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Kashmir — Gulmarg Snow & Adventure
Starting from
₹15,499
per person
per person
Land at Srinagar Airport and meet your Kashmir With Us representative. After a brief stop at a local Kashmiri restaurant for lunch, begin the scenic 56 km drive to Gulmarg — the "Meadow of Flowers." The road climbs steadily through apple orchards, pine forests, and small Kashmiri villages with their distinctive wooden houses and corrugated iron roofs before opening up into the vast, snow-covered bowl that is Gulmarg in winter.
Check in to your hotel and spend the rest of the afternoon simply absorbing the magical atmosphere. The air at 2,650 metres is sharp and clean, and the silence — broken only by the distant whoosh of skiers and the sound of snow crunching underfoot — is deeply refreshing. In the evening, gather around a warm kangri (traditional Kashmiri fire pot) and enjoy Kashmiri Harissa — a slow-cooked meat porridge that is the valley's ultimate winter comfort food.
Overnight: Hotel in Gulmarg (3-star, snow view).
This is the day you have been waiting for. After an early breakfast, make your way to the Gulmarg Gondola — Asia's highest and longest cable car, which ascends to the summit of Apharwat Peak in two spectacular phases.
Phase 1 takes you from Gulmarg (2,650 m) up to Kongdori (3,080 m). From here, the views across the Gulmarg meadow below and the surrounding Himalayan peaks already feel extraordinary. Spend some time here before boarding Phase 2.
Phase 2 continues the ascent to Apharwat Peak at a breathtaking 3,980 metres (13,058 feet) above sea level. Step out of the cable car at the summit and you are standing on the roof of accessible Kashmir, surrounded by a pure white wilderness of permanent snow and ice. The crown jewel of the view from here is Nanga Parbat — the ninth-highest mountain in the world at 8,126 metres — rising in all its terrifying majesty on the northern horizon. On clear days, you can also see the Karakoram ranges stretching towards K2.
Spend the rest of the day enjoying snow activities at Kongdori. Skiing and snowboarding are available for all skill levels — beginners can take lessons from certified ski instructors at the Gulmarg Ski School, while experienced skiers can tackle the challenging off-piste runs on Apharwat. For non-skiers, snow sledging, snowshoeing, snow tubing, and simply playing in the deep powder are equally thrilling. A horse ride across the snow-covered Gulmarg meadow at sunset is one of Kashmir's most romantic experiences.
Overnight: Hotel in Gulmarg.
After breakfast, check out from your Gulmarg hotel and drive back towards Srinagar — but only briefly, as you continue on to Sonmarg (87 km from Srinagar, approximately 2.5 hours), the "Meadow of Gold." The drive to Sonmarg is one of the most dramatic in Kashmir, ascending through increasingly narrow gorges carved by the Sindh River before suddenly opening up into the wide, flat valley of Sonmarg at 2,740 metres.
At Sonmarg, hire ponies (own cost, strongly recommended) for the 5 km ride to the Thajiwas Glacier — a living, moving river of ice that descends from the peaks above. Walking on the glacier edge, feeling the cold emanating from its blue-green ice, and looking up at the seracs and crevasses above is an experience that never loses its power, no matter how many times you visit.
Sonmarg is also a famous fishing destination — the Sindh River here is one of the best brown trout fishing rivers in South Asia. Even if you are not a fisherman, watching the trout dart through the crystal-clear water is mesmerizing.
Drive back to Srinagar in the evening and check in to your hotel by the lake.
Overnight: Hotel in Srinagar (3-star).
Today you move to a Deluxe Houseboat on Dal Lake for a true Kashmiri experience. Start the day with an early morning Shikara ride to the Floating Vegetable Market — an extraordinary sight of hundreds of boats loaded with fresh produce conducting a floating wholesale market in the pre-dawn darkness, illuminated only by lanterns and the first pale light of dawn.
After breakfast on the houseboat, visit the Mughal Gardens — Shalimar Bagh, Nishat Bagh, and Chashme Shahi — three of the most beautiful formal gardens in all of South Asia. Spend the afternoon exploring the Old City, visiting the Jamia Masjid and the Shah Hamdan Mosque. In the evening, take a leisurely sunset Shikara ride as the mountains turn gold, then pink, then deep purple.
Overnight: Deluxe Houseboat, Dal Lake.
Drive to Pahalgam (95 km, 2.5 hours) for a full-day excursion. Visit Betaab Valley, Aru Valley, and the Chandanwari snowfield (16 km from Pahalgam) — the starting point of the famous Amarnath Yatra pilgrimage. Even outside the pilgrimage season, Chandanwari offers some of the most dramatic scenery in the region, with a natural amphitheatre of snow-covered peaks surrounding a wide, flat snowfield through which the Lidder River flows.
Return to Srinagar in the evening for a farewell dinner at a rooftop restaurant overlooking Dal Lake — the perfect way to savour your last night in paradise.
Overnight: Houseboat, Dal Lake, Srinagar.
A final Kashmiri breakfast of Noon Chai and Lavasa bread on the houseboat deck. Check out and transfer to Srinagar Airport. As the plane climbs and the valley of Kashmir appears below — the silver ribbon of Dal Lake, the emerald green of the paddy fields, the snow-capped peaks all around — you will feel what every visitor feels leaving Kashmir: a deep, almost physical ache to return. Tour ends.