Kashmir Itinerary for 4 days:-
Day-1 Srinagar Airport ---> Pahalgam (102 km, 3hrs)
As you reach Srinagar, straight away head towards Pehalgam.
2 good reasons for this:-
1) If you do a day trip from Srinagar, you will not be able to cover the most remote
and breathtaking places in Pehalgam.
2) If you are planning to do a night stay in Pehalgam after a day in Srinagar, you will
have to unnecessarily do packing-unpacking of your luggage.
On your day-1 after lunch, go for a Ghoda ride to Baisaran. Baisaran is everything that
you had heard about Kashmir, everything you wanted from your trip and everything that
you see in movies(claimed to be shot in Kashmir). Since we Indians are too fond of the west, this place
is called the Mini-Switzerland.
- Ghoda ride is injurious for your bums. You might feel yourself riding a ghoda for that entire
night(and in some cases, for the entire trip).
- A trip to Baisaran (and 3 more points in between) will cost you around 1500 per person.
Negotiate hard(they will start from Rs2800).
- No Guide is required. No photo Wala is required. Do not Buy shawls from there. They are all thugs.
Day-2 Pahalgam ---> Srinagar
After your breakfast, hire a local Taxi-wala and he will take you to three beautiful scenic points in Pahalgam.
1) Aru Valley: Just enjoy the calmness of this place.
2) Chandanwadi: This is the place from where Amarnath Yatra begins. A cup of tea on the shores of
Lidder river can be very refreshing.
3) Betab Valley: Named after Sunny Deol's debut movie Betab. Again, just relax on the banks of Lidder and enjoy the tranquility of the place.
My two cents:
- If I had to put the places in order of their beauty(Starting with the most beautiful):
Baisaran, Betaab Valley, Aru Valley , Chandan wadi. So in case you wanted to skip any one of these
You can consider my ranking.
- No Guide is required. No photo wala is required. Do not Buy shawls from there. They are all thugs.
After these points head towards Srinagar and on the way, ask your Driver bhaiya to show you apple orchards.
On reaching Srinagar, you might want to have an evening stroll near Dall lake.
Day-3 Srinagar --> Gulmarg --> Srinagar (52 kms, one side)
Early morning, around 9.30, leave your Hotel room for Gulmarg. A good 52kms from Srinagar, it takes 2 hrs to reach there.
Gulmarg is famous for its Gondola ride. It has two phases and trust me, Gondola ride would be the most amazing experience of your entire life.
My two cents:
- I would recommend to skip phase 1 and straight away go to phase two(coz this is where you find snow).
- No Guide is required. No photo wala is required. No Ghoda wala is required. Do not Buy shawls from there. They are all thugs.
- Carry woolens as it gets to cold at 14000fts and you might also feel a little dizzy there.
Day-4 Sringar
In the morning after breakfast, head towards the famous Srinagar Gardens. Though there are around 11 gardens in Srinagar but you can confine yourself to the most famous ones:-
- Chashm-e shahi
- Nishant bagh
- Shalimar Garden
At around 6 in the evening, take a Shikara. 6pm is perfect since you will get to see the Dal lake in light, in the sunset and in the dark.
Enjoy bhutta, fruit chat and little souvenir shopping while on the boat.
My two cents:
- Negotiate. There is no Govt Rate for Shikara, sab ullu banate hain.
- Buy Shawls from Meena bazar(floating market).
Food:
- Enjoy best wazwan(Typical kashmiri cuisine consisting, 7 mutton dishes) at Glacier restaurant pahalgam.
- Srinagar is famous for its Bakery products. You can try some at Mughal darbar bakery.
- For vegetarian, Rajma chawal at Krishna vaishno dhaba is the best bet.
Places and Experiences I Skipped:
- I skipped Sonmarg, since it was practically difficult to squeeze that in, in a 4 days trip.
- I skipped Houseboat, since we had a child with us and i had not heard encouraging reviews of
houseboats. Do let me know your experience and i can put that here.
Important Advice:
- Srinagar is just another city with all hustle and bustles so a day in Srinagar is more than enough.
- When returning to your home destination, reach Srinagar airport a good 2 hrs before, since
the security checking at Srinagar airport is too hectic and time consuming.
- Carry umbrellas, as you would often hear Kashmiris saying "Kashmir ka mausam, mumbai ka fashion kabhi bhi badal sakta hai"
The place is blessed with the most stunning landscapes, the most humble people and the most delicious food, so enjoy every bit of it. As in my case, its only your body that returns from Kashmir, you will leave your soul behind.
“Agar Firdous Baroy-i zameen ast, Hami asto, hami asto, hami ast”
Thanks,
Jaideep Singh
For any queries, feel free to mail me at jaideep248@gmail.com
