Question regarding flight/visa.

Thanks for the heads up, any idea about English travellers? I was hoping to get it done in Lahore.

you'll have to go to islamabad. the visa extension place in lhe is closed for foreign applications. the extension office is near zero point in islamabad and you have to collect a form there, drive to the secretariat enclave, get your ap form stamped by an official that deals with extensions there, and then go back to the first office and submit your ap. if you get to the extension office by 9.30am you should have time to go to the secretariat area, get the form and get back to the zero point office in time to submit your application. the offices open promptly. they usually shut a bit late. i'm telling you this because the secretariat office opens round 10.30 and you have to walk there - security dictates you leave your taxi driver outside. sometimes there's a queue and you might not make it in one morning. if you're quick though you should be fine. ask your guesthouse to find you a driver who knows the procedure. it'll make way more sense when you do it cf. me attempting, badly, to explain it. alternatively, you can get the daewoo bus from lahore overnight, get in to islamabad in the morning, do the ap and then head back to lahore. you will though have to go back to islamabad to get your passport. i've explained this poorly, for which i apologise. sometimes you typed too much to go back and start again...

I decided to just book a 30 day return with PIA and change the return date once I extend the visa.

Beck you did a great job explaining, thank you. Is it am easy process to extend a visa? Will I need to provide reasons as to why I wish to stay longer? Will I need anything in the way of id and paperwork besides a passport?

Thanks, Jonathan :)

passport, a couple of photocopies of your photo page, visa and entry stamp, a couple passport photos and an ap form. usually listing a few traveler-safe locations is a good idea - the kalash valleys, for example, or maybe gilgit and karimabad. also say you want to leave time to travel and take into account the weather and flight cancellations, or you want to apply for another visa for onward travel if they really ask you, but normally it's totally straightforward and requires just an indication of where you want to go. obviously don't list peshawar, karachi, balochistan or azad kashmir. pm me if you get here and have problems. it's an easy thing to do, it just requires some bureaucratic fun and games. bear in mind though that these things can change so if anything has done then i do apologise. also bear in mind though that once you're in the country things get a hell of a lot easier. the hard part is getting a visa. you might also be able to extend it in chitral or gilgit - i have friends who have done this - so if you're keen to be on the road, you might get lucky. i'd call ahead though and ask about the local practicalities once you've picked a guesthouse - your gh owner will probably have up to date info.

Yeah agreed @13,its very easy and hassle-free to get your visa extended in Pakistan,you just need a photocopy of your passport such as 1st page, Pak visa and entry stamped page nothing else.
You could get the visa extension at the District coordination office Chitral as well as from the passport office Gilgit and Skardu.

Thanks! :d One last question...
How far into my 30 day visa should I apply?

couple of days before it runs out. go to early and they'll tell you go come back later. maybe five days.

Exactly.
By the way when you deposit your at the office,don't forget to keep the photocopy of your passport with you.

Hey Jonathan! Was good to meet you at the embassy yesterday! Thanks for asking the guys for a second time for me. Sadly it's going be a nightmare for me to get this Visa Invitation Letter from the Ministry of Tourism, via the trekking company.. I just don't think it's gonna happen for me, as I'm leaving 9th Feb and can't realistically see half the paper-pushing bureaucrats in Islamabad signing it before I leave! I'm baffled how there's some 200+ trekking companies in Pakistan and yet it's near impossible for anyone anywhere to obtain a visa!

Enjoy your trip! Perhaps the five month wait on your visa makes it all the more worth it!! : )

Bonjour from Chitral,

The passport & immigration office is located at Peshawar mor, not far from Zero point Islamabad but please keep at least 3 copies of front page and Pakistan visa page with you.

The MOI office is located in Pak block where you could get the permission for that.

American travelers please keep in mind that they can't get the Pak visa extensions neither in Gilgit-Baltistan nor in Chitral but only in Islamabad.

Good luck..