Places to Visit in Neelum Valley, from Kutton to Taobat

The best places to visit in Neelum Valley, in order up the river, are Kundal Shahi and Kutton, Keran and Upper Neelum, Dowarian and Ratti Gali Lake, Sharda and its ruins, Kel and Arang Kel, the Shounter valley, and Taobat at the far end. Everything up to Sharda can be reached by car. From Sharda to Kel a jeep is often the better choice, and beyond Kel, or up any of the side valleys to the lakes, a jeep is the only way.

The list below runs south to north, in the order you meet each place on the road from Muzaffarabad. For each one it gives the time to allow and how you get there, so you can see quickly what fits into your days.

The lower valley: Muzaffarabad to Athmuqam

Dhani waterfall

About 38 km from Muzaffarabad, the Dhani waterfall drops about 15 metres beside the Neelum road near Nauseri. It is not a destination, but it is the first real stop in the valley and a good place to stretch after the drive from Islamabad. Park carefully: the road is narrow and busy here, and there have been serious accidents on this stretch.

Kundal Shahi and the Kutton waterfall

Kundal Shahi, about 74 km from Muzaffarabad and at 1,357 metres, is where the Jagran river joins the Neelum. The waterfall usually called the Kutton waterfall is close to the Kundal Shahi bazaar, and most people stop here for tea. It also gives its name to the Kundal Shahi language, spoken by a small local community and endangered as younger people shift to Hindko.

Kutton and the Jagran valley

From Kundal Shahi a side road climbs up the Jagran valley to Kutton, at about 1,500 metres, among forest and orchards. It is greener and quieter than the main valley road, and the stream is known for trout. Kutton has an AJK Tourism rest house and private guesthouses, which makes it a good first night for anyone who would rather not drive all the way to Keran on day one.

Allow half a day for the detour, or stay the night. A normal car manages the road to Kutton; ask locally before going further up the valley.

Athmuqam

The district headquarters of Neelum, at about 1,400 metres, with a bazaar, banks, a hospital and fuel. Not a sight in itself, but the place to top up the tank and buy anything you have forgotten.

Keran and around

Keran

Keran, 93 km from Muzaffarabad at 1,524 metres, is the most visited place in the lower valley and the usual first night. Here the Neelum is the Line of Control, and the village on the far bank is in Indian-held Kashmir, close enough to see its houses clearly. Walk down to the river in the late afternoon, and follow what the soldiers on duty say about where you can go.

Keran has plenty of hotels and guesthouses, and a night here is the right introduction to the trip.

Upper Neelum

Above Keran, a short, steep drive of 10 to 20 minutes leads up to the village of Upper Neelum, which looks down over Keran, the river and both sides of the valley. Go early in the morning or in the evening. Ask at your hotel whether your car will manage the road; local jeeps also make the trip.

Baboon valley

A high meadow reached by a long jeep track from the Upper Neelum side. It is a full-day trip by 4x4, in summer only, with a local driver who knows the track. Ask in Keran about the track's condition before you commit.

Dowarian and Ratti Gali Lake

Dowarian, about 13 km beyond Keran, is a small village on the main road and the starting point for Ratti Gali Lake, one of the best-known lakes in Azad Kashmir. The lake lies at about 3,680 metres in a bowl of high meadows.

Getting there is a full day. A jeep takes you up about 16 to 19 km of rough track from Dowarian to the base camp, which takes one and a half to two and a half hours, and then you walk to the lake: 40 minutes for a fit walker, up to two hours for others. Horses are available at the base camp. There is a campsite below the lake for those who want to stay the night.

The track is usually open from around July to September and closed by snow for the rest of the year; our Ratti Gali Lake guide covers the jeep, the walk and the base camp in detail. Go early, and turn back if the weather closes in; the jump from the valley floor to 3,680 metres is a big one for a single day.

