It was an off beat holiday this time of the year, no prior bookings were made, Just the air tickets and here we go! 

What are the most beautiful places in Kashmir? (To sum it up)

• Pahalgam
• Gulmarg
• Srinagar      

Pahalgam tops my list!!

Pahalgam is a quaint town with little villages here and there, it had a rustic charm to it. Pahalgam has two places which are worth visiting, Betaab valley & Chandanwari, the valley got its name from a hit Bollywood film ‘Betaab’. The road to chandanwari is very narrow so a local driver is preferred, you will be passing through hills and lush green forests. Sparkling waterfalls make a great sight. At the end of it there are huge ice glaciers which melt in the summer & eventually makes a great tourist spot.

Gulmarg is a traveller’s paradise with starry snow-clad peaks, famous gondola cable car which is one of the highest in the world, historic gulmarg golf club , however the main reason to come to gulmarg is to venture up towards Mt Afarwat. This can be done on foot or with ponies but is easiest using the two stage gondola cable car that takes you to the sky and back! Haha. It’s a winter wonderland yeah. 

Srinagar being the capital city has a lot going on lately with surgical strikes and shut-downs for a long time now. Although indulgent houseboats, historic gardens, distinctive kashmiri wooden houses, ancient temples make it a great place to visit. The city’s greatest drawcard is mesmerisingly placid Dal lake with a bright array of houseboats which looks picture postcard perfect. Also kashmiris are very warm and welcoming, we visited one of their house which was two-storeyed and they had huge carpets all over with antiques lined up at every nook & corner. They served kashmiri kahwa every now and then, it’s a delicacy! Get a packet home! 

So that’s a wrap for my first blog! Thank-you for reading! Suggestions are always welcomed.