16 Days tour of Tour of Afghanistan
Day 01: Kabul:
when you Arrive in Kabul we pick you up from the airport and take you to our office for briefing. If there is time then we will be able to
show you some of the places of interest in the city. This can include some of the
following Kabul Museum, Old
Palace, Babur Shah’s Garden / Palace, Birds Market known as one of the oldest streets/ Markets in Kabul, Abdul Rahman Khan’s Mausoleum, King Zahar’s Shah’s,
and His father Tombs, Omer Land Mind Museum, TV Towers Mountain where you can
have a great view of Kabul City, (Overnight Guest House)
Day 2: Fly Kabul – Herat:
On arrival at Herat we will go to hotels and have
lunch. than start the tour which is including
Citadel (Qala-I-Ikhtiyaruddin). Ghorid and timurid tiling .
visit to the Friday Mosque (Masjid-I-Jami). – the most stunning mosque in the world, though the inhabitants of Mazahar-I-
Sharif and Samarqand might disagree. There is an opportunity to see a famous 14th
Century bronze cauldron, alleged to be Tamurlane’s sherbet bowl, in the courtyard.
You will also be able to see the tile factory, which claims to be the oldest in the
world and probably dates back to the 12th century, where tiles are still made in the
traditional manner. (Overnight Hotel )
Day 3: Herat
For the early risers, there will be a visit to the old town to explore the bazaar. The
rest of the morning will be spent visiting the 15th century Musalla complex that
includes the Minarets of Gohar Shad and her Mausoleum. Gohar Shad was the wife
of Shah Rukh, son of Tamurlane. Herat is a great place to go carpet shopping. There
are opportunities to purchase both new and antique carpets from a number of
different establishments including a large building filled entirely by carpet sellers. For most Afghans, carpets are a major purchase; equivalent to a westerner buying a car and the negotiation may take a number of visits. In the late afternoon we will visit the tomb of the two princes, followed by a picnic dinner at local places . (Overnight hotel )
Day 4: Fly Herat – Kabul:
we recommend an early morning visit to the Friday
Mosque before a midday flight to Kabul. On arrival in Kabul we will return to the hotel to relax . In the afternoon we will visit the Sandy Gall Afghanistan Appeal centre. new city kabul
(Overnight Hotel)
Day 5: Kabul – Charikar – Bamiyan:
we drive north across the Shomali Plains, through to where we will have an early lunch in a local restaurant . After lunch we drive over the Shibar pass (3285m), the watershed of the Indus and Oxus river systems, and then down to Bamiyan, which is approximately an 8-hour drive. (Overnight Noor band Qala Hotel )
Day 6: Bamiyan:
The early risers may want to use this opportunity to take some photographs of the
Hindu Kush, the remains of the Buddhas and the early morning activities of the
inhabitants of Bamiyan. After breakfast we will visit the Buddhas; and if we are still
able, explore the surrounding cliffs that are riddled with caves that contain carvings
and frescos. Unfortunately it destroyed almost all of this. We then drive a
short distance to the base of the Shahr-I-Golgola, which was destroyed by Genghis
Khan in 1221. Genghis had destroyed Balkh and sent his teenage grandson with an
army to capture Bamiyan. The people of Bamiyan resisted and Genghis’s grandson
was killed. Genghis besieged and destroyed Golgola in revenge. If we do not explore
the Shar-I-Zohak on the way to Bamiyan we hike up it, too. After lunch in the new
Bazaar, we drive from city of Bamyan to the Valley of the Dragon (Darya Ajdhahar). This massive rock
formation is alleged to be the remains of a dragon that persecuted the villagers until
Hazrat Ali, cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed, killed it. The story is
reminiscent of St George and the Dragon. In the late afternoon you will return to
Bamiyan (Overnight Noor band Qala Hotel)
Day 7: Bamiyan – Band-I-Amir – Bamiyan:
we continue our trip from Bamyan to Band-I-Amir. They are beautiful – the
water varies in color from turquoise to deep blue-black from lake to lake. Don’t
assume that photographs of the lakes have had their color touched up – they really
are these coolers, tinted by the mineral salts in the springs that feed the lakes. In
the late afternoon we will return to Bamiyan (Overnight Noor band Qala Hotel)
Day 8: Pamyan – Kabul:
(Over night Guest House)
Day 9: Kabul – Mazahar-I-Sharif:
We continue our journey and drive to Mazahar-I-Sharif, which means ‘Tomb of the Exalted’ and is believed to be the burial place of the prophet’s son-in-law Ali. The tomb is in a magnificent tiled building surrounded by flocks of white doves. If a grey one joins them, it is said, it will become white in a month. Mazahar is not only a center of carpet production in Afghanistan but also one of the centers of the Central Asian carpet trade, and the most beautiful carpets from all over Central Asia can be found in the bazaars. ( over night Hotel)
Day 10: Mazahar-I-Sharif:
Today we will spend all day exploring this northern stronghold giving us have plenty of time to see the famous mosque and other sights nearby. (Hotel)
Day 11: Mazahar-I-Sharif – Balkh – Mazahar-I-Sharif:
We spend the morning exploring the nearby city of Balkh before returning to spend the late afternoon. (over night Samer Walid Hotel )
Day 12: Mazahar-I-Sharif – Kabul:
We will leave early and drive south to cross the Hindu Kush via the 3363m high
Salang Tunnel. This tunnel was built by the Soviets from 1958 and opened in 1964.
In 1979 they used it to transport their tanks over the Hindu Kush before the
advance on Kabul. A vital strategic prize in the civil war, the tunnel has now been
repaired and allows an easy crossing back into Southern Afghanistan. We then drive
part of the way across the Shomali plain to Charikar and back to Kabul (Hotel)
Day 13/14: Kabul – Pul-I-Sayot – Panishir:
This morning we will be up at first light drive back up into the Panishir Valley, the
legendary stronghold of Commander Ahmad Shah Masood. When Afghanistan was
on the tourist trail, Panjshir’s proximity to Kabul combined with its astonishing
natural beauty made it most people’s first destination in the country. It was also
conveniently accessed from Pakistan by journalists covering the Russian and Taliban
wars when its geographical situation, and the brilliance of its mujahedeen
commander, the great Ahmed Shah Masood, made it unconquerable. Masood
defeated the Russians here fifteen times, and so comprehensively that they stopped
trying to capture it. Most of the television footage of the war shown in the West was
shot here. The river has a narrow and extremely fertile flood plain and is famous for
its fruit. However the sides are steep mountains, which is why it is so defensible. In
the spring, watered by the melting snow these mountainsides are dark green giving
an impression of overwhelming fertility. We will visit Masood’s grave and his
headquarters at Astana returning to spend one nights in the village of Pul-iSayot
giving us plenty of time to explore. ( Over night you can sleep in Pal e Sayad in
Small Cafe house or a local restaurant , see the stars over night or return to Kabul stay
overnight in Guest House and return next morning to Pol e Sayad which is a great
Afghan Picnic area all Afghans go there to enjoy the fresh air see the beauty of the
of the area do the horsing riding and have a lunch of fresh fish from local river)
Day 15: Pul-I-Sayot – Istalift – Kabul:
After a leisurely start, we visit Istalif before driving back to Kabul and spending the night at the hotel
Day 16: Kabul:
All day to enjoy the Afghan capital – we will visit the museum, the royal palace and Chicken Street – before enjoying a farewell dinner. (Hotel)