Stand in the park around the Blue Mosque at dusk, when the tiled walls take on the coloured lights that play across them, and you have the one image most travellers carry away from Mazar-e Sharif. The city is low, flat and easy to cross, and its sights are few and concentrated, which makes it a place you can see properly in a short stay rather than a place you rush through.
This guide suits independent travellers who are already in northern Afghanistan and want to know what is genuinely worth their time, what to combine with what, and where the practical obstacles lie. It covers the sights inside the city and the two excursions outside it that the source material describes.
Be aware before you plan: the city was regarded in 2020 as one of the dangerous cities in the country, and conditions since have not simplified travel here. Treat the notes below as a description of what exists, not as a guarantee of access.
Top things to do in Mazar-e Sharif
1. Blue Mosque (Shrine of Hazrat Ali)
The shrine marks the burial site of Ali bin Talib, the Prophet Mohammad's cousin and the fourth caliph of Islam, and it is the reason the city exists as a destination at all. The name Mazar-i-Sharif means "tomb of the saint". Entry to the shrine and mosque itself is prohibited, but you may walk around the grounds and the surrounding park.
Go at night, when the mosque is lit by coloured lights and the whole complex reads differently than it does by day. Be wary of walking around the park after dark, as many homeless people sleep there. Entry requires a Balkh Province permit from the tourism office, and there is a charge of AFN 350 or US$5.
2. Qala-i-Jangi
A fortress about 30 minutes from the city, notorious for the uprising that followed the American-backed defeat of the Taliban by the Northern Alliance, when footage of US and UK soldiers firing into rebelling Taliban prisoners was broadcast around the world. The uprising began with the death of an American CIA agent; a plaque commemorates him, though nothing marks the hundreds of Afghans killed in the hours afterwards.
The fortress is divided into two sections, with walls that slope inwards from the outside and run vertical on the inside. Walking the interior, if you get in, and the perimeter is easy. There is no entrance fee, as the fortress is not a tourist attraction. You will need a local to talk the guards into letting you through, and the site is used by the new Afghan military, who are not keen on ordinary tourists turning up. Photography is best from the fields near the main road, which give you space for wide-angle shots. A few rusting anti-aircraft machine guns sit next to the gate dividing the two areas.
3. Takht-e Rustam
A 5th-century Buddhist stupa and cave complex just off the Balkh road, between Mazar and Pol e Khomri. Unlike most stupas, it is not built on top of the ground but dug out from the bedrock, which is what makes it worth the detour.
Combine it with the road south toward Pol e Khomri rather than treating it as a separate trip.
4. The traffic-circle monuments
Mazar has little to offer in the way of sights beyond the Blue Mosque, but some of the modern monuments built atop traffic circles are worth a photo as you move around the city.
Keep your camera ready between other stops rather than making a special journey for them.
If you only have one day
Morning: Sort out your Balkh Province permit from the tourism office, then walk the grounds and surrounding park of the Blue Mosque (Shrine of Hazrat Ali) while it is quiet.
Afternoon: Take the Balkh road out to Takht-e Rustam and see the stupa and cave complex cut into the bedrock, then continue toward Pol e Khomri if your transport allows.
Evening: Return to the Blue Mosque to see it lit by coloured lights, and keep to the lit areas rather than lingering in the park, where many homeless people sleep.
Frequently asked questions
Can I go inside the Blue Mosque?
No. Entry to the shrine and mosque is prohibited, but you may walk around the grounds and the surrounding park.
Do I need a permit to visit the Blue Mosque?
Yes. Entry requires a Balkh Province permit from the tourism office, and there is a charge of AFN 350 or US$5.
How do I get into Qala-i-Jangi?
You will need to find a local to talk the guards into letting you in. The fortress is used by the new Afghan military, who are not keen on ordinary tourists arriving for a look around, though guards do warm up if you arrive with a local.
Is there an entrance fee at Qala-i-Jangi?
No. There is no entrance fee, as the fortress is not a tourist attraction.
Decide what you want from the trip, check the current security situation for the city, and start arranging your permit and your transport out to the Balkh road before you arrive.