What's on in Islamabad, Pakistan through the year

Shoulder season — school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Margalla trail season (1 Oct – 15 Apr), Winter haze from the plains (1 Nov – 15 Jan (usually))

Busy — Eid al-Fitr, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Eid al-Fitr

  25 Feb – 25 Mar · usuallyRamadan & EidClosuresCrowdedBook early

  Eid al-Fitr ends Ramadan with three or more days of public holiday. Markets are packed with shoppers in the nights before, offices and most shops close for the first days, and intercity buses, trains and flights sell out as families travel home. Source ↗

Still on: Margalla trail season (1 Oct – 15 Apr)

Peak crowds — Eid al-Fitr, Pakistan Day

• Hazard

  Paper mulberry pollen

  1 Mar – 15 Apr · usuallyPollen season

  Paper mulberry, planted across the city when it was built, sends the spring pollen count to levels that put people in hospital every year. The met office runs a daily count for the season and residents who react to it leave town. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Pakistan Day

  23 MarNational holidayClosuresCrowded

  A national holiday, and in the years the parade is staged it closes the avenues near Shakarparian and puts the airspace under restriction for the morning. Offices shut either way. Source ↗

Still on: Eid al-Fitr (25 Feb – 25 Mar (usually)), Margalla trail season (1 Oct – 15 Apr)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Paper mulberry pollen (1 Mar – 15 Apr (usually)), Margalla trail season (1 Oct – 15 Apr)

Busy — Eid al-Adha, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Eid al-Adha

  1 May – 5 Jun · usuallyRamadan & EidClosuresCrowdedBook early

  Eid al-Adha brings three or more days of public holiday. Livestock markets spring up in the weeks before, many businesses close for the first days, and roads, buses and flights are packed as families travel home or take trips to the hills. Source ↗

Busy — Eid al-Adha, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Eid al-Adha (1 May – 5 Jun (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Hazard

  Nullah flooding

  1 Jul – 31 Aug · usuallyFlood season

  A cell parking over the Margallas fills the storm channels through the sectors within the hour and takes the Expressway underpasses with them. The hillsides come down onto the trail heads at the same time. Source ↗

Busy — Independence Day, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Independence Day

  14 AugNational holidayCrowdedClosures

  Flags on every car and fireworks over the sectors, with the crowds at the Faisal Mosque and the Pakistan Monument. Roads around the diplomatic enclave close early in the evening. Source ↗

Still on: Nullah flooding (1 Jul – 31 Aug (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Season

  Margalla trail season

  1 Oct – 15 Apr

  Trail 5 up to Pir Sohawa is the city's daily walk and this is the half of the year it works at any hour. The trails stay open through the summer; they just become a dawn-only proposition.

Peak crowds — travelers describe it as peak season

• Hazard

  Winter haze from the plains

  1 Nov – 15 Jan · usuallyWinter smog

  The Punjab smog does not stop at the motorway. The haze reaches the capital and takes the Margallas out of view for weeks at a time, which is the visible half of what it is doing. Source ↗

Still on: Margalla trail season (1 Oct – 15 Apr)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Margalla trail season (1 Oct – 15 Apr), Winter haze from the plains (1 Nov – 15 Jan (usually))