Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Area: 803,940 sq km
Population: 172,800,000
Population density: 206 per sq km
Capital: Islamabad
Area: 803,940 sq km
Population: 172,800,000
Population density: 206 per sq km
Capital: Islamabad
Pakistan country information
Passport & visa | Getting there | Cycling & maps | Cost of living | Accommodation | Food | Bike shops | Climate | Distances
Passport & Visa
| Passport Required? | |
|---|---|
| British | Yes |
| Australian | Yes |
| Canadian | Yes |
| USA | Yes |
| Other EU | Yes |
| Visa Required? | |
| British | Yes |
| Australian | Yes |
| Canadian | Yes |
| USA | Yes |
| Other EU | Yes |
Passports
Passport valid for six months
beyond the intended length of stay required
by all nationals referred to in the chart above.
Visas
Required
by all nationals referred to in the chart above
except:
(a) holders of a Pakistan Origin Card (POC) regardless
of nationality for unlimited stay;
(b) transit passengers continuing their journey
within 24 hours by the same or first connecting
aircraft, provided they are holding onward or
return documentation and not leaving the airport;
(c) holders of UN laissez-passer.
Note: Nationals not referred
to in the chart above are advised to contact the
high commission/embassy to check visa requirements.
Visa Restrictions:
The government of Pakistan refuses admission and transit to nationals of Israel; but will accept other passports containing Israeli stamps or visas.
Types of Visa and Cost
Price of
visa varies according to nationality. For UK nationals,
prices are: Tourist: £53 (single-entry);
£76 (double-entry); £240 (multiple-entry).
Business: £80 (single-entry); £114 (double-entry);
£240 (multiple-entry). Transit: £53.
Pilgrim: £53 (single-entry).
Note: A £1 bank surcharge per application for a visa is required. Certain nationals are issued visas free of charge, but they must be obtained prior to travel. For further information, consult the high commission or embassy.
Note: A £1 bank surcharge per application for a visa is required. Certain nationals are issued visas free of charge, but they must be obtained prior to travel. For further information, consult the high commission or embassy.
Validity
Single-entry/Double-entry:
six months from the date of issue for stays of
up to three months. Multiple-entry: six
months to one year.
Applications to:
Consulate
(or consular section at embassy or high commission).
Working Days Required
Depends on
nationality (in UK, visas are normally granted
within 24 to 48 hours). Enquire at the nearest
consulate or embassy. Pilgrim visas require two
months' processing time.
Note tour.tk: extensions of up to 30 days avaliable in (among others) Gilgit and Islamabad. Gilgit issues extensions on the spot, in Islamabad it can take one working week.
Note tour.tk: extensions of up to 30 days avaliable in (among others) Gilgit and Islamabad. Gilgit issues extensions on the spot, in Islamabad it can take one working week.
Getting there
Getting There by Air
The national airline is Pakistan
International Airlines (PK) (website:
www.piac.com.pk
).
Approximate Flight Times
From London
to Karachi is 8 hours 40 minutes, and
from New York is 21 hours
40 minutes.
Main Airports
Karachi (KHI) (Jinnah
International Airport) (website:
www.karachiairport.com
) is 15km (10 miles) northeast of the city.
To/from the airport: Coaches
and a bus run to the city. Taxi services
to the city are also available (journey
time - 30 to 45 minutes). Facilities:
Duty-free, restaurant, post office, bank and
shops.
Lahore (LHE) (website: www.lahoreairport.com.pk ) is 18km (5 miles) southeast of the city. To/from the airport: Coaches and buses leave regularly for the city. Taxi services to the city are also available (journey time - 20 minutes). Facilities: Car hire, bank, restaurant and shops.
Islamabad (ISB) (Islamabad International) (website: www.islamabadairport.com.pk ) is 8km (5 miles) southeast of the city. To/from the airport: Coach and taxi services to the city are available (journey time - 20 minutes). Facilities: Duty-free, car hire, banks and public call office.
Peshawar (PEW) is 4km (2.5 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Full bus and taxi services to the city are available (journey time - 10 minutes).
Lahore (LHE) (website: www.lahoreairport.com.pk ) is 18km (5 miles) southeast of the city. To/from the airport: Coaches and buses leave regularly for the city. Taxi services to the city are also available (journey time - 20 minutes). Facilities: Car hire, bank, restaurant and shops.
Islamabad (ISB) (Islamabad International) (website: www.islamabadairport.com.pk ) is 8km (5 miles) southeast of the city. To/from the airport: Coach and taxi services to the city are available (journey time - 20 minutes). Facilities: Duty-free, car hire, banks and public call office.
Peshawar (PEW) is 4km (2.5 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Full bus and taxi services to the city are available (journey time - 10 minutes).
Departure Tax
Rp700-1,400
depending on class of travel. Transit passengers
and children under two years of age are exempt.
Getting There by Water
Main
port: Karachi (Kemari). It is both Afghanistan's
and Pakistan's port for goods, together with Port
Qasim. No passenger boats or ships for
the general public sail to or from Pakistan at
present.
