Honeymoon in Gilgit-Baltistan: Best Places for Couples

The best honeymoon destinations in Gilgit-Baltistan are Hunza, for rooms that look straight at Rakaposhi; Shigar and Khaplu near Skardu, where you can sleep in restored palaces; and the quiet villages of Gojal, Nagar and Ghizer for couples who want the mountains to themselves. Go in April for blossom or in September and October for clear skies and autumn colour, hire a car with a driver so neither of you spends the week at the wheel, and plan two or three bases rather than a new hotel every night.

This guide covers where couples stay, the valleys that stay quiet even in season, how to handle transport, two ready-made honeymoon routes, and the practical points newly married couples ask about.

Which season for a honeymoon?

Pakistani weddings cluster in the cooler months, and Gilgit-Baltistan is at its best either side of summer.

• April is blossom season, with apricot and cherry trees flowering across Hunza and Skardu. The valleys are quiet and the nights cold. The high passes are closed.
• May and June are green and fresh, with long days and everything opening up.
• July and August are the peak months, with Deosai in flower but also school-holiday crowds and the highest risk of floods and closed roads.
• September and October are the best months for most couples: settled weather, clear skies, fewer people and, in the second half of October, golden poplars in the valleys. Our guide to autumn in Gilgit-Baltistan has the timing by valley.
• November to March is cold, with long power cuts and closed passes. It suits couples who want snow and solitude and don't mind cancelled flights.

If your wedding is in December or January, a short break somewhere closer now and the mountain honeymoon in April or October is often the better plan.

Romantic stays, by kind

Restored palaces. The two heritage hotels in Baltistan are among the most memorable places to stay in Pakistan. Serena Shigar Fort, about an hour from Skardu, is a 17th-century fort with 20 rooms, including five suites. Serena Khaplu Palace, about three hours up the Shyok valley, has 21 rooms and suites, some in the old palace and the rest in a garden house among orchards. Both have few rooms, so book months ahead for April, September and October.

Rooms with the view. In Hunza, the Serena Altit Fort Residence sits in the old royal garden beneath Altit Fort, and the Hunza Serena Hotel is a short walk from the Karimabad bazaar. Up at Duikar, about 20 minutes' drive above Karimabad, the Hunza Eagle's Nest Hotel sits beside the viewpoint where people gather for sunrise over the valley.

By the water. Luxus Hunza is a resort on the shore of Attabad Lake, a drive from Karimabad's forts and cafés but with the lake outside the window. Near Skardu, Shangrila Resort is built around Lower Kachura Lake, and a night there means the lake at dawn and dusk after the day visitors have gone.

Village guesthouses. In Gulmit, Passu, Altit and Khaplu, family-run guesthouses and small hotels offer simpler rooms, local food and far more quiet than the main bazaars. Check the heating and the hot water before you pay.

Quiet valleys for couples

The busiest places in Gilgit-Baltistan, the Karimabad bazaar, Attabad Lake and Skardu's lakes, can be crowded on summer weekends. These stay calm:

• Gulmit and Ghulkin, upper Hunza. Old villages with orchards and walks, just beyond the northern end of Attabad Lake, with the Passu Cones up the road.
• Nagar, across the river from Karimabad. Hopper, with its huge grey glacier, and Minapin, at the foot of Rakaposhi, are much quieter than Karimabad.
• Shigar. Staying the night lets you have the fort garden and the orchards early and late, when the day visitors have gone.
• Khaplu and the road to Hushe. Three hours beyond Skardu, and much quieter than the lakes near town.
• Phander, in Ghizer. Five to six hours west of Gilgit, with a lake and a broad river valley. Rooms are simple and few, so this suits adventurous couples with time.

Private transport: a car with a driver

After a week of wedding functions, two long days on the Karakoram Highway with one of you at the wheel is a hard start. A car with an experienced local driver is the most comfortable way to see Gilgit-Baltistan as a couple, and it lets you stop where you like.

1. Fly at least one way if you can. Skardu has jet flights from Islamabad on three airlines; Gilgit has PIA's smaller turboprops, which are cancelled more often in cloud.
2. Hire the car where you land, in Skardu or Gilgit, and agree the daily route, the hours and who pays for the driver's food and room before you set off. Our guide to hiring a car with driver for the northern areas lists what to settle first.
3. Use local jeeps for Deosai, the Naltar lakes and the Hushe valley; don't take a sedan up those tracks.
4. Keep a spare day at the end for the flight home.

Two honeymoon routes

Baltistan, seven nights (flying in and out of Skardu):

1. Two nights at Kachura, with Shangrila, Upper Kachura and Katpana's dunes at sunset.
2. Two nights at Shigar Fort.
3. Two nights at Khaplu Palace.
4. A last night in Skardu, with the next day spare for the flight.

From late June to September, add a day on Deosai. Our seven-day Skardu and Deosai tour covers much of the same ground, from PKR 90,000 per person on a twin-share basis.

Hunza, eight nights (flying to Gilgit or driving):

1. Three nights in Altit or Karimabad, for the forts, the lanes and Rakaposhi.
2. One night at Duikar for sunrise.
3. Two nights in Gulmit or on the Attabad shore, with the Passu Cones and Hussaini.
4. One night in Gilgit before flying home, and a spare day.

Practical things couples ask

• Carry your nikah nama. Some hotels ask couples for proof of marriage at check-in, so keep a paper copy with your CNICs and one on your phone.
• Dress and behave as the villages expect. Gilgit-Baltistan is conservative. Keep affection private in villages, bazaars and near mosques.
• Take the first day easy. Karimabad and Skardu sit at 2,200 to 2,500 metres, and a mild headache on the first day is common. Save Khunjerab or Deosai until you have had two nights in the valley.
• Ask about heating and hot water, even in September. Nights are cold, and power cuts are common.
• Book the special rooms early. The palaces and the best view rooms fill first in April, September and October.

For budgets at three levels, see our guide to honeymoon trip cost in Pakistan.

Is Gilgit-Baltistan right for your honeymoon?

For couples who want mountains, space and somewhere genuinely special to sleep, it is hard to beat anywhere in Pakistan, and spring and autumn show it at its most romantic. Skardu, with its flights and palaces, is the easier choice; Hunza gives more to walk to from the door.

It is the wrong choice if you have only four or five days and no flights, or if one of you dislikes long drives on mountain roads. In that case, our guide to honeymoon places in Pakistan covers closer options. When you are ready to put dates and hotels together, tell us about your trip and we will draft a route around the stays you want.

Frequently asked questions