Kashmir Winter

• Arrival in Srinagar

  We will arrive in Srinagar by early evening and directly proceed for check in. The views from the flight as we descent into the valley, are a showcase of what is instore in the coming days. A pre - dinner briefing will be carried out by your tour manager about the tour. Dinner and overnight in the hotel.
  
  

• Srinagar

  Enjoy a morning tour of the city, which will mostly be walking in the old downtown area to explore its many monuments. We will also visit the Hazratbal Dargah overlooking Negin Lake. Lunch will be local Wazwan food. After lunch, we will continue with our tour of the city which has a barren look and yet looks beautiful in the winter chill. Later we will take a sunset Shikara ride on the Dal Lake, before heading back to the Hotel.
  
  

• Srinagar – Gulmarg – Drung Frozen Waterfall - Srinagar

  The morning will be early as we head out to the snow capital of India, Gulmarg. In Tangmarg, 20 kms before Gulmarg we would have to change our vehicle and get into small vehicles to climb up. Here is where you will also be able to hire shoes etc. Once in Gulmarg we will get to the Gondola (can get crowded here) and first go to Phase 1 and after spending sometime then to Phase 2 to enjoy the peace at 13500 feet above MSL. There is an option of indulging in some snow activities at phase 1 however we can make that choice depending on the crowd. Though Gulmarg is very beautiful in the winters, it is the people that can sometimes be a turn-off. We will enjoy Lunch in one of the local hotels and then head back to Tangmarg. Here we will check if the road to the beautiful Drung waterfall is open and if so the frozen waterfall is a sight to experience. Head back to Srinagar.

• Srinagar – Aharbal – Anantnag – Pahalgam

  Today, we will depart Srinagar for an overnight in Pahalgam. However our journey will take us first to the hidden treasure of Kashmir, the Aharbal waterfall. Though the water in winter is not frozen here and is much less than in the spring-summer, the sight of the waterfall is still quite something to see. We will stop en route to Pahalgam in Anantnag for lunch. The climb to Pahalgam is via Ashmuqam where the Jhelum River tributary expands into a winder basin. The snow will make its presence felt at every turn of the uphill climb on the road to Pahalgam. Dinner and overnight in Pehelgam.
  
  

• Pehelgam – Aru (based on road conditions) – Srinagar

  Experience the blue hour early in the morning just before sunrise, where the sky and the snow both have the same colors. Later after a leisurely breakfast, we will check out and head with a smaller vehicle to the Aru. The Lidder river valley leads to Aru which is a further climb of 12 km from Pahalgam. The access to Aru might be blocked due to snow, however, if it is open we will undertake the most beautiful drive of our tour. We will reach Aru for lunch and after spending some time at leisure we will proceed back to Srinagar via Pampore where we will stop to buy saffron and other dry fruits. Dinner and overnight in Srinagar.
  
  

• Srinagar – Fly back home

  On our last morning in Srinagar, you would have an option of enjoying a local winter delicacy of Harrissa, which is a lamb dish especially enjoyed in old town Srinagar. We will head back to the hotel for some time at leisure before heading to the Airport to board our flight back home.
  
  
  
  Note on Road conditions
  
  We are witnessing the beautiful winter in Kashmir, however, it can come with its surprises of weather. Heavy snowfall can change travel plans at the last moment as smaller roads get shut under snow.
  
  

HOTELS

Note on Hotels

The hotels when not occupied with a certain number of rooms, limit their heating to individual room heating and do not start the central heating plant. Kindly keep this in mind. In this case, electric blankets are provided to make sure you sleep comfortably.