Private TourGhanche
Khaplu, Shyok & Hushe
The far east of Baltistan — Khaplu Palace, the Shyok river and the porter villages under Masherbrum.
PKR 72,000$257 · per person
Details
Baltistan
Khaplu & Shyok
A palace above the Shyok river
Why go to Khaplu & Shyok
The last big valley before the Line of Control. Khaplu Palace looks down on the Shyok from a terrace of apricot orchards, and the road beyond runs to Hushe and the Masherbrum trailheads.
Khaplu was the seat of the Yabgo dynasty and its 1840 palace — restored, again, by the Aga Khan Trust — is the finest surviving example of Baltistan’s Tibetan-influenced architecture. The valley below is broad and green, the Shyok runs grey-blue through it, and almost nobody is here. Two hours further up the side valley lies Hushe, the village that has produced more Pakistani high-altitude porters than anywhere else and the trailhead for Masherbrum and K6. Ghanche is the coldest inhabited district in Pakistan; even in August the nights need a jacket.
Don’t miss
- Khaplu Palace and museum
- Chaqchan Mosque, built 1370
- Hushe valley and the Masherbrum viewpoint
- Saling and Thalay valley side trips
- Apricot harvest in late July
Common questions
About 103 km, two and a half hours on a mostly metalled road along the Shyok. It is an easy day trip, but the valley deserves a night.
Tours to Khaplu & Shyok
Ready when you are
Tell us roughly where and when
Send a message with your dates and group size. We come back with what is realistic for that window, a price, and no pressure.