‘Islamabad with kids’ doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue as a top family travel destination…
But travel in Pakistan is paradoxical in many good ways!
We have visited Pakistan and Islamabad with kids four times over the last two years and have really enjoyed it. Albeit Pakistan’s capital city is somewhat less chaotic and understated than its more historic and more populous counterparts. But for travel in Pakistan as a family, Islamabad with kids is a good jumping off point.
Here are our favourite things to do in Islamabad with kids as well as tips for family travel in Pakistan – and beyond!
- Islamabad with kids
- Getting there
- Getting around in Islamabad
- Things to do in Islamabad with kids
Dino Valley
Centaurus Mall
Fun City
Museum of Natural History
Lok Virsa
Lakeview Park
Islamabad Aviary
F-9 Park - Where to eat
- Where to stay in Islamabad
Visiting Islamabad with kids
Islamabad is the capital city of Pakistan. It is a vibrant metropolis but with an unlikely blend of modernity and tradition and is known as a clean, calm and green city by Pakistan standards.
It is a relaxing and easy city to explore and makes for a great starting point for travel in Pakistan with kids.
- Read our complete guide to travel in Pakistan with kids.
When is the best time to visit Islamabad?
The Islamabad Capital Territory is geographically in the state of Punjab in Pakistan. This region of the country gets seriously hot during the summer months.
However, Islamabad has a more distinct humid subtropical climate, while Punjab generally experiences a hotter and drier climate compared to the capital city.
We’ve visited Islamabad with kids in June, July, August and December. Though June was by far the hottest we have experienced in Islamabad.
- Summer (June – August): June is the hottest month and July to September is the monsoon season with heavy rainfall and high humidity.
- Winter (December to February): January is the coldest month but December is chilly with evenings getting dark early.
- Spring (March – April): This is a good time to visit with pleasant temperatures between 15°C to 25°C.
- Autumn (October – November): Perfect temperature to explore the city though note late November is notorious for air pollution and smog in Punjab which sometimes carries to Islamabad.
The beginning and end of summer, notably September and October, is the best time to visit.
Getting there
Islamabad is well connected with the rest of the country by road, rail and air.
The international airport has regular connections to Dubai, Doha, Istanbul and Bangkok. We have flown in to Islamabad and arrived multiple times by bus from Lahore to Islamabad with the kids.
The distances to the surrounding major cities are reasonable and the roads are in good condition.
- Lahore to Islamabad: 5 hr 34 min (338.1 km)
- Peshawar to Islamabad: 2 hr 22 min (186.9 km)
- Karachi to Islamabad: 16 hr 39 min (1,411.5 km)
There is a daily overnight train (or bus) from Islamabad to Lahore and south to Karachi.
- Read about getting the bus from Lahore to Islamabad.
Getting around in Islamabad with kids
The inner city of Islamabad doesn’t have the usual buzz of South Asian auto rickshaws. These are banned in the capital city though there are plenty in neighbouring Rawalpindi.
It is possible and easy to use a ridesharing app like Uber or Indrive to get around in Islamabad. However sometimes the wait times are debatably reliable.
We recommend the best way to get around in Islamabad with kids is to book a taxi and driver for the day. It is simplest to arrange this through your accommodation.
Things to do in Islamabad with kids
In no particular order, here are 10 fun things to do in Islamabad with kids.
Dino Valley Islamabad
This is an unlikely but fun dinosaur-themed amusement park up in the hills above Islamabad.
Dino Valley is especially great for young children and makes for a unique day out in Islamabad with kids.
There are all kinds of amusement rides, a walk through a dinosaur themed park with ultra(ish)-realistic dinosaurs with motion sensors, a kids play area and restaurant.
- Open: 12:00pm – 11:00pm
- Cost: 1000 – 1500 PKR
- Location: Pir Sohawa Road
Centaurus Mall
I can’t review the other Pakistan megamalls. Our lists of other things to do in Asia with kids are staunchly mall-free. But if you’ve been travelling for a while, Centaurus is a refreshingly cool and mod option.
