Khyber Pakhtunkhwa · 1,900 – 2,200 m
Three valleys, four thousand people, and a religion older than the region.
The place
Bumburet, Rumbur and Birir are home to the Kalasha — around four thousand people practising a polytheistic religion that predates Islam in this part of the world by a long way.
The festivals are the reason most people visit: Chilam Joshi in May, Uchal in August, Chawmos at the winter solstice. They are religious events, not performances, and should be treated that way. Photography etiquette matters here more than anywhere else in Pakistan — ask, every time.
What people do here
01
Mid-May, in Bumburet and Rumbur. The spring festival.
02
In Bumburet, run by the community, and the right first stop.
Journeys
Chitral · Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Seven days in the Hindu Kush — Chitral town, the three Kalash valleys, and the Garam Chashma road, with Tirich Mir over all of it.
$780 per person
Next 19 Sep · 6 places left
Before you go