Pakistan is a country in the world that is blessed with some invaluable benisons of Almighty. Apart from the phantasmagoric four seasons in a year, it is rich of historic and cultural diversity and Lahore in particular is the heart of all the benisons. It is the heart, capital, of the biggest province Punjab. A city that bustles with the vivacity of life and never sleeps for a split of second. Some of the best famous places to visit in Lahore, actually not some rather the entire Lahore in itself is a treat to visit that is full of beautiful sights and historical places.
There is a phrase in Pakistan that “If you haven’t seen Lahore, you haven’t even lived”. That pretty much sums it up that how beautiful and captivating the city of Lahore is. It is the city which holds the most historic and beautiful places to visit unlike any other cities and holidays destinations in Pakistan.
Not only historic and culturally rich sites but also it is flooded with gardens, mosques, parks, sport grounds, food streets and much more. All over the year, millions of travelers from the country and abroad the world come to explore the streets of Old historical walled city Lahore. In which wanderers can go to the old times of Mughals Empire.
It has been a significant city from dawn history of Lahore. It is the place that remains important in all of the eras whether it is Mughals or Sikh times. It was believed to be the capital of Sub-continent before partition. Lahore has special importance in the life of Singh community as it has many cultural sights for the Sikhism. A huge number of Singh community comes to visit this city annually to experience and see the history of their ancestors. They have a religious association with Lahore and it was during partition in 1947 that most of the Sikh community moved to India. Yet, there is still a considerable majority of Sikh community in Nankana Sahb Lahore.
Moreover, except the Historical sights, there are other recreational sites to make your vacations memorable and enjoyable. Lahore offers recreational sites like Sozo Water park, Lahore Zoo, Lahore Museum, Food streets of Famous Anarkali just to name a few.
See Also:
Best Places to Visit Islamabad
Best Places to Visit In Lahore for Tourists
Although the whole city is worth visiting as mentioned above because of its culture and traditional Punjabi food but there are some other places which are widely attractive and of immense significance to the tourists and visitors. Let’s explore a few:
Badshahi Mosque
If you are a Pakistani, regardless of where in Pakistan you live, you must have heard about Badshahi Mosque (commonly known as Lahore Badshahi Masjid), a a famous place you can never afford to forget in Lahore. You can’t simply miss it if you are on a trip to Lahore. It has to be at the top of your visiting areas.
This magnificent mosques traces its origin back to 1674 during Aurangzeb era. This is considered as one of the largest mosques in the world and attracts lot of tourists and local visitors.
It was in Mughal era that this magnificent piece of architecture was constructed that took almost two years to complete. Right now it is considered as the second largest Mosque of Pakistan. After the Mughal Empire, the Sikh empire used this great architecture as a garrison. Now located in the capital city of Punjab province Pakistan is one of the iconic sights to visit and know the reality of history behind this great Mosque. Muslims have a deep reverence and religious affiliation to this historic master piece.
Data Ganj Bakhsh Hajveri Shrine
Abdul Hasan Ali, who later came to be known as Data Ganj Bakhsh, born in 1009, in the Ghazni that is known as Afghanistan right now, who wrote a book on mysticism. He was a great mystic and great influencer.
He preached Sufism and was one of the most successful preachers on the subcontinent who is considered as an honorable Sufi saint in Pakistan today. People attend his shrine with religious fervor round the year. Whoever visits Lahore never miss visiting this place. Data Ganj Bakhsh, later on, moved to Lahore city in face of lot of troubles. He had been seen the walls jail a couple of times. Yet, remained steadfast in his mission of preaching Sufism and was a role modern in this regard. Subsequently, dies here making a reputation of Great Sufi Saint. Todays Shrine of Data Ganj Bakhsh holds an immense importance and a must-visit in Lahore.
People from every nook and cranny of the country flock to his shrine and both Muslims and Non-Muslims are allowed to seek blessings of the famous Sufi saint. It is located west of Bhatti gate, near the old city. You must pay a visit to this great shrine when planning to visit Lahore city of Pakistan not only to see its historic importance but also to seek some solace (if you believe so).
Bagh-e-Jinnah (Lawerence Garden)
This place is particularly significant in modern times. If you are a book lover, then it is the place you can never afford to miss in any case. Bagh-e-Jinnah commonly known as Lawerence garden is a beautiful white palace which comprises of Jinnah Library that has an immense collection of books. The library bearing the name of the founder of this Nation, Jinnah, has a wide array of book that you might not find in any big library around the country.
This is one of the best Lahore picnic point or to enjoy reading book in a cozy atmosphere. Once you become bore of reading, you have all the refreshing facilities to ger re-energized. There are tennis courts, restaurant, Gymkhana Cricket ground for cricket lovers and an Open Air Theatre where can entertain yourself. One can have a peaceful time with their friends or families here in Bagh-e-jinnah and especially during sunrise and sunset time it offers very charming scene. So let your hesitation fade away and visit this outing places in Lahore city.
So, here the blog comes to an end with some very insightful exploration. We’ll come up with more sites in our next blog about this spectacular city.
Lahore Fort
This is yet another site that is full of history and heritage. The place was established, damaged, and finally restored before becoming its current form by Emperor Akbar in 1566. It is the oldest fort we have of the great Mughal Akber’s time.
There is no denying to the fact that Lahore Fort is the chief attraction of this city. It did get attention from later Mughal Emperors as in 1618, the historical place was modified by Jehangir but it was damaged by the British and Sikh the same year. On initial base, it was Akber who build it and later it had a lot of addition with the changes of Mughal emperors.
The location of it being adjacent to the Great Badshahi Mosque adds to its value and attraction. After the Mughal era, the Lahore Fort was destroyed by the Sikh and British. Later on, it was restored. Moreover, during 1981, this amazing Architecture of Mughal times had been described as a UNESCO World Heritage site along with Shalimar Garden. A special attention is paid to preserve these rare works of history.
It was finally restored by the Mughal Emperors. The finest place makes use of finest work material, calligraphy, manuscripts, coins, mirrors, and much more. Interestingly, inside the Fort, there is a point that is known as Sheesh Mehal. This Sheesh Mehal was a gift from the King to the Queen with amazing design that is absolutely mesmerizing. One can have the best time getting to know the history of this Fort. So never forget to explore the old era of history along with the adjacent Great Badshahi Mosque. You can have photography here with these historic sites in the backdrop. Here you can have the guide facility if you want to know more about the history of things.
