Rawalakot is the capital of Poonch District and the main town for the surrounding valley. The central bazaar is a lively mix of small shops, food stalls, and traders dealing in everything from locally grown walnuts and apricots to imported goods from Rawalpindi. The town has a distinctive Kashmiri hill-town character — wooden shopfronts, narrow lanes, and a sense of being slightly cut off from the bustle of the plains below.
Wandering the bazaar in the late afternoon, when the day cools and traders are busy, gives a good sense of daily life in Pakistani-administered Kashmir. The local street food — grilled corn, chapli kebab, warm bread — is excellent and cheap. The town also has several guesthouses if you want to use Rawalakot as a base for exploring the surrounding valley rather than rushing back to Islamabad in the same day.