Mardan

In the heart of the Peshawar Valley, Mardan is an old British military cantonment, famous as the birthplace of the Guide Corps, an elite border regiment founded in the 1840s. It’s a fairly sleepy place these days (horse-drawn tongas are still popular taxis) with little to offer in itself, but its location makes it a potential base for exploring the wealth of Gandharan sites that litter the valley.