Swat valley is located in the Hindukush mountain range in Pakistan. Pakistan is one of the seven south Asian countries. The country has uniqueness as all the three youngest mountain ranges of the world, the Karakorams, The Himalayas and the Hindukush are located in the North of Pakistan. These mountains are still young and growing. Like the other two mountain ranges, Hindukush has few very exciting and beautiful mountain valleys. Swat is one of them.

The valley is lush green and extremely attractive. It is accessible through road network. With the construction of motorway in Pakistan, now it is possible to visit Swat more often. The by road travel is now lesser in duration what it used to be.

Swat is located towards the North West of Peshawar, one of the most populous cities of Pakistan. It is at a drive of around 7 hours from Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. The traveling part was not fun when I visited Swat because the road was under construction in those days. A patch of almost half an hour drive was too bumpy to enjoy. Now the road has been built. After crossing Peshawar, Mardan and Batkhela, you enter Swat valley. The first important destination in Swat is Mengora. This is the most populous city in the Swat valley. The city is quite urbanized and is a popular tourist resort in the summers because of its proximity to the river Swat. This river has gushing waters and surf in the summer season. The flow is at a very fast pace and thus it may be dangerous to enter the river in summers. In winters the flow is lesser in quantity and the river seems to be at peace. From Mengora you can visit Malam Jabba, the most popular skiing resort in Pakistan. The place is extremely cold even in summers but the skiing activity is open only in winters because there us no snowfall in this area in summers. Kalam is the most popular place in Swat valley. Oshu glacier lies near Kalam. Malam Jabba is at a distance of one and a half hour drive from Mengora. Kalam is at a distance of around 3 hours from there.

Carry warm clothes with you and do not forget to keep your camera with you. Unlike the rest of Pakistan, you will not see any women in the whole Swat valley as the concept of Pardah is very strong in the Pathan families of Pakistan. Dry fruits are available in abundance. Do not forget to bargain while buying them.