Comfort & Luxury

You don't have to rough it to experience the greatest mountains on earth. Gilgit-Baltistan hides two of Asia's most atmospheric heritage hotels — the 400-year-old Shigar Fort and the 19th-century Khaplu Palace, both restored by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture and run by Serena. Sleeping in a raja's carved-timber chambers after a day among Karakoram peaks is an experience few destinations anywhere can match.

Comfort-first itineraries are built around short distances and long stays. Fly from Islamabad to Skardu — fifty minutes of Himalayan spectacle, often with Nanga Parbat filling the window — rather than enduring two days on the highway. Base three nights at Shigar, two at Khaplu, and let the valleys come to you: apricot orchards, ancient wooden mosques, and terrace dinners under some of the clearest night skies in Asia.

In Hunza, the luxury benchmark is a glass-fronted pod on the shore of Attabad Lake, where you wake to turquoise water without leaving your bed. Days are gentle by design — a slow morning at Baltit Fort, a flat stroll through Altit's royal garden, sunset by car at Eagle's Nest — with nothing steeper than a garden path unless you ask for it.

This style of travel suits seniors, honeymooners and anyone who measures a trip in moments rather than miles. Private vehicles, experienced drivers, handpicked rooms and flexible daily plans mean the itinerary bends around you — including rest days whenever the mountains and the apricot blossom deserve longer looks.