Getting There by Rail
A rail link
extends from Quetta (via the border crossing at
Taftan) to Zahedan, Iran; the express train (journey
time - 27 hours) runs weekly from Quetta, as does
the passenger train, which only travels as far
as Taftan. For more information contact Pakistan
Railways (tel: (42) 920 1642; website:
www.pakrail.com
).
Getting There by Road
From
China: The Khunjerab Pass is often snow-covered
and, during the rainy season (December to April),
it is closed due to the high risk of mudslides.
Transport includes buses, vans and 4-wheel drive
vehicles.
From India: Wagha is the only land border open between Pakistan and India (Lahore-Amritsar route). A minibus runs from Lahore railway station to Wagha and there are also taxis available (journey time - 30 minutes). The Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) operates buses from Lahore to Delhi (journey time - 12 hours). The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) (website: www.dtc.nic.in ) also operates services from Delhi.
From Iran: Travel is only possible via the Quetta-Taftan-Zahedan route. Several buses and coaches leave daily from Quetta to Taftan (journey time - 18 hours). There is also a road from Kabul, Afghanistan to Peshawar.
Note: Visitors exiting Pakistan by land routes are subject to a road toll. Travel to the federally administered tribal areas and the border areas with Afghanistan is not recommended. For further information, visitors should seek official advice.
From India: Wagha is the only land border open between Pakistan and India (Lahore-Amritsar route). A minibus runs from Lahore railway station to Wagha and there are also taxis available (journey time - 30 minutes). The Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) operates buses from Lahore to Delhi (journey time - 12 hours). The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) (website: www.dtc.nic.in ) also operates services from Delhi.
From Iran: Travel is only possible via the Quetta-Taftan-Zahedan route. Several buses and coaches leave daily from Quetta to Taftan (journey time - 18 hours). There is also a road from Kabul, Afghanistan to Peshawar.
Note: Visitors exiting Pakistan by land routes are subject to a road toll. Travel to the federally administered tribal areas and the border areas with Afghanistan is not recommended. For further information, visitors should seek official advice.
Cycling & Maps
  |
Other options (online) for the
northern provinces and KKH: |
Pakistan
Cost of living
Pakistan: All prices are in Pakistani
Rupees (PKR)
| drinks and snacks | food: local markets; restaurants; and stores |
||||
| water (mineral) |
1.5 litre 500ml 250ml 1 litre 355ml 1.5 litre |
25-30 15 15-20 60 35 55 |
Chapatti / roti |
per piece per piece 700g |
4-5 5-7 40 |
| toast - butter omelette dahl vege curry- aloo gobi vege biryani (rice) pizza-bakery |
4 pieces 2-eggs per serving per serving per serving small |
20-25 15-25 20-30 20-30 30-40 50-80 |
|||
| tea tea chai (bazar) tea chai (bazar) coffee (bazar) Nescafe instant coffee-ground |
25 bags cup pot cup 226g 500g |
55 10 20 30 150 70 |
|||
| rice (white) pasta eggs tinned tomatoes |
kg |
40-70 25 40 65 |
|||
| milk yoghurt / curd cheese Magnum icecream |
1 litre 200g kg each |
40-50 |
potatoes onions tomatoes spinach |
kg kg kg kg |
15-25 25 20-40 40 |
| samosa pakora chips salted peanuts almonds |
each 250g 65g pack kg kg |
5-10 30-40 25-30 200-250 300-600 |
apples |
kg kg dozen kg |
45-75 40-70 40-60 60-80 |
| dried apricots cornflakes chocolate biscuits-plain biscuits-chocolate |
kg 375g pack 100g block 140g pack 140g pack |
250 75 40-70 10-20 10-20 |
pineapple (can) oil (corn) |
500g can 500ml |
50 90 |
| peanut paste jam honey |
250g jar 400g jar 250g |
120-160 40 120-150 |
|||
| accommodation | personal | ||||
| budget city hostel budget city hotel |
50-150 per dorm bed 200-600 double with ensuite |
deodorant - roll-on |
50ml 150g bar 200ml each 175ml each each |
100-150 35 160 30-60 25-70 15-25 15-20 |
|
| camping wild camping |
in islamabad 50 per person |
||||
| internet-virus infested internet-fast, good |
30-40 per hour 80+ per hour |
||||
| *
tba = price to be announced * January 2009: at time of writing 1.00 USD = 79.66 PKR all prices have been taken from internet resources such as wikitravel, hostel world, leading supermarket chains, travel blogs, forums and of course our own travel experiences and purchases of everyday products in food markets, bazaars and local shopping facilities. They are only an indication and designed to give you a general impression of the cost of living in Pakistan. Items are geared towards the budget conscious traveller with an occasional craving for a bit of luxury. |
Source:www.exchange-rates.org |
 |
Your first chance
of getting money out of a machine in Pakistan
(when coming from the north) is Abbottabad. Here
they have an MCB (Muslim Commercial Bank) office.
