Dunga Gali

The first view of Dunga Gali is enough to mesmerize you but the Picturesque Mountains, lush green splendid dense forests are truly breathtaking to nature lovers. All nooks and crags of the valley are striking. The scenic and exquisite spectacle of sky rising mountains would get you to the world of fantasy. The morning view of son bouncing off mountains and spreading rainbow of colours would stimulate the slumbering painter inside you. The stunning, floral, heavenly mysterious treks into hills would keep you exploring dense castles of trees and birds. The vibrant wildlife with ethereal beauty and aromatic verdant ambience would hook you there.

At the altitude of 25000 meters, Dunga Gali is one of the most popular exotic mountains resorts of a heavenly gorgeous region of Galiyat in Northern Pakistan. It is the part of the Ayubia National Park which is 3312 hectors wide protected area of Ayubia. Dunga Gali is located in the union of Nathia Gali council District Abbottabad in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is just 3 kilometres away from another tourist spot Nathia Gali.

History:

Whole Galyat region was truly loved by British colonial lords. They discovered Dunga Gali with other adjacent areas like Muree, Ayubia, and Nathia Gali. The cool temperature and lush green environment was a true reminder of home back in UK for these British officers. The heat of the sub-continent was not easy to digest so these colonial officers discovered and developed many places like Dunga Gali in Galiyat region which were not much different in landscape and temperate from their birthplace.   As a sanatorium with hotel and post office was the beginning point of Dunga Gali under British rule. Dunga Gali was also very popular among other Europeans who even had the houses on the southern slopes of Dunga Gali adjacent To Mukaishpuri Mountains to spend their summers here. 

People:

The urban population of Dunga Gali is very small. Most of the town consists of rural areas spread around the Dunga Gali. Most of the population lives either in Muree or villages around.

Most of the population comes from tribes like Dhund, Abbasis, Sattis, catwalks and Danials. These tribes are living here since centuries and form the majority of the population. The majority of the people who are seen there all around the year are tourists or people connected to tourism industry that come here for the business purpose.

Geography:

Dunga Gali is located at an altitude of 25000 meters from sea level in the region of Galiyat in northern Pakistan. It is the part of the Ayubia National Park which is 3312 hectors wide protected area of Ayubia. It is also part of union of Nathia Gali council District Abbottabad in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In the east, there is river Jhelum, Islamabad is in North West about 100 kilometres away. Abbottabad is in north and Murree is in its south.

Climate:

The climate here is dominantly mild cool in summer with maximum 20 degrees temperature and it gets to freezing cold in winter even fall down to minus with snow. Spring and autumn are pleasant. Autumn features monsoon rains while spring bloom with light showers and pleasant breeze  

Treks

Dunga Gali is connected to a very popular trek which is called pipeline track. It is 3.5 kilometres long and leads to Ayubia national park where you find more treks leading mountains top. Pipeline trek takes 40 to 50 minutes on the altitude around 8,200 ft and leads to Muskpuri summit.  Following this trek, you capture unforgettable memories, natural beauty and charming weather enjoying nature miracles like rain, sunshine, fog, and clouds in a single moment. The most commonly seen birds are the Yellow Beaked Magpie, Red Blood and Yellow Body Finches, White Cheek or Crested Grey Finch and many other birds.

This pipeline trek is very historic. It is called pipeline trek because of the water supply pipeline which is beneath the ground and was laid by the British government almost century before. This water supply pipeline is still operative and is main source of water for domestic consumption.

Hiking:

Dunga Gali is a town surrounded by undulating hills. There is much to discover, experience and felt. It is the valley where clouds break and sunlight slants through the canopy of overhead branches, the sounds of the birds gently knock on your ears and you get mesmerized in the beautiful nature.

Hiking is very popular here, their number of treks and trails that lead you to the pearls of beauty of this fairy-tale valley studded with uncountable gems of nature.

Hiking in Dunga Gali could be a lifetime experience as hiking in this area provides you with number of pleasures like watching the rich wildlife of the deep forests and enjoying the chirping of the birds all around you. There is much to discover and people have a very fulfilling and spiritual experience here.

Hotels

Beings a mountain resorts, it has all the facilities for tourists. Hotels here are numerous in number and moderate in quality. Hotels also serve food as it is a popular tourist place so there are many resorts and hotel around Dunga Gali which serve tourists by providing them quality accommodation and foodservice.

Restaurants:

From roadside food street restaurants to high-quality restaurants, you find loads options here to taste local as well as foreign cousins.  As this is surrounded by number of villages and small towns around it, and as Dunga Gali attracts huge number of tourists here so to serve these tourists and local people, there are a large number of hotels and restaurants. With local restaurants, you can also find some American chain Restaurants here. The local cuisine like taka tak, grilled chicken and many more can be enjoyed here.

Security

There is special tourist police all around and you get foolproof security here. The police are rather helpful in providing details and helping the tourists with whatever they can.

Health

Dunga Gali has the Civil Hospital and number of pharmacies around. In case of any health-related problem, you will be taken care of here properly. The hospital serves 24 hours a day.

Shopping:

Murree and Abbottabad are major cities which are very close to Dunga Gali, so most of the people do shopping on the mall road Murree or shopping mall in Muree. Roadside vendors sell local hand-made products in Dunga Gali.

Transport:

The private car from Murree can be rented for Dunga Gali. Other local transport is also available which is not of high quality and takes lot of time to cover small distances. 

Important phone numbers:

1122 for Rescue, 15 for police help