There is the welcome and necessary air conditioning to escape the summer temperature and the opportunity to tuck into a taste of familiar chain food if that is what you are after.
Fun City Pakistan
This is the outing that immediately springs to mind if I think about the best thigns to do in Islamabad with kids.
I know I said we don’t frequent malls per say in our travels. But this recent trip was our fourth time in Pakistan and in Islamabad the kids always request an outing to Fun City at Centaurus Mall.
Fun City is an indoor acrade and amusement centre that is ideal for kids. There are a range of options for younger kids and toddlers as well as interactive and virtual reality games for older kids as well.
- Tip: It is located on the 4th floor of Centaurus Mall. Tickets are purchased at the entry with a tap card for multiple rides of different costs.
Lok Virsa Islamabad
Lok Virsa is a fantastic cultural experience in Islamabad set up as a walk-through museum and handicraft village experience.
Albeit museums and kids aren’t always synonymous. But Lok Virsa is not huge and includes lifelike exhibits, costumes, old jewellery and interactive displays.
The museum is up above the city in the national park grounds and outside there is a large courtyard area with snack foods, stalls and arts and crafts for sale. The kids enjoyed popcorn and we also bought some cute truck-art souvenirs from the handicraft shops!
- Open: 10:00am – 8:00pm
- Cost: 500 PKR (foreigners)
- Location: Shakaparian Road
Pakistan Museum of Natural History in Islamabad
The Pakistan Museum of Natural History (PMNH) was established in the capital in 1976.
However, I’m not going to lie. We visited the museum on our first trip to Pakistan in 2022 and it is dated and low on maintenance.
Though sometimes that is the charm of being a traveller in South Asia, right?
Our kids enjoyed the displays of dinosaur skeletons and the various collections of stuffed animal exhibits. So I do rate it as one of the worthwhile things to do in Islamabad with kids.
Though if you are a backpacker looking for things to do in Islamabad with one day in the city, this is not a priority. (Sorry, PMNH).
- Open: 10:00am to 5:00pm
- Cost: 100 PKR for foreigners
- Location: Shakaparian Park
Lakeview Park
Rawal Lake is one of the main water reservoirs for Islamabad. It is a sprawling man-made lake to the southeast of the city, and despite its purpose for practical use it is a calm oasis in the city and one of Islamabad’s boastful green spaces.
The park has various paths and picnicking spots. You can take a boat ride on the lake and there are small market areas with snacks and festival-type food with cotton candy and ice cream carts all around.
Islamabad Lake View Park Aviary
The Islamabad Aviary and Bird Park is located in Rawal Lake View Park.
We stumbled upon this bird park on our first visit to Islamabad with kids and it turned out to be a highlight in the park.
The aviary is touted as Pakistan’s largest and the third-largest bird aviary globally (after Malaysia and South-Africa).
There are more than 4000 birds of 280 different species making the aviary a significant tourist attraction in Islamabad. The bird species vary from small birds such as pigeons, doves, parrots, ducks, etc., to eye-catching attractive peacocks, pheasants, cranes, and ostriches.
We are always cautious with animal related attractions in Asia. We avoid zoos everywhere. But in our opinion the bird park in Islamabad seemed to be in good condition on our visit and the birds well cared for.
It is easy to buy a ticket at the entrance to the park and food to feed to the birds.
- Open: 9:00am – 8:00pm
- Cost: 300 PKR
- Location: Lake View Park
F-9 Park
F-9 Park, known more officially as Fatima Jinnah Park, covers four square kilometres in the centre(ish) of Islamabad.
It is the largest green space in the city and well worth a wander to appreciate. There are playgrounds scattered around the park as well as wandering vendors selling cotton candy and snacks. It is an ideal place to get out and burn some energy in Islamabad with kids.
