Shangrila Resort Skardu — the heart-shaped lake of the Karakoram
Pakistan's most-photographed alpine resort — chalets perched on a heart-shaped lake at 2,500 metres, the famous old-aeroplane restaurant, easy lake-side walks and the gateway to Upper Kachura.
Shangrila Resort Skardu
Shangrila Resort is the photograph that brought most of us to Skardu in the first place — a heart-shaped lake (Lower Kachura) ringed by red-roofed chalets, framed by Karakoram peaks, with the famous aeroplane-restaurant (a converted DC-3 fuselage on the lake's edge) at one end. The resort was built in the 1980s by the family of a former Pakistan Tourism minister and has been the most iconic mountain hotel in the country ever since.
On this page is everything you need to plan a Shangrila Resort Skardu visit — day-trip routes, overnight chalet packages, the best rooms to ask for, when to go, and what to combine it with. Shangrila is 32km from Skardu, an hour by jeep, and works equally well as a half-day stop or a relaxed overnight that anchors a longer Skardu tour.
Where exactly Shangrila is and how to get there
Shangrila sits on Lower Kachura Lake, 32km north-east of Skardu on the Skardu-Khaplu road. The drive is one hour on a sealed road via the Sadpara dam and the Indus river bridge — scenic the whole way. There is no airport closer than Skardu (45 minutes by air from Islamabad) and no rail service.
Day visitors enter Shangrila for an entry ticket (PKR 500 per person for Pakistanis, PKR 1,500 for foreigners) which gives full access to the lake-side, the gardens, the aeroplane restaurant and Upper Kachura by walking trail. Overnight guests have a separate gate.
Staying overnight — which chalet to ask for
Shangrila Resort has roughly 40 chalets in three tiers. Lake-facing chalets (numbers 1-16) are the ones to ask for — they are on the water, with verandahs that look directly at the heart shape. Garden chalets (17-30) are set slightly back behind apple trees and quieter; perfect for families. Premium suites (31-40) are larger, with sitting rooms, and the only category we recommend for honeymooners who want more than a standard chalet.
Book at least 8 weeks ahead in high season (June-August) — the lake-facing chalets sell out first. The on-site restaurant is the famous aeroplane-restaurant for lunch and snacks, plus a full buffet restaurant in the main lodge for breakfast and dinner.
Day-trip experience — what to see and do
If you have half a day, walk the rim of the heart-shaped lake (20 minutes), have tea in the aeroplane restaurant, walk the wooden footbridge to Upper Kachura (15 minutes through pine forest) and back. With a full day, add a paddle-boat at Upper Kachura and lunch at the lodge.
Combine with Sarfaranga cold desert in the afternoon for the classic Skardu day-trip route — both are on the same Skardu-Khaplu axis and you can do them in one comfortable day with a private jeep.
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