MCB ATM's accept western cards and it is probably
your best choice throughout Pakistan. North of
Abbottabad you can easily exchange euros/dollars
and travellers cheques in Karimabad. The bank
there charged us 1 rupee per dollar exchange,
which is quite allright, considering. |
Bike shops
Although it is hard to find decent
bike shops anywhere in Pakistan, you have a few options.
Lahore has a huge market area catering
only to cyclists (Neela Gumbad area, two blocks east
and opposite from the Lahore Museum). The produce you
can buy here is very basic, but at least you can find
your spare tube here... Best way to find what you're
looking for is to go into the first shop and ask. They
will then do the searching for you... *
Road distances
| Detailed distance chart from our trip through Pakistan 2007 (kilometres / altimetres) | |||
| Road distances Karakoram
Highway and Kaghan Valley Road: |
as cycled by us (July/August 2007) (except *) - altitude in (brackets) |
km |
day
alti meters |
| Kashgar (1354) | Ghez (2390) | 126 |
1200 |
| Ghez | Karakul (3683) | 67 |
1500 |
| Karakul | Tashkurgan (3217) | 100 |
600 |
| Tashkurgan | Pirali | 100* |
|
| Pirali | Khunjerab pass (4733) | 40* |
|
| Khunjerab pass | Sost (2797) | 85* |
|
| Sost | Passu (2543) | 39 |
270 |
| Passu | Gulmit | 15 |
|
| Gulmit | Ganish bridge (2260) | 33 |
|
| Ganish bridge | Karimabad (2463) | 4 |
850 |
| Karimabad | Ghulmet Nagar (2150) | 30 |
|
| Ghulmet Nagar | Chalt turn off (1980) | 19 |
|
| Chalt turn off | Gilgit via KKH (1663) | 59 |
900 |
| Gilgit | Thalichi (1631) | 65 |
650 |
| Thalichi | Rajkot Bridge (1435) | 13 |
|
| Rajkot Bridge | Chilas (1339) | 54 |
550 |
| Chilas | Babusar Pass (4175) | 45* |
|
| Babusar Pass | Gittidas (3900) | 6 |
|
| Gittidas | Besal (3341) | 20 |
270 |
| Besal | Buruwai (3050) | 17 |
|
| Buruwai | Battakundi (2700) | 13 |
|
| Battakundi | Naran (2515) | 16 |
530 |
| Naran | Rajwal (2150) | 17 |
|
| Rajwal | Kaghan (2070) | 6 |
|
| Kaghan | Mahandri (1590) | 16 |
|
| Mahandri | Jard (1550) | 3 |
|
| Jard | Paras (1370) | 12 |
|
| Paras | top climb (1561) | 4 |
|
| top | Kawai (1550) | 2 |
|
| Kawai | Balakot (1096) | 23 |
750 |
| Balakot | turn-off Muzaffarabad (960) | 10 |
|
| t.o. Muzaffarabad | top climb (1226) | 17 |
|
| top | Attar Shisha (1168) | 7 |
|
| Attar Shisha | Mansehra (1158) | 16 |
|
| Mansehra | top climb (1336) | 7 |
|
| top | Mangal (1320) | 3 |
|
| Mangal | Abbottabad (1283) | 15 |
1050 |
| Abbottabad | Havelian (900) | 14 |
|
| Havelian | Sara-i-Saleh (680) | 18 |
|
| Sara-i-Saleh | Haripur (630) | 4 |
|
| Haripur | Hassan Abdal (535) | 33 |
|
| Hassan Abdal | Taxila turn-off (626) | 15 |
300 |
| Taxila | Islamabad (635) | 40 |
250 |
| GT Road from Islamabad to Lahore: | km |
total km |
|
| Islamabad | GT road via Murree Rd. | 28 |
|
| Intersection GT and Murree Rd. | Mandra | 19 |
47 |
| Mandra | Gujar Khan | 14 |
61 |
| Gujar Khan | Sohawa | 18 |
79 |
| Sohawa | Dina | 26 |
105 |
| Dina | Jhelum Cantt | 19 |
124 |
| Jhelum | Kharian | 19 |
143 |
| Kharian | Lahamusa | 14 |
157 |
| Lahamusa | Gujarat turn-off | 15 |
172 |
| Gujarat | Wazirabad turn-off | 24 |
196 |
| Wazirabad | Gujranwala | 32 |
228 |
| Gujranwala | Kamoke | 12 |
240 |
| Kamoke | Muridke | 20 |
260 |
| Muridke | Shahdra | 21 |
281 |
| Shahdra | Lahore | 12 |
292 |
| Lahore | Wagah (border with India) | 30 |
|
| NOT cycled by us, but KKH: | |||
| Chilas | Shatial | 63 |
|
| Shatial | Dasu | 60 |
|
| Dasu | Besham | 80 |
|
| Besham | Chattar Plain | 70 |
|
| Chattar Plain | Mansehra | 50 |
|
