Historic Babusar Pass closed

ISLAMABAD: Tourists hoping to spend their holidays in Kaghan Valley have been turning away disappointed as the Babusar Pass connecting Gilgit with Kaghan is closed.

Kaghan Valley witnessed a record number of tourists in the first week of July, but the visitors were unable to continue onwards to their destinations due to the closure of the pass. Tourists turning back home said they travelled via Jalkhad, which is located 19 kilometres short of Babusar Pass.

This historic pass attracts many tourists every year. This year most visitors will probably miss trekking in Gilgit-Baltistan because of the closure of the pass.

Najeeb Ahmed Khan of Himalayan Holidays, a tour operator and vice president of the private tour operators association, said the closure of the Babusar Pass will adversely affect tourism at a time when the government is working hard to restore trade and travel in Pakistan’s northern regions.

Due to difficulties like this travel agencies in the area have tried to look beyond traditional holiday packages to add to their income.

Khan’s travel agency has launched short trekking adventures and camping trips for locals and has called it “Discover your own country.”

“As international tourists’ visits to Pakistan declined, we took up this initiative and started short trekking and camping holidays for families in Naran and Saiful Muluk,” Khan said.

The initiative, according to him, has the backing of the people ofNaran and Kaghan because the new budget- holidays can accommodate an average family’s needs and constraints.

This year Himalayan Holiday also launched a campaign called “One Tourist, Three Trees,” which links tourism with ecological awareness.

“We’ve set a target to plant 30,000 trees and the last tree of the year will be planted in Cholistan near the Derawar Fort on August 30,” Khan said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 7^th, 2010.