Akbari Gate Restored at Lahore Fort After Decades
Lahore Fort’s historic Akbari Gate has been restored after remaining closed since the British era, and a soft launch ceremony was held at the fort on Wednesday to mark its reopening.
The gate, one of the main entrances to the fort, will once again connect the Walled City with the fort once a ticketing booth is in place. The Curator’s House, another historic structure inside the fort, was also soft-launched at the same ceremony and will be turned into an eatery for visitors.
The work forms part of a heritage project that began in 2022 and aims to open up Lahore’s historic sites to more people while creating work for local communities.
What was restored at the Akbari Gate
The Akbari Gate dates from the reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar and is commonly dated to 1566. It was cordoned off during British rule and had stayed closed ever since.
Conservation of the structure is now complete. A ticketing booth will be added in the near future so the gate can serve as a fully furnished entry point for visitors. It will also give residents of the Walled City easy access to the fort once again.
The Curator’s House has a different history. Built during the British era, it first served as the fort’s guard room and was later used for administrative purposes. Until recently, it had been divided into two houses where local residents lived, with walls added through the centre of the structure.
The conservation team restored the building and cleared the later additions. It will now be repurposed as an eatery, giving visitors a new place to stop inside the fort.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the opening of both sites.
The project behind the restoration
The work was carried out under the Heritage and Urban Regeneration: Tourism Development in Lahore Fort and its Buffer Zone project, known as HURL. It was launched in 2022 with support from the Agence Française de Développement, the French development agency, and is being implemented by the Project Management Unit of the Punjab Walled Cities and Heritage Areas Authority, working with Aga Khan Cultural Service Pakistan.
The soft launch was attended by officials from the French agency and the authority, along with Aga Khan Cultural Service Pakistan chief executive Tausif Khawaja and members of its conservation team.
What the reopening means for Lahore
For residents of the Walled City, the reopening restores a direct route into the fort that had been shut for generations. For visitors, it adds a historic entrance and a new eatery to one of Lahore’s most visited sites.
Najmus Saqib, director general of the Punjab Walled Cities and Heritage Areas Authority, said the conservation of the gate and the Curator’s House forms part of the authority’s broader efforts to improve public access to Lahore’s historic sites, attract more visitors, and create opportunities for sustainable economic activity.
“The reopening of the Akbari Gate will reconnect the Walled City to the Lahore Fort and repurposing the Curator’s House into an eatery will provide a new public attraction,” he said.
Tausif Khawaja, chief executive of Aga Khan Cultural Service Pakistan, described the conservation work as “a labour of love that combines creativity, passion and hard work”. He said the organisation works to preserve historic structures while engaging local communities and carrying out its work in a way that benefits them.
The HURL project covers the fort and its buffer zone, and further conservation work is under way at other structures inside the fort. No date has been given yet for the ticketing booth, so it is not yet clear on which day the public will be able to walk through the gate.
Related heritage coverage includes the Hazuri Bagh travel guide, Kamran’s Garden, Lahore’s oldest secret, Jani Khan’s Tomb and Jallo Park, Lahore’s 461-acre escape.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Akbari Gate?
The Akbari Gate is one of the main entrances to Lahore Fort. It dates from the reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar and is commonly dated to 1566.
Why was the gate closed?
The gate was cordoned off during British rule and had remained closed since then, cutting off a direct entrance between the Walled City and the fort.
When did the gate reopen?
A soft launch ceremony for the restored gate and the Curator’s House was held at Lahore Fort on Wednesday, 4 November 2026.
Can visitors walk through the gate now?
Not yet. A ticketing booth will be added first so the gate can work as a full entry point.
What is happening to the Curator’s House?
The British-era building, once a guard room and later used for administration and housing, has been restored and will be turned into an eatery for visitors.
