channan pir festival
Chanan Peer Festival or Mela, which continues from February every year, is celebrated in seven consecutive Thursdays at Chanan Pir’s shrine, 65kms away from Bahawalpur. Fifth Thursday is the most popular one and also observed as a local holiday. It attracts people from far and wide. The people come from far-flung areas of Cholistan as well as Bahawalpur Division to participate in the festival and now it has become the most popular festival of South Punjab. Hindus and Muslims equally participate in the event. On the occasion, special bazaars are set up while cultural musical shows, theatres, Jhoomar, circus, magic shows, and camel dances are other attraction for the visitors. The legend about Channan Pir is that he was born to the Raja of Jaisalmer, upon his birth he was predicted to become a Muslim so the Raja threw him out into the desert. The child survived and became a Muslim as predicted.
Itinerary
Day | Visiting Location | Overnight |
01 | Islamabad | Arrival Islamabad, Half day city tour of Rawalpindi & Islamabad |
02 | Islamabad-Taxila-Peshawar | Full day tour of Taxila archaeological site and museum, afterwards continue to drive to Peshawar for an overnight stay in the hotel. |
03 | Peshawar-Islamabad | City tour in Peshawar, drive back to Islamabad |
04 | Islamabad-Rohtas Fort –Lahore | Drive to Lahore en-route visit to Rohtas Fort, after the visit drives to Lahore. |
05-06 | Lahore | An intense exploration of Lahore, the cultural capital of Pakistan |
07 | Lahore-Harappa-Multan | Drive to Multan en-route visit Harappa, further drive to Multan. |
08 | Multan-Bahawalpur | Half-day tour of Multan, after lunch drive to Bahawalpur |
09 | Uch Sharif-Derawar Fort-Bahawalpur | Full day tour of the places of interest including Uch Sharif and drive to Derawar Fort |
10 | Chanan Pir-Multan | Drive to Channan Pir to see the festival and then drive to Multan |
11 | Multan-Lahore | Drive to Lahore, transfer to hotel for overnight stay |
12 | Departure | Transfer to airport for homebound flight |