Route guide · updated for 2026
Abbottabad → Skardu
Hazara's hill capital treats Skardu as a neighbourly visit — leave after fajr, cross Babusar before its winds wake, and photograph Katpana the same golden hour.
Distance
500 km
Drive time
10–12 h
Via
Mansehra → Naran → Babusar (seasonal) or Besham KKH
The road, honestly
Abbottabad starts halfway up the map: Naran is three hours, Babusar five. It's the shortest big-city start to Skardu and the classic staging town for KP families doing the Babusar loop.
Stops worth the minutes
MansehraNaranBabusar TopChilasJaglot
FAQ
Questions, answered
Can you reach Skardu from Abbottabad in one day?
Yes in season — 10–12 hours via Babusar with an early start. Via Besham's all-year KKH it stretches to 12–14 hours; most families still do it in one push.
Skip the logistics. Keep the scenery.
Private convoys on this corridor with photo-stop discipline, or the full journey folded into a SafarGB itinerary at Skardu.
More ways to Skardu: from Islamabad · from Rawalpindi · from Lahore · from Karachi · from Multan · from Faisalabad · Skardu guide