Betaab Valley
Inspired by the name of Sunny Deol’s Bollywood movie Betaab that was shot here, the picturesque Betaab Valley is known all over the world for its breathtaking location, dancing streams, and romantic climate. This spellbinding valley is surrounded by lofty mountains packed with pine forests and deodar trees and is adorned by the serene Lidder River flowing through it.

Betaab Valley is mostly visited by couples, nature lovers and photo fanatics, who love to spend time amidst the jaw-dropping vistas of the place. The tourists visiting this destination also indulge in a plethora of exciting and fun-filled activities such as horse riding, camping, and birdwatching.

Betaab Valley also serves as an ideal trekking base for exploring nearby mountains. The valley even has a small amusement park that is well-equipped with many fun rides for children.

Pahalgam
Amidst the Liddar Valley sits a picturesque destination in Kashmir – Pahalgam. It is located in the Anantnag district in Jammu at an elevation of 2740 metres above sea level. Popularly it is called the Valley of Shepherds. Also, it is one of the most sumptuous destinations in India and it must be on your bucket list when you chalk down the places to visit in Jammu and Kashmir.

In the middle of tranquillity, you will surely find many out-of-the-world destinations too. Some of the stunning lakes such as Sheshnag Lake will surely take your breath away and beauteous pine trees will follow you wherever you go. If you are waiting for an adrenaline pump, you have plenty to look forward to on your trip to Pahalgam. Initiate trekking on a hill or climbing the Himalayas from a suitable summit and unleash all the adrenaline. If you visit this place in the right season, you will have one of the most remarkable skiing experiences as well.

Apart from this, if you are looking to spend some quality time with your family on a holiday, you could not choose a better domestic destination than Pahalgam. It offers everything for all age groups, especially kids who have a gala time moving around this beautiful place a lot. You might want to indulge in various activities with them too by zorbing, sitting in various rides at famous amusements parks and what not! Traversing in and around Pahalgam is devoid of any fuss as you can easily find local transport means and not waste much time hovering around on your holiday.

The weather is quite chilly from November to February with plenty of snow around. In the later months until April, it gets a bit warmer, albeit the minimum temperature hovers around 2-3 Degrees Celsius. The monsoon stretches from July till September. The autumn stretches until November and is quite dry with strong winds.

Sonamarg
Sonmarg is a tiny town of Kashmir situated 9,000 kms above sea level at the bank of the gushing Sindh river. This picturesque town is located in Ganderbal district of Jammu and Kashmir and is just 70 km away from the Srinagar International Airport. The valley is the connecting point of a number of Himalayan peaks like Kolhoi peak, Amarnath peak, Sirbal Peak, and so on. The charming view of the place becomes more attractive with the wide varieties of flowers and alpine trees gracing this quaint town.

Here you can enjoy, meadows of gold, sun-kissed peaks, breathtaking lakes and towering glaciers, all in one place. This beautiful himalayan town is full of mountain ranges and valleys to explore through trekking. It is a base camp for trekkers going to Ladakh and for many trekking routes to different lakes of Kashmir, such as Krishnasar Lake, Gadsar Lake, Vishansar Lake, and so on. During winter the valley covered with snow offers an opportunity to the tourist to enjoy sledding or skiing or snow fighting.

The tourists can also enjoy fishing trout and other species in Vishansar Lake, Krishnasar Lake, Gangabal Lake, and so on. If you like water activities, Sonmarg provides you the opportunity to enjoy white water rafting. To enjoy the true natural beauty of Kashmir, the tourists can explore places like Nilagrad, Kheer Bhawani Temple, Nichnai Pass, Vishansar Lake, Zoji-La Pass, Gadsar Lake, Baltal Valley, and so on from Sonmarg. The place also has an ancient importance.

It was the gateway to the Silk Road connecting Kashmir with China. Except for the winter months (November to February), the climate of the place remains very pleasant for tourism. The month of April to October is the pick time to experience the beauty of flowery meadows, snow-covered peaks, frozen glaciers, waterfalls, and pristine lakes. But if you are interested in snow-related adventures like skiing, ice skating, and sledding on frozen glaciers, winter is the best time for you to visit Sonmarg.

Gulmarg
The nearest India can make to being a ski resort is via its pine-fringed Gulmarg. Situated at an elevation of 2730 meters above sea level, it well justifies the Meadow of Flowers tag that it has received. The meadow is given a visual highlight by the 1890s Anglican Church of St Mary’s that sits on a lonely hillock which can be accessed off the dead-end road that links the 1965 neo-colonial style Hotel Highlands Park to the historic Gulmarg Golf Club. However, the key reason to visit Gulmarg is just not the same.

You must visit Gulmarg to explore the backing stands of the splendid mature pines traversing you to the elevation of bald Mt Afarwat. To make it to mountain, you can either trek on foot or take help from ponies at a meagre amount of INR 300 per hour. However, the easiest way out is using the two-stage gondola cable car that flutters you to 3747m. The impressive clear day views from the top are worth the ride. During this ride, you’ll encompass Nanga Parbat which is the world’s ninth highest mountain peak located across Pakistan.

Booking for this online can help save you from the long queues especially in the peak season of May and June. This service can however be cancelled either due to civil unrest or during bad weather and getting a refund from the organizers can get really annoying then. Base station of Gandola is situated about 1 km west of the bus stand.

Gulmarg endeavors you with more than 40 choices of accommodation each of them beautiful in their own very way. In the months of July, an average room fare (for a night) will be around INR 2000 for the old looking stays and INR 5000 for newer stays. Prices of the hotels see a drop of 20% in the winter season and a further dramatic drop when there is civil unrest in Srinagar or during the less popular months like September.

Srinagar
Silk-sunset, certain shades of white, tar on the roads, gloom beyond the oil lamp floating over the lake, ripples in the water, fog on the mirror, garden of the spring, the palace of the fairies, subject of the poems, emptiness in the eyes, absence of words, forever in ordinary things and the old roses on a breeze, where love arrives in memories of forever to liberate us into life – Srinagar! The tourist places in Srinagar offer breathtaking views and mesmerising locations to die for.

Srinagar wakes up with Fajr (pre –dawn prayers) and zikr where life sings winter melodies on nine bridges, connecting the city that smells of heaven on both sides of Jhelum River, a river that passes through the city, meanders through the valley, deepening into the traveler’s paradise – Dal Lake.

The city takes on the morning light mirroring the mountains, when the moon still hangs pale over the tranquil Dal Lake, which ornaments an array of alluring houseboats where the lovers’ find home watching a promise of the snow filling up the woods. The lake’s less urbanized eastern shore is decorated with the Mughal gardens that speaks of history strung out for several kilometers. The subdued fortress and the familiar wooden mosques of the old times makes a mark at the center of the city in this era of remembering all that once existed. Easy wind, downy flake and the promises to keep between the woods and frozen lake, Srinagar awaits for you, to dream within a dream. So, come and explore the best tourist places in Srinagar.