Naggar Castle

Naggar Castle was the seat of the Kullu rajas and is now an HPTDC heritage hotel. It makes a good half-day trip from Manali, combined with the Roerich Art Gallery.

Naggar Castle stands above the left bank of the Beas at Naggar, about 22 km south of Manali, and was built by Raja Sidh Singh of Kullu around 1460. Naggar was the capital of the Kullu principality until the seat moved to Sultanpur (Kullu) in 1660, and the castle served as the royal residence for centuries. According to legend, the raja used stones from the abandoned palace of Rana Bhonsal to build it.

It is built in the traditional Himalayan style of alternating courses of stone and timber, with carved wooden balconies and verandas, and Himachal Tourism highlights its wood carving and its stone and metal craft. Since 1978 the castle has been run by the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation as a heritage hotel, and part of it houses a small museum. From the verandas there are wide views down the Kullu Valley.

Day visitors can see the courtyard and museum; secondary sources report a small entry fee for non-residents, but this has not been confirmed by HPTDC. Naggar itself rewards a longer stop: the Nicholas Roerich Art Gallery, in the Russian painter's former home, and the Vasuki Nag, Tripura Sundari and Gauri Shankar temples are all nearby. Naggar is reached by road from Manali.