Madyan is a small town on the Swat River 50 km north of Mingora, set among walnut and chinar trees with cool summer evenings. It is the historic centre of the Swat fishing district — the trout hatchery here stocks the river, and the angling season opens in April.
The town has a couple of carved wooden mosques in the old Swat style, a relaxed bazaar, and a few decent hotels strung along the river. It makes a quieter alternative to busier Bahrain a few kilometres upstream. Day-walks into the Bishigram and Mankial valleys leave from here, and the views back down the river at sunset are excellent.