Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) has been included in a list of the top 25 destinations worth visiting in 2025 curated by US-based broadcaster CNN.
Thousands of tourists and foreign climbers visit the region annually for expeditions on various peaks, paragliding and other activities.
In the list published on Wednesday, CNN Travel said, “The Gilgit-Baltistan region in the Karakoram Mountains isn’t the easiest place to get to — flight schedules can be unreliable, roads can be blocked off seasonally — but it has more tantalising peaks than a lemon meringue pie.
“It’s home to five of the 14 ‘eight-thousander’ peaks recognised as the world’s highest. That includes K2, the world’s second-tallest mountain but No. 1 in terms of difficulty and danger,” the broadcaster said.
CNN Travel added that hiking in GB “makes the Himalayas look like a traipse in Central Park” but added that travelling alone is “not an option”.
The region is very popular with mountaineers, with over 1,700 foreign adventure tourists applying for permits to climb peaks in 2024. Of those, 175 people aimed to scale K2 in the summer, according to a top government official.
GB Tourism Department Deputy Secretary Sajid Hussain told Dawn in July last year that adventure tourism in the region was booming and that of the 1,700 foreign climbers who applied, several were issued permits while the remaining applications were being processed.
Meanwhile, four climbers, including two Pakistani mountaineers, scaled Nanga Parbat (8,125 metres) on July 9.
According to Alpine Club of Pakistan secretary Karar Haidri, four members of the Seven Summits Nanga Parbat expedition team — Lhakpa Temba Sherpa and Pemba Sherpa from Nepal, and Dilawar Hussain and Fida Ali from Pakistan — successfully reached the peak.
Similarly, despite bad weather conditions, 11 climbers including a three-member Pakistani expedition team, successfully summited Gasherbrum-II on July 23.
“The expedition faced several challenges. Ebrahim Makda had to abandon his summit attempt due to a foot injury, while Wajidullah Nagri was forced to turn back from Camp 2 because of illness,” said Haidri in a Facebook post.
“Despite these difficulties, the team’s successful ascent is a remarkable milestone for Pakistani mountaineering.”
Meanwhile, on July 22, the prime minister’s aide on climate change Romina Khurshid Alam announced that the government would establish a world-class mountaineering school in GB to promote sustainable and environmentally-friendly climbing.
The school aimed to equip aspiring mountaineers and climbers with the skills and knowledge needed to safely enjoy mountains while respecting the local environment, values and cultures of the communities living in the area.
“This initiative also seeks to create new employment opportunities for local communities and promote sustainable mountaineering and climbing,” she said.
