible
Pakistan Railway - timetables van express-trains
Map Pakistan (Nelles Map)
City Maps: Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar.
Map: 2 pages; Publisher: Nelles Verlag GmbH (14 July 2010); Language English, German, French; ISBN-10: 386574253X; ISBN-13: 978-3865742537.
Map Pakistan [ Uni Texas - Perry-Castaņeda Library - Map Collection ]
Links 
Pakistan is a special interest destination. Its main attractions include adventure tourism in the Northern Areas,
cultural and archaeological tourism as found in Taxila, Moenjodaro, Harrappa, and early Muslim and Mughal
heritage of Multan, Lahore, Thatta, Peshawar, Swat. Besides this, birds watching Jeep safaris, desert safaris, trekking and mountaineering are readily available tourist specialized products.
PTDC - Pakistan Tourism Development Company
Destinations, Pakistan info, Tourist Guide, Festivals & Events, links, and more
The Sports & Tourism Wing of the Ministry is the main body responsible for making policies and plans for the
development and promotion of sports and tourism in the country. The wing is also responsible for implementation of the plans and projects in these areas.
Government Pakistan
Islamabad Capital Territory - Capital City of Pakistan
Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, lies against the backdrop of the ever-green Margalla Hills at the northern edge of Potohar Plateau.
Balochistan - West of the Indus Plains - Explore Balochistan
Though the this largest province is bigger than the British Isles, it only has a population of about one million,
due mainly to its daunting arid geography. In the south of the province, Makran is almost entirely desert with
low, dry hills rising from 300 meters to 2500 meters in the north. In the west there is a large salt lake, Hammum
-i-Maskhel, and more expansive desert plains. This is where the Chagai and Toba Kakar Mountain Ranges
form the borders of Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Baluchistan is outside the monsoon zone and has, with
the exception of the hilly and arid mountainous regions, a pleasant climate. The province has been influenced
by the civilisations in the Indus, Dir and Swat Valleys. One of the oldest neolithic sites (6000 BC) is to be found at Mehr Ghar just south of Bolan Pass.
Most Baluchistan people are nomads who in spring and summer migrate to the hills with their cattle, goats,
sheep, camels, donkeys and horses and set up khizdi (tents) and huts of twigs, branches, grass, reeds or
straw. In winter they retreat to mud huts on the plains. Apart from Quetta, Baluchistan's settlements are
mainly hamlets, villages or small towns built around oases and separated by vast stretches of sand or mountain.
Districts in Balochistan: Gwadar District, Kech District, Lasbela District
Attractions: Quetta, Gwadar, Ziarat, Bolan Pass, Coastline, Hinna Lake, Khojak Pass, Lak Pass and The Gorges
Federally Administered Tribal Areas
The Tribal Areas, which cover nearly half the province along its border with Afghanistan, are autonomous
regions governed by tribal law under the supervision of the Pakistani government. Because the government
cannot guarantee the safety of people who enter these areas, they are closed to foreigners. Even Pakistanis
need permission to enter. The increased cultivation for opium in the Tribal Areas in recent years has intensified the risks faced by outsiders who attempt to slip in for whatever reason.
North-West Frontier
Located on both banks of the river Indus, NWFP stretches from the Himalayas in the north to the deserts in the
south where it is bordered by the Baluchistan and Punjab provinces. On its western flank is the rugged
terrain of neighboring country Afghanistan, which is accessed via the historic Khyber Pass through the mountains of the Sulaiman Range. The capital of the province is the city of Peshawar.
Punjab - Government of the Punjab
Punjab, 'Land of Five Rivers', is the richest, most fertile and most heavily populated province of Pakistan [ the five rivers referred to are the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Indus ]
In Punjab live over 70 million people - more than half the population of the entire country.Geographically, it is a
land of contrasts, from the alluvial plain of the Indus River and its tributaries to the sand-dunes of the
Cholistan Desert, from the verdant beauty of the pine-covered foothills of the Himalaya to the strangely
convoluted lunar landscape of the Potohar Plateau and the Salt Range. Cities in Punjab: Lahore, Multan, Jehlum, Faisalabad, Gujranwala
Site Info: History, Economy, Cultural Heritage, People of Punjab, Fairs & Festivals, Arts & Crafts, Folklore, Music
Sindh - Government of Sindh
The southernmost province of Pakistan takes its name from Sindhu, a Sanskrit name for the Indus River,
which bisects the province and brings it life. Until the completion of a huge dam at Sukkur in 1932 most of Sind
(or Sindh) was barren desert, but irrigation has restored a wide swath through the lower Indus flood plain.
Sind was called the 'Unhappy Valley' or the 'Land of Uncertainties' by ancient travellers who marched through
the scorching deserts of Persia and Baluchistan for long, wearying weeks towards the Indus - only to find its
valley depressing barren. It's also a land of sheesharn and pipal trees, darting parrots, bright kingfishers that
flash along the river banks, and white herons perched on the backs of water buffaloes.
