Swat is a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Province of Pakistan. It is the upper valley of the Swat River, which rises in the Hindu Kush range. The capital of Swat is Saidu Sharif, but the main town in the Swat valley is Mingora. It was a princely state (see The Yusafzai State of Swat) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa until it was dissolved in 1969 along with many other princely states like Dir state and Chitral state. The valley is populated mostly by ethnic Pashtuns and Gujjar and Kohistani communities. The languages spoken in the valley are Pashto , Gojri, Torwali and Kohistani. Most non-Pashtoon people of the area are bilingual and fluent in Pashto along with their native languages. Throughout the district, there is a less tendency of ethnic discrimination and all of the inhabitants of Swat refer to themselves as Pashtoon irrespective of the communities they belong to.
With high mountains, green meadows, and clear lakes, it is a place of great natural beauty and is popular with tourists. Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to the The Yusafzai State of Swat called it “the Switzerland of the east.”
Swat is surrounded by Chitral, Upper Dir and Lower Dir in the West, Gilgit-Baltistan in North And Kohistan, Buner and Shangla in the East and south East.
5 Night/ 6 Days
Drive from Islamabad to Saidu Sharif. Arrive and transfer to the hotel. At leisure and overnight stay in Swat.
Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to Kalam – the last prominent Swat town full of natural beauty and alpine forests. Arrive and transfer to the hotel. Overnight stay in Kalam.
Breakfast at the hotel. Day at leisure or an optional tour to Ushu Valley or Mahudand Lake. Overnight stay in Kalam
After breakfast drive to Miandam. Arrive and transfer to the hotel. Overnight stay in Miandam.
Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to Malamjabba- the only ski resort in Swat valley. Afternoon drive to Saidu Sharif. Overnight stay in Swat.
After breakfast drive back to Islamabad.
