Travelling to
Jaipur
Rajasthan
Loading…Kangra Fort
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Photos: James Duffield Harding / After Charles Hardinge, 2nd Viscount Hardinge (Public domain) · Abhyuday Bhandari (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Harvinder Chandigarh (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Vast ASI-protected hill fort of the Katoch rulers above Kangra town, ruined by the 1905 earthquake, with a museum near the gate.
Kangra Fort sits on a ridge between the Manjhi and Banganga rivers on the edge of Kangra town, about 20 km from Dharamshala. Built by the Katoch dynasty and often called one of India's oldest forts, it was taken by Mahmud of Ghazni, the Tughlaqs, the Mughals, the Sikhs and the British. A passage leads through a series of gates to temples and a Jain shrine at the top. The 1905 earthquake left much of it in ruins; the Maharaja Sansar Chand Museum is near the entrance.
Highlights
- Gateways (Ahani, Amiri, Jahangiri, Darsani)
- Hilltop temples and Jain shrine
- River-valley views
- Maharaja Sansar Chand Museum
Tips
- Book the ASI ticket before arriving - registration can take 30-40 minutes and the portal is unreliable
- No guides or medical help on site; watch for monkeys
Around it
Within 1 km of Kangra Fort.
Getting there
Best places nearby
Vajreshwari Devi Temple, Kangra
a Hindu temple in Himachal Pradesh, Shakti Peetha tirtha
Photo: Ms Sarah Welch
Brajeshwari Devi Temple
Shaktipeeth in Kangra town, repeatedly plundered and rebuilt, famous for the butter (Ghrit Mandal) ritual at Makar Sankranti.
Photo: Karunpuri
COMMON PLOT
Park in Kangra · hours: 24/7.
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