In the hot season the landscape shimmers and its greys, browns and reds turn creamy-white. Wind-driven
dust and sand create a haze which can turn the sun red or blot it out. Along the coast this is the time when
fishing ceases and marriages take place, when at the full moon villagers, fakirs, snake charmers and
musicians climb to mountain shrines for all-night feasts. In autumn the coastline is suffused with colour, the sky and sea tinted with crimson.
Cities in Sindh: Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Thatta
Faisalabad
Gilgit
Gujranwalla
Hyderabad
Karachi
Pakistan's cosmopolitan city Karachi, is located on the eastern coast of the Arabian Sea. It is the capital of the
province of Sind and the former capital of Pakistan. With a population of nearly 10 million (which is rising
rapidly), Karachi is undoubtedly the largest city of Pakistan accomodating people from all regions and religions.
Lahore - City of Gardens
Lahore is the second largest city of Pakistan and the provincial capital of Punjab. Apart from being the cultural
and academic centre of the country, Lahore is the Mughal "show-window" of Pakistan.
Lahore has something for everyone. Large number of beautiful gardens, historically exotic forts, mosques
and shrines, mughal architectures and museums, shopping centres, fairs and festivals all add-up to make Lahore as Pakistan's most surprisingly colorful package!
Multan
Murree
Peshawar - ancient and legendary city of proud Pathans
Capital city of North-West Frontier Province, frontier town and meeting place of the sub-continent and Central
Asia. It is a place where ancient traditions jostle with those of today, where the bazaars in the old city have
changed very little in the past hundred years except to become the neighbor of a modern university, some modern hotels, several international banks and one of the best museums in Pakistan.
Quetta / Kwatah - Capital City Baluchistan - Fruit Garden of Pakistan
The city is still locally known by its ancient name of Shal or Shalkot. Interesting excursions possible to places
like Karkhasa, Urak Valley, Hanna Lake, Pishin, Ziarat, Chashma, Zindra etc.
Quetta is one of the most important military stations of the country, occupying a vital and strategic position on
account of the fact that the boundaries of Iran and Afghanistan meet here, and the Bolan Pass lies on
important lines of communications. It is connected by rail with Lahore, (727 miles) away, with Peshawar (986
miles), and Karachi (536 miles). A new road connects it with Karachi through Khuzdar, Makran and Las Bela.
It is also connected with Zahidan (Duzdab), Iran, by railway. Quetta tribesman are strong and silent in their
bearing, they are known for their friendliness and hospitality. To make a visitor comfortable is part of their tradition.
Rawalpindi
Originally Rawalpindi was a village of Rawals, a tribe of Yogis. There are many bazaars in the Rawalpindi
region the Raja Bazaar, Saddar Bazaar and Commercial Bazaar (Market) are some nice shopping areas. The
Liaquat Bagh 'Liaquat Gardens' is a nice picinc spot for tourists. The Bara Market near the Liaquat Bagh is an
all time favourite amongst tourists coming to Rawalpindi. It has a lively atmosphere and with many beautiful architectures and colors of life it is a wonderful tourist hideout.
Swat
Gwadar District [ Balochistan ]
Gwadar district, with its 600 kilometres long coast line and un-irrigated tracts of Kulanch and Dasht valleys,
has always been an important chapter of Makran's history. The known history of Makran goes back to the time of prophet Dawood when people entombed themselves to avoid famine. The area is said to be
possessed by Iranian King Kaus followed by Afrasiab of Turan and then by Kai Khusrau, again an Iranian.
Then there is a long list of rulers, including Lehrasp, Gushtasp, Bahman, Huma and Darab, to the year 325 BC
when Alexander the Great incidentally found the sea in this area on his way from India to Macedonia.
Kech District [ Balochistan ]
Kech, the land of a romance legend, has always been a place of importance for its geographical location. It
has been, and still is, the centre of Makran region; geographically, socially, and politically. In 1977, Makran
was declared a division and was divided into three districts, namely Panjgur, Turbat (renamed Kech) and
Gwadar. In 1994-95, the name of Turbat district was changed to its old name, i.e., Kech. Now the region is called Kech while Turbat town is its headquarters.
Lasbela District [ Balochistan ]
Before its merger in Pakistan, Lasbela District was a state ruled by the Jam family of Jamote Tribe. It was
notified as District on 30th June1954. The District derived its name from LAS signifying a plain and Bela means
jungle, also a principal town at that time. Uthal is the present District headquarters. The District is situated on
the southern coast of Balochistan. It is bounded, on the north by Khuzdar District, on the east by Dadu, Malir
and Karachi, on the south by the Arabian Sea and on the west by Gwadar and Awaran Districts.
