Help For Travellers of Gilgit Baltistan

[nagar1]

As covid restrictions eased out and babusar and other spots opened people rushed towards the area...thats the main reason

[mustafasethi]

Friday, saturday and sunday's are like this plus any other holiday.

I visited Kalam on Saturday and it took me 4 hours to reach Kalam (40 km) from Bahrain due to rush situation. I left lahore at 10:30 pm and reached Kalam at around 3.30 pm next day.

[nagar1]

Further to my comment earlier, WHen babusar road is opened fresh, the glaciers on the road are not cleared fully so one vehicle can pass at a time. This causes long queues on both sides waiting for their turn. Many times vehicles get stuck on some bad patch of road that also causes blockades

[nagar1]

Are you traveling to Naran?

Some points to remember so that you can reach Naran without getting stuck in rush & fuss! The purpose of this post is not to scare you all but to share my experience so that you won't stuck while traveling.

1. Try to cross areas Rajwal till Naran bazar before 3pm. Otherwise road will be blocked till midnight for 2 reasons:
   Reason 1: there is construction from Rajwal till Naran, and it takes hours to cross. It took us around 3 hrs to cross - from 7:10pm to 10:15pm.
   Reason 2: nallah get flooded / overflow on the roads at many places. Saw so many cars who were stuck under water or over heated. Pls keep car-coollant with you.

2. There is only one ATM in Naran - Bank Islamic. Pls keep good enough cash with you.

3. Only Two petrol pumps in Naran. They fuel petrol / diesel for only 1k rupees even you car's fuel tank is empty.

4. If kids are traveling with you, like my nephew's traveled with me on this weekend, must have enough eatables / milk and diapers with you. Pls must keep garbage bags with you so that you won't litter on the roads. On our trip we used 6 garbage bags in 3 days trip.

5. Don't overtake or make double line. It will create fuss as cars from other side can't pass due to road blockage.

Have patience. Relax and Drive!
From a FB page

[drimranarif]

Point 3 isnt right .. i got my car's tank full from naran pump ..which is on bazar road

[drimranarif]

Though one shouldnt conpletely rely on petrol pumps in Naran

[izeeshanali1]

@nagar1 bhai I am planning a 6-7 days trip to hunza and Khunjerab pass from lahore in 1st week of july.
I am applying for leaves at my office. If I get more leaves then I am going hunza. I not then I will plan 4-5 day trip to neelum valley. But I am inclined to go to hunza as I have never been there.

Can you plz help me make itinerary for 6-7 days?
I will be on Toyota Yaris, with family and three kids (8, 5, 2.5). I will probably leave at midnight from Lahore. I like to travel as much as I can on 1st day and then lesser driving on next days. Plz help me with attractions, lakes easily accessible (I think lulusar, ataabad and borith), stopovers, hotels (economical but clean/family hotels) and other tips.

[nagar1]

Aoa.
Leaving midnighr from lahore will help u avoid the rush but make sure u sleep well the day befor bcoz driving in mountains with tired eyes can get problems
Day 1 lahore to naran
Day 2 naran to hunza covering lulusar lake babusar top
Day hunza roam around ,eagles nest, attaabad
Day 3 Hunza Khunjerab covering borith lake; passu cones ,hussaini bridge and on return you may stay at sost as travelling back to hunza may get very hectic
Day 4 sost to nagar ,hoper and stay either at hoper or better come back and stay at minapin
Day 5 market shopping etc altit/baltit forts
Day 6 Return
On day 3 you may stay at Sost and then go to Khunjerab pass the next morning i.e day 4 to avoid excursion

[izeeshanali1]

Thanks @nagar1 bhai.
I think that I should try to reach Batakundi on day 1. Based on your suggestions and a little bit changes plz tell me if this is practical or not?
1: Lahore to Batakundi,
2: Batakundi to Hunza (Lulusar/Babusar),
3: Hunza to Sost (covering Borith lake, attaabad lake, pasu, hussaini)
4: Sost to Khunjerab and back to Hunza. (If time permits then do a round trip of eagles nest.
5: Stay in hunza (covering Altit, Baltit etc)
6: Hunza to Nagar/Hoper and try to return till Gilgit at least
7: Back to Lahore
Plz tell me what are attractions in Nagar?
Is rakaposhi view point on KKH or off it?
And what about 3 mountain ranges point?

[nagar1]

No issues with your plan. However if u dont have anything specific to do in gilgit dont go there. Nothing to see other than traffic.
Rakaposhi viw point is on KKH (ghulmit nagar)
In nagar u can go to Hoper glacier (just for viewing from top bcoz it wouldnt be feasible with small children to trek down.
Minapen is a village no specific tourist points. You can stay in minapin nagar) instead of staying in hunza (osho thang and hills n huts hotels very good for families to stay but book in advance)
The 3 ranges point is in Juglot (before hunza tyrn on KKH)

[izeeshanali1]

On day 6, if not gilgit then I would like to come back a few hours at least to somewhere near gilgit and stay night there so that last day has a realistic driving plan back to Lahore.

[nagar1]

Hoper glacier view point

[izeeshanali1]

Which day to stay in Minapin?
Or you mean all nights in hunza to be replaced by minapin?

[nagar1]

Why not stay at chillas...you can book room in shangrilla chillas if budget is not a problem.other reasonable hotels are available on main KKH in chillas

[nagar1]

Hills n huts minapen

[izeeshanali1]

Is it practical to do nagar hoper and then return till chillas?
Budget wise, I would like moderate charges hotels. Not too costly, yet suitable for family.

[nagar1]

Osho thang minapen
Both hotels have their facebook pages u may contact for bookings

[nagar1]

Yes instead of staying in hunza stay in minapen with rakaposhi view from hotel​

[izeeshanali1]

Yes this is a great idea I guess to stay in minapin instead of hunza. Less rush is always better

[nagar1]

You may skip hoper if u dont feel like going. Basically its my village so i i try to convince everyone to go ther​hunza chillas is not a problen in terms of distance and time