Abbottabad Day Trip from Islamabad: Route, Plan and Food

An Abbottabad day trip from Islamabad is easy to do: the city is about 120 km away, one and a half to two hours each way on the M-1 and the Hazara Motorway, leaving at the Havelian interchange. Leave by 7 am, spend the morning at Shimla Hill and the Ilyasi Mosque, eat pakoras by the mosque's spring, give the afternoon to the stream at Harnoi, and start back by about 5 pm.

This guide sets out the drive, a timed plan for the day, two other ways to spend it (Thandiani, or a loop through the Galiyat), where to eat, and when a day trip works best.

The drive: Islamabad to Abbottabad on the Hazara Motorway

The fast way is almost all motorway:

1. Islamabad to the Hazara interchange at Burhan. Take the M-1 west towards Peshawar and turn north at Burhan, near Hasan Abdal.
2. The Hazara Motorway to Havelian. A wide, quick six-lane road past Hattar and Haripur. Leave at the Havelian interchange.
3. Havelian to Abbottabad. Roughly 10 km north on the N-35, the old Karakoram Highway, into the city.

On a clear morning the whole drive takes about an hour and a half. Allow two hours on a weekend, or if you are starting from Rawalpindi.

From 10 July 2026 the Hazara Motorway toll for a car between Hasan Abdal and Mansehra is PKR 400, and you pay for your stretch of the M-1 as well. The motorways run on M-Tag, so make sure yours is working and topped up. Our Hazara Motorway guide explains every interchange and the latest on M-Tag.

A variation: if you want to add the water sports at Khanpur Dam, go out via the GT Road to Taxila and the Khanpur road, and join the motorway at the Haripur interchange afterwards. That makes a very long day; our Khanpur Dam guide covers the route.

A one-day plan

This plan keeps the driving short and puts the stream at Harnoi in the warm afternoon.

A few notes on the plan:

• Shimla Hill first. Go while the morning is still cool; the view over the valley gives you the lie of the land for the rest of the day.
• The cantonment is optional. St Luke's, consecrated in 1864, is a working church, so you may only see it from outside. Skip it if you would rather have longer at Harnoi.
• Check Harnoi before you commit. Since 2025 the administration has closed access to the stream when there is a flood risk, and in August 2026 it banned entering the water under Section 144. In the monsoon, plan on tea beside the stream, not in it.

Our list of places to visit in Abbottabad has more on each stop, and on Sajikot waterfall if you would rather go south of the city.

Two other ways to spend the day

The Thandiani version

Thandiani is a forested ridge at about 2,750 metres, and the best view in the area. Swap Shimla Hill and the cantonment for it:

1. Leave Islamabad at 6:30 am and drive straight through Abbottabad.
2. At Nawanshehr, turn onto the Thandiani road and climb for roughly 21 km, about an hour on a narrow hill road.
3. Spend two hours at the top. Take water and snacks; don't count on finding much to buy.
4. Come down to the Ilyasi Mosque for a late lunch of pakoras, then go on to Harnoi or head home.

Don't try this in heavy snow. In February 2026 snow blocked the link roads to Thandiani and the Galiyat, and the district administration told tourists to stay away.

The Galiyat loop

For a longer day, make a circle: out on the Hazara Motorway to Abbottabad, up through Harnoi to Nathia Gali, about 35 km from the city, then back to Islamabad through Murree, about 85 km. It is roughly 240 km in all, and it puts the Galiyat's forest and cool air in the middle of the day.

The loop works best on a weekday, because the Murree side is where the traffic builds on summer weekends and holidays. In winter snow can close the Galiyat road, and the administration stops tourist traffic at Harno and Barian in bad spells. Our guide to the drive from Islamabad to Nathia Gali covers the Murree side.

Where to eat

Abbottabad is a food stop more than a food destination, but the day has three good moments to eat:

• Breakfast in the city. Abbottabad has no shortage of simple places for parathas, eggs and tea, and after an early start it is worth sitting down for one.
• Pakoras at the Ilyasi Mosque. The stalls outside the mosque at Nawanshehr have been frying pakoras for decades, and eating them with tea by the spring is the best-known food experience in Abbottabad.
• Tea by the stream at Harnoi. Simple food from the stalls along the road and river. Ask the price of the charpoy and each dish before you sit down, and carry cash.

For a proper sit-down lunch, the city has family restaurants serving karahi, barbecue and chapli kebab, most of them along the main roads. If you are doing the Thandiani version, eat in the city or at Nawanshehr, and take food up with you.

When is the best time for a day trip?

• March and April are cool and often wet: March is one of the rainiest months of the year in Abbottabad.
• May and June are warm and drier, with average highs of about 28 to 30°C at 1,256 metres, a welcome change from the plains.
• July and August bring the monsoon, and July is the wettest month. Rain can close the stream at Harnoi and bring landslides onto the hill roads. Check the forecast the night before.
• September to November is the driest spell, with October and November averaging under 50 mm of rain. It is the best time for views from Shimla Hill and Thandiani.
• December to February is cold, with night-time lows around freezing, and snow can close Thandiani and the Galiyat for days. The city itself is fine for a day out, but keep the plan flexible.

Day trip or overnight?

A day trip is enough for the city sights and Harnoi, and for Thandiani if you start early. It suits families who want a break from Islamabad without packing bags.

Stay a night if you want both Thandiani and the Galiyat, or if you have young children who won't enjoy four hours in the car in one day. Abbottabad is also a sensible first night on a longer drive north to Naran or the Kaghan valley. If you would like us to plan a longer trip through Hazara, send us your plans.

Frequently asked questions