Malam Jabba Ski Resort - Swat Valley in the North West Frontier Province
Commercial skiing has recently been opened at Malam Jabba. 8'700 feet above sea level, Malam Jabba Ski
Resort stands on top of a mountain of the Hindukush range, north east of Saidu Sharif. It is a wonderful tourist resort offering picturesque skiing landscapes.
There is an air strip at Saidu Sharif, 45 km away with flights daily from the capital by Pakistan Airways (flights also connect from Peshawar). There's also a heli-pad at the resort.
Takht-i-Bahi - Buddhist Monastery
Balochistan Post - from Balochistan, the largest province of Pakistan. Close to Taliban.
News, Economy, Politics, Heritage, Forum, Neighbourhood, Tidbits
Daily Times - based in Lahore
Dawn - widely circulated English language newspaper
Pakistan Times
Radio Pakistan - RealAudio
Cuisine - Pakistani Recipes - Pakistani cookery
Pakistan is rich in variety of different kinds of foods. The specialties include Kababs, Dhals, Quormah, Tikkas
and Nihari.
Pakistani Cuisine is generally the same thing as North Indian cuisine - see Indian cuisine
ContactPakistan.com - Pakfood - Pakistani Recipes
Pakistani cuisine is as diverse as it's people. Most of Pakistani cuisine has Afghan-Turkic-Iranian roots, a
legacy of Muslim rule in South Asia, which got 'Indianized' due to the greater usage of spices
See Chutneys / Achars, Main Course, Breads, Rice, Grills, Drinks, Desserts and Snack / Chutpatay.
History
Independence: 14 August 1947 (from UK)
Disputed areas: Pakistani-administered portion of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region includes Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas.
History of Pakistan - Wikipedia
Ancient South Asia, Background to creation of Pakistan, Post Independence Period, 1971 Civil War, 1977-1985 Martial Law, The Democratic Interregnum, Return of Military Rule, Kashmir.
Story of Pakistan - Comprehensive Reference on the Political History of Pakistan
The site is based on the best-selling CD-ROM "Story of Pakistan: A Multimedia Journey". The contents of the
site focus on the political history of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, tracing its roots from pre-historic times, to the various dynasties that ruled the Indo-Pak Sub-continent.
Music, Arts & Culture, Events & Entertainment
Pakistan has a very rich cultural and traditional background going back to Indus Valley Civilization, 2800
BC–1800 BC. The region that is now Pakistan has in the past been invaded and occupied by many different
peoples, including Greeks, White Huns, Persians, Arabs, Turks, Mongols and various Eurasian groups. Thus modern Pakistani culture has its origins in the mixture of many cultures.
By far the most dynamic and popular music of Pakistan is qawwali, which has been internationally
popularized by stars like Nusrat Ali Khan. Qawwali, in multiple forms, is widespread throughout Pakistan and Northern India.
Music of Pakistan
History, Ghazal [ Notable classical composers and performers ], Qawwali [ Instruments ], Humnawa [ Notable
composers and performers ], Religious [ Hamd, Dafli ], Classical, Regional [ Balochi, Punjabi, Potohari, Sindhi,
Kashmiri, Siraiki, Gilgiti, Khowar, Pashto, Persian/Farsi, Hindko ], Modern [ Pop, Rock, Hip hop ], Filmi, Music journalism, Producers.
Culture of Pakistan
Literature, Poetry, Performing arts [ Music, Dance, Drama and theatre ], Visual arts [ Painting, Architecture ],
Recreation and sports, Cuisine, Festivals [ Ramadan, Chand Raat, Eid celebrations, Milaad un Nabi, Muharram
(Ashura), Jashn-e-Baharan, Nowruz, Independence Day, Defense Day Parade ], National Dress, Mercantile culture, Cultural traditions.
Pashtun Tales: From the Pakistan-Afghan Frontier - Aisha Ahmad, Roger Boase
These oral tales were collected in the tribal areas on the Pakistan-Afghan frontier, a region described as the
last free place on earth. It was here that the caravan routes from Persia, India and China once converged.
With their blend of wit, fantasy, comedy and romance, they reflect the Pashtun code of honour and way of
life that are now seriously threatened by social changes and recent political events. Most of them, such as
the epic tale of Hazrat Ali, have never been recorded before, and might otherwise have been lost forever.
Some are recognisable as universal types, such as a version of Androcles and the Lion and of the tale that provided Shakespeare with the plot of King Lear.
Hardcover 380 pages (February 6, 2003); Publisher: Saqi Books; Language: English; ISBN: 0863564380
Culture Shock! Pakistan: A Guide to Customs and Etiquette (Culture Shock! S.) - Zafar Ihsan, Karin Mittmann
Paperback 130 pages (January 1, 2004); Publisher: Kuperard; Language: English; ISBN: 1870668782
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