Important Places

Minar-e-Pakistan (Tower of Pakistan)

Minar-e-Pakistan marks the spot at which the Muslim League on March 23, 1940 passed the resolution calling for the creation of the independent Muslim state of Pakistan.

The Badshahi Mosque (King's Mosque)

The Badshahi Mosque (King's Mosque) was built by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Lahore. The main mughal contribution to the south Asia was their unique architecture. Many monuments were built during the mughal era including the Taj Mahal.

Lahore Fort

The Lahore Fort, locally referred to as Shahi Qila citadel of the city of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located in the northwestern corner of Lahore, adjacent to the Walled City. Some of the famous sites within the fort are: Sheesh Mahal, Alamgiri Gate, Naulakha Pavilion, and Moti Masjid. The fort is 1,400 feet long and 1,115 feet wide. In 1981, the fort was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the Shalimar Gardens.

Lahore Museum

Lahore Museum was established in 1894 in Lahore, Pakistan, and is one of the major museums of South Asia. Lahore Museum is also known as Central Museum, and is located on The Mall. Rudyard Kipling's father John Lockwood Kipling, was one of the famous curators of the museum and the novel Kim was set in the vicinity of the Lahore Museum. Over 250,000 admissions were registered in 2005.

The Museum contains some fine specimens of Mughal and Sikh door-ways and wood-work and contains a large collection of paintings dating back to Mughal, Sikh and British era.

It has also a collection of musical instruments, ancient jewellery, textiles, pottery and armory. There are relics from the Graeco-Bactrian times as well as well as some Tibetan and Nepalese work. The museum has a number of objects of Greco-Buddhist sculptures, Mughal and Pahari paintings on display. The Fasting Buddha is one of the unique collections of the museum.

Wagah Border

Wagah itself is a village where the controversial Radcliffe Line was drawn through. Before 1947 the village was unified. Today, the western half of Wagah village is in Pakistan whilst the other half is in India.

The Wagah border is a ceremonial border where each evening, armed soldiers from each side of the border enact a particularly hostile parade while lowering their respective flags to the sounding of bugles.

Although the parade used to be hostile, over the past few years it has become much more moderate. Now soldiers from both sides of the border shake hands before closing the border gates. This is seen as the result of dialogues and improved relationship between India and Pakistan.

Today are some officers who walk to the headquarters on the otherside for some day to day affairs. There is now also a bus service operating within the split state of Punjab between Amritsar (India) and Lahore (Pakistan), further emphasising improving relations between the two countries.

Shalimar Gardens

The Shalimar Gardens, sometimes written Shalamar Gardens, were built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in Lahore, modern day Pakistan. Construction began in 1641 A.D. (1051 A.H.) and was completed the following year. The project management was carried out under the superintendence of Khalilullah Khan, a noble of Shah Jahan's court, in cooperation with Ali Mardan Khan and Mulla Alaul Maulk Tuni.

Hazuri Bagh

Hazuri Bagh is a garden in Lahore, Pakistan, bounded by the Lahore Fort (east side), Badshahi Mosque (west side), the Samadhi of Ranjit Singh (north side) and the Roshnai Gate (south side). In the center stands the Hazuri Bagh Baradari, built by Ranjit Singh.

The Hazuri Bagh is a small enclosure between the Alamgiri Gate of the Lahore Fort and eastern gate of the Badshahi Mosque.