Khaplu Palace, known locally as Yabgo Khar, is the former royal residence of the rajas of Khaplu, built in 1840 above the Shyok river in Ghanche district. The Aga Khan Trust for Culture restored it between 2005 and 2011, and it is now a Serena heritage hotel with a museum of Balti history and culture. You don't have to stay the night to see it: day visitors pay an entry fee at the gate and can walk the gardens and the museum rooms.
Khaplu is 103 km east of Skardu, about three hours by road, so most people see the palace either on a long day trip or with a night in the town. This guide covers the palace's history, what to look at, how a visit works for non-guests, and what staying in the old palace is like.
| At a glance | |
|---|---|
| Local name | Yabgo Khar |
| Where | Khaplu town, Ghanche district, about 2,600 m |
| Built | 1840, by Yabgo Raja Daulat Ali Khan |
| Restored | 2005 to 2011, by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture |
| Now | Serena Khaplu Palace hotel (21 rooms) and a museum |
| From Skardu | 103 km, about 3 hours each way |
| Entry for non-guests | A fee paid at the gate, in cash; the amount is not published online |
| Time needed | One to two hours, more with lunch |
Who built Khaplu Palace?
Khaplu was one of the small kingdoms of Baltistan, ruled for centuries by a family that took the title Yabgo. It was the second largest of them after Skardu, and it controlled the route up the Shyok towards Ladakh.
For most of that time the rajas lived in a fort on the rocky hill above the town, now called Thoqsikhar. In 1840, around the time the Dogras took Baltistan, Raja Daulat Ali Khan built a new residence on flatter ground below it, reportedly reusing timber from the old fort. That residence is the palace you visit today. The royal family lived there until the last resident raja, Fatah Ali Khan, died in 1983.
How the palace was restored
The Aga Khan Trust for Culture took on the palace in 2005 as part of its Historic Cities Programme, with funding from the Norwegian government and support from USAID. The work took six years and employed people from around 400 local families, and it used the building's own materials and methods: timber, stone, mud brick and clay.
In 2013 the project received an Award of Distinction in UNESCO's Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. Serena Hotels now runs the palace as a hotel, and part of the building is kept as a museum.
What to look at
The palace is four storeys high, counting the basement, and was at different times a royal home, a seat of government and a grain store. The style mixes Tibetan, Kashmiri and Balti building with Mughal ideas, which is exactly what makes it interesting to walk round.
- The front. The timber entrance is semi-octagonal, and it turns into a balcony on the second floor and a guest room on the third. This projecting wooden bay is the view of the palace in most photographs.
- The royal balcony. From the upper balcony the raja could address people gathered below. It looks out across the Shyok towards the Karakoram.
- The woodwork. Look at the carved window frames, columns and ceilings. The motifs are geometric and floral, drawn from Tibetan, Persian and Kashmiri traditions.
- The layout. Rooms are arranged in a grid around a central courtyard, in the manner of a Kashmiri manor house, with the stores, kitchen and stables in separate buildings.
- The gardens. The main garden follows the Mughal four-part pattern, with a smaller garden of shallow pools and a fountain. Apricot, cherry and mulberry trees grow around it.
The museum
The museum occupies rooms inside the old palace and is about Baltistan's history and culture as much as the royal family. Expect royal clothing, household utensils and weapons, shown in rooms that are part of the exhibit themselves, with their carved ceilings and window screens.
Go round slowly. The point is less any single object than the sense of how a raja's household lived, room by room, in a building that has kept its original structure.
Tickets, timings and how a visit works
Non-guests pay an entry fee at the gate for the grounds and the museum. Serena does not publish the fee or the museum's opening hours online, and figures quoted by visitors vary widely, so we won't print one here. Carry cash, expect the fee to be different for Pakistani and foreign visitors, and pay what is asked at the gate.
A few practical points:
- Go in the morning or early afternoon. From Skardu, a 7:30 start puts you at the palace before lunch.
- Lunch is possible. Day visitors have eaten at the hotel restaurant, but it is a small dining room, so ring ahead in July, August and on holiday weekends.
- It is a working hotel. Keep voices down in the courtyards and ask before photographing other guests.
- Winter. The hotel has been reported to close in winter. If you are going between November and March, ring the hotel before you set out rather than finding the gate shut.
Most visitors combine the palace with the Chaqchan Mosque, about a 15-minute walk away. Our guide to places to visit in Khaplu has the rest of the town and valley.
Staying in the heritage hotel
The Serena hotel has 21 rooms and suites, split between the old palace and a newer Garden House in the grounds. According to Serena's own listing:
- In the old palace: two royal suites, known as the Raja and Rani rooms, two heritage suites and two standard rooms.
- In the Garden House: thirteen rooms and two suites.
Serena's website listed rooms from about USD 95 a night, and suites from about USD 140 to 160, when we checked in September 2026. Rates change with the season, so check current prices when you book. The restaurant serves Balti and Pakistani dishes alongside international food, using vegetables from the hotel's own garden.
Staying in the old palace is the point for most people: thick walls, carved wood and a view of the Shyok from the window. There are only six rooms in it, though, so book early for May, September and October. The Garden House rooms are in the same grounds and share the gardens and restaurant. For other places to stay in the town, from the PTDC motel to small guesthouses, see our guide to hotels in Khaplu.
The official Serena Khaplu Palace page has current room types and contact details.
Getting to Khaplu Palace
The palace is in Khaplu town, 103 km from Skardu along a paved road that runs east along the Indus and then up the Shyok. Allow about three hours each way in a car. The road is kept open all year, although rain, landslides and winter ice can slow it. Our Skardu to Khaplu guide covers the stops on the way and whether to go for the day or stay the night.
If you would rather not plan the day yourself, our Skardu and Deosai trip includes a day in Khaplu for the palace and the Chaqchan Mosque, as part of a week in Baltistan from PKR 90,000 per person.
Is Khaplu Palace worth the drive?
For anyone who likes old buildings, yes. The restoration won a UNESCO award for good reason, and the setting above the Shyok makes it more than a museum visit. It is also far quieter than the sights around Skardu.
Be honest about the day, though. It means six hours in a car for a couple of hours at the palace and the mosque. Families with small children, or anyone who gets carsick, may find it a long way to go to look at rooms.
If time is short, Shigar Fort is the alternative. It is another palace restored by the Aga Khan Trust and run by Serena, only about an hour from Skardu. It is older, from the seventeenth century, and you can see it in half a day. Khaplu is the better choice if you can give it a night, when the drive stops being the main event.
Frequently asked questions
Can you visit Khaplu Palace without staying there?
Yes. Day visitors pay an entry fee at the gate and can see the gardens and the museum rooms in the old palace. Parts of the building are hotel rooms, so not every room is open.
What is the entry fee for Khaplu Palace?
The fee is not published online, and figures reported by visitors vary a lot. Carry cash and expect Pakistani and foreign visitors to be charged different amounts.
Who built Khaplu Palace?
Yabgo Raja Daulat Ali Khan built it in 1840, to replace the older hilltop fort of the Yabgo rulers. The Aga Khan Trust for Culture restored it between 2005 and 2011.
Is Khaplu Palace open in winter?
The hotel has been reported to close in winter. If you plan to go between November and March, ring the hotel first to confirm that it, and the museum, are open.
How far is Khaplu Palace from Skardu?
About 103 km, or roughly three hours each way by car on a paved road along the Indus and Shyok rivers.
Is Khaplu Palace better than Shigar Fort?
They are different visits. Shigar is closer to Skardu and older; Khaplu is further away and quieter. With time for only one, choose Shigar; with a night to spare, choose Khaplu.