Which SIMs actually work up north
Not every Pakistani network reaches Gilgit-Baltistan, and the ones that do reach it unevenly. The regional operator SCOM has the widest footprint in the valleys, while among the national carriers coverage varies town by town — strong around Gilgit and central Hunza, patchy beyond. Buy your SIM officially (passport required) at an airport or brand store in Islamabad, or in Gilgit; topping up later in Karimabad is easy, buying a new SIM there less so.
Weak internet is one of the most consistent notes in foreign travelers' trip reports from Hunza — mentioned in the same breath as the hospitality. Plan around it and it becomes a footnote; ignore it and it becomes the trip's main frustration.
What speeds to expect, honestly
In Karimabad and Aliabad, expect enough mobile data and guesthouse Wi-Fi for messages, email and posting photos — with slowdowns in the evening when the whole bazaar is online. Skardu town is similar. This is "stay in touch" internet, not "stream in HD" internet.
Past the Attabad tunnels the signal thins: Gulmit and Passu are intermittent, and side valleys like Shimshal and Chapursan are genuinely offline for most practical purposes — part of their appeal, as the solo travelers who hitchhike and homestay through them tend to report. Power cuts also take down guesthouse Wi-Fi routers; the mobile network usually outlasts the Wi-Fi.
If you work remotely, be straight with yourself: a video call from Hunza is a gamble on any given day. Writing, async work and uploads scheduled for good-signal windows are realistic; a client presentation is not. Do the call from Islamabad, or don't promise it.
The offline prep that pays off
Before you leave Islamabad: download offline maps for all of Gilgit-Baltistan, your bank's authentication app backups, translations, podcasts and reading, and any booking confirmations as PDFs or screenshots. Share your itinerary with someone at home, and agree that a day of silence from a side valley is normal, not alarming.
Then let the valley do its thing. Travelers who arrive braced for digital withdrawal routinely leave describing the quiet as the best part — evenings actually spent watching alpenglow on Rakaposhi rather than a feed. Up here, being unreachable is not a bug.
