This summer we finally planned our trip for Shogran and Naran which was long outstanding. I last visited these places in 1998 so I was going back after 12-13 years. Rather than taking my own car, I decided to rent a car for peace of mind as I was going with my family with small kids. Below you will see the itinerary and total cost of the trip.
Travel Days: 11-14 June 2011
Day 1: Departed from Islamabad at 9am and reached Shogran around 5pm after taking various stops on the way for lunch, tea, sightseeing etc. We were also forced to go off route to find petrol in Mansehra as it was short. We spend the night at Shogran. The road condition was very good till Shogran.
Day 2: Left for Sripayee again at 9 in the morning. Stayed there for 2-3 hours and came back around 1.00pm and left straight for Naran. The road condition to Naran was also good except at 3-4 points where road was damaged due to Land slide and alternate routes were made and only 1 lane was allowed to move at a moment. Similarly at one point, we have to go through 2-3 feet deep water for about 10 yards. Any way we reached Naran around 6pm and took a room in Sarhad Tourism Corporation Motel (STC motel).
Day 3: Left for Lake Saiful Malook at 8.30 in the morning and stayed there for a couple for hours. We had our breakfast at the lake and took a tour around lake on horses (recommended). We reached back to Naran around 1.30pm. The road to Saiful Malook is much wider and better now as compared to old road (but not good for thrill ride J). The road from Shogran to Sripayee is still very narrow and steep. Anyway, we left Naran after having our lunch. Reached Balakot around 6.30pm and stayed there for the night.
Day 4: Left for Islamabad at 9am, did breakfast on the way and reached home at 2.30pm
Total Cost
Rent a car without fuel: Toyota Xli Rs 2,500/per day (Total 4 days so Rs 10,000)
CNG total Trip: 410+320+170= Rs 930
Petrol: Rs 2,500 (we put some extra fuel as fuel was not easily available and we didn’t want to stuck anywhere.)
Room Shogran(Kenloop Cottages): Rs 1,500 (Excellent room with attach bath and hot water)
Jeep to Shogran & Back: Rs 1,850 (we found another couple going to Shogran and shared the jeep with them. So the total cost is Rs, 1,000)
Room Naran (STP Motel) : Rs 2,000 (Again very good and big room with all facilities. We also found a room for Rs 1,500 in another hotel but preferred to stay at STC Motel due to its environment)
Jeep to Saifulmalook: Rs 1,500
Horse Riding Charges around the lake: Rs 300/horse (we had 3 horses so Rs 900 total)
Room Balakot: Rs 1,500 (it was the old hotel destroyed in Earthquake. Now they have a new setup in porta cabins.
Food cost: Roughly Rs 1,000 per day so Rs 4,000. (include breakfast, lunch, dinner & Chaye etc)
So the total cost of the trip was Rs 25,830.
PS: We were planning to Hong Kong and it was almost final but due to some reason, we cancelled the plan at the last moment. Our estimated cost for the 10 day trip to Hong Kong was Rs 55,000/day. Pakistan Zinda Baad as we enjoyed more in fraction of expenses