Sharda

Sharda and Sharda Peeth

Sharda, 136 km from Muzaffarabad at 1,981 metres, is a riverside town where the valley widens. Above it stand the ruins of Sharda Peeth, a temple and a centre of learning between about the 6th and 12th centuries, and one of the best-known historical sites in Kashmir. The walk up takes about twenty minutes from the bazaar, the last part up a flight of stone steps. Allow an hour there.

Sharda has hotels, guesthouses and a bazaar, and it is a good second night on the way up. It is also where many visitors leave their car and take a jeep for the rough road to Kel.

Noori Top

From Sharda a jeep track climbs over Noori Top and down to Jalkhad on the Naran side, linking Neelum with the Kaghan valley. It is open only in summer, narrow and unpaved, and it is a crossing to plan properly with a local jeep and driver rather than a detour to add on a whim.

Kel and Arang Kel

Kel

Kel, about 156 km from Muzaffarabad at 2,097 metres, sits where the Shounter stream joins the Neelum. It is a small town with a bazaar, a bank, hotels and a government rest house, and it is the base for everything in the upper valley: the chairlift to Arang Kel, the jeep track into the Shounter valley and the road to Taobat.

The 20 km from Sharda to Kel is the roughest part of the main road, around an hour. Cars do reach Kel in dry weather, driven slowly; after rain, or in a low car, take a jeep from Sharda.

Arang Kel

Arang Kel, at 2,554 metres, is the reason many people come to Neelum at all: a village of wooden houses on a grassy shelf high above Kel, with forest around it and a meadow rising behind. There is no road. You cross the river from Kel by chairlift and then walk up a steep path for 30 minutes to an hour, or walk the whole way from Kel in about two hours.

As a day visit, allow at least half a day from Kel, and more on summer weekends, when the chairlift queue can take two hours or longer. Better still, stay the night in one of the huts or guesthouses at the top and see the meadow empty in the morning.

The Shounter valley, Shounter Lake and Chitta Katha

From Kel a jeep track runs up the Shounter valley. Shounter Lake, at about 3,100 metres, is roughly three hours from Kel by jeep and makes a long day out in summer. Further up the valley, Chitta Katha Lake is a proper trek: a jeep to the village of Domel, then several hours' walk up to a high glacial lake, usually done with a night of camping. Both are for July to September, with a local driver and, for Chitta Katha, a guide.

Beyond Kel: Janawai, Halmat and Taobat

Beyond Kel the main road becomes a jeep track, about 39 km to Taobat, through villages such as Janawai, Phulawai and Halmat. The valley feels more remote with every village, and far fewer visitors come this far. The road is rough and takes several hours by jeep.

Taobat, at about 2,300 metres and roughly 200 km from Muzaffarabad, is the last village in the valley, where the Neelum enters from the Indian-held side. It has an AJK Tourism motel and a number of small guesthouses. It is too far for a comfortable return trip from Kel in a day, so plan to stay the night, and keep it for the May to October season: in winter the road is 4x4-only at best and often blocked.

Which places should you choose?

With two or three days, stay in the lower and middle valley: Kundal Shahi, Keran and Upper Neelum, and Sharda if you have the third day. Arang Kel is possible on a three-day trip but rushed.

With five days, add Kel and a proper day or a night at Arang Kel. This is the trip most people should aim for, and what our five-day itinerary is built around.

With a week, add Ratti Gali in season, the Shounter valley or Taobat, each with its own day and a local jeep.

With older parents or small children, focus on Keran, Kutton and Sharda, where you can drive to the door. Arang Kel is gentle in altitude but the path is steep, and the lakes need long jeep rides and a big jump in height.

If you have to choose one place above Keran, choose Arang Kel. If you have to choose between Ratti Gali and Arang Kel, Arang Kel is easier and open for longer; Ratti Gali is wilder but needs a whole day and a short summer window. Our guide to the best time to visit Neelum Valley sets out which places open when, and our Islamabad route guide shows how far each one is by road.

Our five-day Neelum Valley Escape takes in Keran, Sharda, Kel and a night at Arang Kel, and our Kashmir page introduces the rest of the region.

Frequently asked questions