Balakot is the gateway town to Kaghan Valley, sitting at around 940 metres at the point where the Kunhar River emerges from the mountains onto the Hazara plains. Most visitors pass through quickly on their way up the valley, but the town itself has an unusual history. The original Balakot was almost entirely destroyed in the October 2005 Kashmir earthquake — one of the most devastating in South Asian history, killing over 73,000 people in the region — and much of what stands today is reconstruction built in the years after.
As a stopping point, Balakot has fuel stations, mechanics, basic restaurants, and ATMs that are more reliably functional than those higher in the valley. It's also a useful staging point for anyone coming from Abbottabad or Mansehra by public transport; NATCO buses and private coaches from Rawalpindi and Islamabad terminate or pass through here. The real valley scenery begins north of Balakot as the road climbs into the gorge and the river runs below between walls of pine.