Abbottabad

Abbottabad is a city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan, north of Islamabad on the Karakoram Highway. The town is at an altitude of 1250 m (4150 feet) and gets quite a lot of Pakistani tourism, mainly people escaping the hot season in nearby Islamabad, Rawalpindi or Peshawar.

Abroad, the city has gained fame as the place where Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, was shot and killed.

Understand

Painting by James Abbott, near the town

The town was founded as a British district headquarters and military base in the 1850s. It was named for the founder, Major James Abbott (later General Sir James Abbott).

At one time, the city was quite important as a transport hub, a stop on the main route north toward Gilgit and China. Its importance in this role has been somewhat diminished by the completion of the Karakoram Highway.

Get in

From Rawalpindi or Islamabad you can reach Abbottabad by road in less than 3 hours. Daewoo bus service operates more than three services daily for under Rs. 500 per passenger. It is an hour's drive from Nathia Gali which is about 34 km dropping steeply through the beautiful valleys with few trees to the river bed.

Abbottabad is the junction from where you can go to places like Hunza, Gilgit, Skardu and Indus Kohistan, of the Karakoram Range. You can reach Swat, Swati Kohistan, Dir and Chitral of the Hindu Kush. And approach Naran, Saif-ul-Muluk, Shogran and Babusar Pass of the Himalayan Range. Neelum, Lipa and Jhelum Valley of beautiful Azad Kashmir are also connected through Abbottabad.

There is no railway service to Abbottabad, trains terminate in Havelian which is about 30 minutes south of the city.

See

• Mukeshpuri 9800 feet and Miranjani 9750 feet are its highest peaks.
• Ilysi Mosque, Shimla Pahari hill)
• Takaya
• Dodheyal
• Nawansheher Bazaar stairs
• Harno (tourist area with open water)
• Thandiani (~25 km)
• Dhamtoor
• Swinging Bridge near Harno
• 1 St. Luke's Church. Anglican church dedicated to Saint Luke, built in 1864. (updated Jun 2022)
• 2 Old Christian Cemetery. Locally known as Gora Qabristan (white cemetery), this cemetery was established in 1853 and contains dozens of graves of notable colonial figures. (updated Jun 2024)
• 3 Lady Garden Park. (updated Jun 2024)

Do

Trekking, Hiking, Camping, Photography, Golf, Picnic

Abbottabad in addition to being a hill station has some of Pakistan's best educational institutions (e.g. Army Burn Hall School & College, Abbottabad Public School, International Public School, Ayub Medical College, Frontier Medical College, Hazara University). It has therefore become a leading learning seat in Pakistan.

Eat

• Pakoras and fish at Ilyasi Masjid. A lot of people gather there to enjoy those tasty pakoras.
• Kebab of Qalandarabad.

Sleep

• Sarban Hotel
• Jan's Continental Guest House
• Pearl Continental Motel
• Pine Inn Guest House
• Shelton Inn Guest House
• Snow Land Guest House
• Alaf Laila Guest House kaghan colony, opp usmania restaurant, 03459566871
• Devgru Resort & Spa
• Hotel One, Mansehra Road, Near Mirpur Police station. (updated Jun 2019)

Go next

• Nathiagali