Experience the best of Gilgit

Gilgit lies on the Gilgit River, close to where it is joined by the Hunza, in a dry valley ringed by some of the highest mountains on earth. It is the regional centre of Gilgit-Baltistan and a stop on the Karakoram Highway, with bazaars, a polo ground and a seventh-century Buddha carved into a rock face at Kargah, a short way outside.

From Gilgit, roads lead north into the Hunza Valley beneath Rakaposhi, and west into the green valleys of Naltar and Ghizer. To the south, Nanga Parbat, the ninth-highest mountain in the world, rises above the Indus gorge, and the meadows at its foot can be reached on foot. Skardu and the Deosai plateau lie east.

Chapshuro, a flatbread filled with spiced meat, is the dish of the region, along with dried apricots and walnuts from the surrounding orchards. In April the apricot trees blossom in the valleys. The summer months are warm and dry in town and cool in the high valleys, while winters bring snow to the mountains.