Mazar-e Sharif Getting there & around

Getting there & away

Both airline offices are opposite the Iranian consulate. Ariana Afghan Airlines (075 5010 075; Kheyaban-e Nasir Khusrau) flies to Kabul (2500Afg, 40 minutes) on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. Kam Air (070 513 030; Kheyaban-e Nasir Khusrau) were starting a service to match at the time of writing, but also fly between Mazar-e Sharif and Herat (2500Afg, 50 minutes) every Monday and Thursday.

Transport for all points south and east leaves from the Ah Deh depot on the eastern outskirts of the city. Minibuses leave from early morning throughout the day to Kabul (500Afg, eight hours), Samangan (120Afg, two hours), Pul-e Khumri (200Afg, 3½ hours) and Kunduz (350Afg, five hours). Shared taxis are equally plentiful. Transport also leaves from here to the Uzbek border at Hairatan.

Transport offices on Darwaza-ye Balkh near the shrine sell tickets for large buses to Kabul (400Afg, nine hours). The vehicles aren’t as fancy as advertised. The services continue to Herat (1000Afg, two days), but as these travel via Kandahar and the southern highway warzone they should be avoided.

Shared taxis to Balkh (30Afg, 30 minutes) depart from Charahi Haji Ayoub. Minibuses and shared taxis to Shiberghan (100Afg, two hours), Andkhoi (150Afg, 3½ hours) and Maimana (400Afg, eight hours) leave from near the Kefayat Wedding Club in the west of Mazar-e Sharif.

It’s possible to travel to Herat via Maimana in a three-day burst, but this is only for the most hardcore and is subject to serious security concerns. An office on the east side of the shrine sells seats for the three-day Landcruiser trip for 1400Afg. The unmarked office can be hard to find – it’s on the corner, on the 1st floor on the left – ask at the offices selling the big buses to Kabul. As the road effectively finishes two hours from Mazar-e Sharif at Shiberghan, breaking the journey at Maimana is strongly recommended.