Khanpur Dam: Boating, Jet Skis and Cliff Jumping

Khanpur Dam is a reservoir on the Haro River in Haripur district, about 50 km from Islamabad, and the easiest place from the capital for jet skis, boat rides, parasailing and cliff jumping. The drive takes an hour to an hour and a half via Taxila. Private operators run the water sports from jetties around the lake, roughly from morning to sunset, and in 2026 a short jet-ski ride was advertised at around PKR 1,500 to 2,500.

It is a good half-day or day out, but the water is deep and drownings are reported in many summers. This guide covers the drive, what each activity involves and roughly costs, when the lake is at its best, and the safety rules worth keeping.

Getting there from Islamabad

The usual route is west out of Islamabad along the Srinagar Highway, then the GT Road (N-5) towards Taxila. At Taxila, turn north-east onto the Khanpur road, the N-125, which crosses the Haro at Tarnawa bridge and reaches the dam after about 18 km. From central Islamabad it is roughly 50 km. Allow an hour, and an hour and a half on a Sunday or when the GT Road is jammed around Taxila.

If you are coming by motorway, from Lahore or from Abbottabad, leave the Hazara Motorway at the Haripur interchange and drive about 20 km south on the same N-125 to the dam. Our Hazara Motorway guide lists the interchanges.

The last stretch passes through villages, and there is parking near the main dam and at the private resorts along the shore. Some jetties and resorts charge for entry or parking, so carry cash.

What can you do at Khanpur Dam?

All the water sports are run by private operators with their own boats and jetties, most of them near the main dam and at resorts along the shore. The main options:

• Jet skis. The most popular activity, and the quickest. Rides are short, so agree the length in minutes, and who will be driving, before you set off.
• Boat rides. Motorboats take groups out on the reservoir. This is the easiest option for older family members and children.
• Parasailing. You are harnessed to a parachute and towed behind a boat. Operators stop parasailing in strong wind, so it is not available every afternoon.
• Towed rides. Banana boats and inflatable tubes pulled behind a boat, for groups of friends.
• Cliff jumping. A boat takes you into the gorge, where you jump from rock ledges into deep water and climb back into the boat. More on this below.

Some operators also offer kayaking, rock climbing and other extras. What is on offer changes from season to season.

How much does it cost?

There are no fixed public rates. Each operator sets its own, and prices vary with the day, the season and how busy it is. As a rough guide, in 2025 and 2026 operators were advertising:

Prices change from season to season and between operators on the same day. Agree the price, the number of people and the length of the ride before you get in, and pay afterwards if you can.

Cliff jumping: how it works and how to do it safely

Cliff jumping at Khanpur is done from a boat, not from the shore. An operator's boat takes you to a stretch of the gorge with rock ledges of different heights above deep water. You jump, swim a few strokes to the boat and climb back in.

It is safe enough if you treat it seriously:

• Wear the life jacket the operator gives you, fastened properly, for every jump.
• Start low. Try the lowest ledge first, and only go higher if you are comfortable.
• Jump only where the operator tells you, and only when the water below is clear of people and the boat.
• Stay close to the boat. Don't swim off to the shore or across the gorge.
• Don't jump if you can't swim, or after a heavy meal, or if the water level is low and the operator seems unsure.

Is Khanpur Dam safe?

Operators are supposed to provide a life jacket for every activity, though how strictly that is enforced varies, so insist on one. The bigger danger is swimming. The reservoir is deep, and it is easy to slip from the edge into water that is well out of your depth.

Drownings are reported in many summers, and the recent cases have involved friends swimming or bathing without life jackets. In June 2026, two young men from Islamabad drowned near Bhamala village, about 7 km from Khanpur, after jumping in to rescue a friend who had slipped into deep water. In June 2024, two young men from Abbottabad drowned while bathing in the reservoir, and a third man drowned the same day in the Haro near Tarnawa bridge.

After incidents like these, the Haripur deputy commissioner has banned swimming and bathing in the reservoir and the Haro under Section 144, typically for 60 days. Whatever the current order, the rule to follow is simple:

Keep children in life jackets on and near the water, including on the jetties.

When is the best time to go?

The lake level matters more than the weather. Khanpur is a storage reservoir, and it is at its lowest before the monsoon. In July 2025 the level was only nine feet above dead level before the rains, and the monsoon rains then raised it by 37 feet, which, as Dawn reported, revived the water sports.

• After the monsoon, from about August into October, the lake is at its fullest and the heat is easing. This is the best time.
• June and July are hot and busy. Go early in the morning.
• Spring and early summer can mean low water and a much smaller lake.
• Weekends are the busiest time. A weekday gives you the lake at its calmest.

Keep the water clean

Khanpur supplies drinking water to Islamabad and Rawalpindi, which is why the water sports are not always welcome. In January 2025, the executive engineer in charge of the dam ordered operators to stop water sports and take their boats off the reservoir, citing pollution. Boating resumed after a court lifted the ban, but the argument has not gone away. Take all your rubbish back with you, and don't wash anything in the lake.

What else is nearby?

The Buddhist site at Bhamala, on the Haro near the dam, has the remains of a stupa and monastery from around the 2nd century CE. It is a short detour for anyone interested in Gandhara. Taxila, which you drive through on the way, has the museum and the main excavated cities; our list of places to visit in Taxila makes a good pairing for the same day.

Is Khanpur Dam worth it?

It suits groups of friends and families who want an active few hours on the water close to Islamabad, with no overnight stay. With an early start you can do the water sports in the morning and Taxila in the afternoon.

It suits less well anyone who wants a quiet lake: on summer weekends it is crowded and loud. Families with small children who can't swim should stick to the boat rides. For more ideas within a couple of hours of the capital, see our round-up of day trips from Islamabad, or tell us what you have in mind for a longer trip north.

Frequently asked questions