Itwar Bazar
This bazar is a popular Sunday market known for clothing and handicrafts. The name means ‘Sunday Market’, but it’s actually open on Tuesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
It is popular with locals for second hand and cheap clothing which doesn’t exactly bode confidence as the most kid-friendly outing in Islamabad. But there are rows of fruit stalls, dried fruit stands and shaded kiosk huts with sugarcane juice machines working non-stop to help beat the heat.
- See our YouTube video visiting Itwar Bazar in Islamabad with kids.
Where to eat in Islamabad with kids
Hands down the food is one of the best things in Islamabad.
- The Monal: Local and western menu with the most famous view of Islamabad from up high in the beautiful surrounding Margalla Hills. *Update: This popular restaurant no longer exists!
- Kabul Restaurant: This is our favourite place to eat in Islamabad. The kids love to watch the speed of the cooks chopping on the hot plates and serving up seriously tasty BBQ meats and delicious Afghani style rice. Highly recommend!
- Quetta Chai: This is a bustling and lively simple outdoor restaurant in the evening. The boys loved having a go making cheese paratha with the staff! Be sure to try the cheese paratha and say hi to Freddy at Freddy’s Book Stall in the courtyard outside.
- Savour Foods: This is a popular fast-food chain of restaurants in Pakistan. Our favourite is in Lahore, but Savour Foods Islamabad is reliably consistent and a good choice for a simple meal in Islamabad with kids.
- Centaurus Mall: The 4th floor food court has a huge choice of familiar chain restaurants and fast food outlets.
Supermarkets in Islamabad
Family travel in South Asia is a bit different from backpacking and roughing it without little people to worry about. Sometimes we just want something easy to snack on or something familiar to eat that isn’t as exotic as Pakistani or Afghan cuisine.
The handiest supermarket we found in Islamabad is:
- Hatim Supermarket
This is a small-medium sized supermarket in F-7 in walking distance from the Standard Chartered ATM and close to Kabul Restaurant and Safa Gold Mall.
They have a decent range of fresh fruit and vegetables, all kinds of drinks, snacks and food plus all sorts of toiletries and other things you might be looking for while traveling in Pakistan with kids.
Where to stay in Islamabad with kids
Islamabad has a diverse range of accommodation options. There are expensive international chain hotels and many smaller locally owned and run basic motels.
These are the places we have stayed in Islamabad with kids and can recommend for your visit.
- Budget / Shelton’s Ambassador: We had a good stay here our first time in Pakistan though we were notably the only foreign guests at the breakfast buffet each morning.
- Budget / Sheltons Rezidor Islamabad: Simple rooms and a basic morning breakfast buffet (in the basement). The location is good in F-7 and we walked from here to dinner at Kabul Restaurant in the evenings.
- Budget-Mid-Range / Grand Peace House II: Guesthouse style accommodation in secure residential area in F-7 close to Kabul Restaurant and Safa Gold Mall. The family room has two double beds. We regularly stay here.
- Mid-Range / Islamabad Regalia Hotel: A large hotel with huge rooms and a beautiful breakfast buffet. It is pricier and further out of the main neighbourhoods, but the service is great – and the food is superb!
More about travel with kids and planning for Islamabad, Pakistan and beyond
These are the companies we use while traveling fulltime and can recommend to anyone planning and booking travel.
- Booking.com – The best all-around accommodation booking site that constantly provides the cheapest and lowest rates. They have the widest selection of budget accommodation and it’s easy to filter and sort into price and availability with all the extras you are looking for personally.
- 12GoAsia – Book trains anywhere in Asia.
- Skyscanner– This is by far our favourite flight search engine. They are able to search small websites and budget airlines that larger search sites often miss. We book all our flights through Skyscanner.
- GetYourGuide– Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace for tours and excursions offered all around the world including everything from walking tours, to street-food tours, cooking classes, desert safari’s and more!
- SafetyWing – A global travel insurance that covers people from all over the world while outside their home country. You can buy it short or longterm; and even if you are out of the country.
- World Nomads – Travel insurance tailored for longterm travel and nomads (including those who have already left home). Make sure you have travel insurance before visiting Pakistan!