Lahore's walled city is a maze of lanes, carved wooden balconies and small bazaars, entered through old gates such as Delhi Gate. At its northern edge, the Lahore Fort and the red sandstone Badshahi Mosque face each other across a garden courtyard. The Salt Range, between Lahore and Islamabad, is a band of red and grey ridges with a salt mine and Hindu temples in its folds. Near Jhelum, the massive walls of Rohtas Fort run for kilometres over the hills. In the far south, Derawar Fort rises out of the Cholistan desert near Bahawalpur.
What you can do
In Lahore, a guided walk from Delhi Gate passes the tiled Wazir Khan Mosque and ends at the Badshahi Mosque and the fort, with its mirrored Sheesh Mahal. Late in the afternoon, drive east to the Wagah border, where soldiers from both sides stage a loud, high-kicking flag-lowering ceremony before sunset. In the Salt Range, you can walk through the pink tunnels of the Khewra salt mine, then visit the temples around the sacred pond at Katas Raj. Short hiking routes follow the ridges nearby. From Bahawalpur, winter jeep trips cross the desert to Derawar Fort, whose forty bastions stand out across the sand. Taxila, a UNESCO site near Islamabad, makes an easy half-day trip for its Buddhist monasteries and stupas.
Booking on adventuro
Distances across Punjab are long, so most trips work from one base at a time. Use the Book here tab to see live dates and prices from local centres.
