Six days, five nights: Srinagar and Dal Lake, day trips to Sonmarg and Gulmarg, a night in Pahalgam and your last night on a Dal Lake houseboat.
We pick you up at Srinagar airport or the railway station and get you checked in to your hotel. In the afternoon you visit Nishat Bagh and Shalimar Bagh, two of the Mughal gardens laid out along the edge of Dal Lake. The day ends with an hour on the lake in a shikara around sunset. Overnight in Srinagar.
Sonmarg, the 'meadow of gold', is about two and a half to three hours from Srinagar, with the road following the Sindh river most of the way. From the meadow you can head up towards Thajiwas glacier on a pony or walk the trails along the riverbed; agree the pony rate before you set off. It is cooler up here even in summer, so bring a warm layer. You drive back to Srinagar in the evening for the night.
Gulmarg is about two hours from Srinagar, the last stretch climbing through pine forest. The Gondola is the main event: Phase 1 goes up to Kongdoori and Phase 2 carries on towards Apharwat, and the earlier you reach the base station, the shorter the wait. Afterwards there is time for St. Mary's Church, the golf course and Strawberry Valley before heading back to Srinagar for the night.
Pahalgam is around three hours from Srinagar without stops, and today you make several. You pause at the saffron fields in Pampore (in flower only from late October into November), the 9th-century temple ruins at Awantipora, an apple orchard, and one of the workshops near Bijbehara that make cricket bats from Kashmir willow. After check-in, take an evening walk along the Lidder river. Overnight in Pahalgam.
The morning is for Betaab Valley, Aru Valley and Chandanwari. Outside vehicles are not allowed up to these spots, so you go in Pahalgam's local union cabs, paid directly. By late afternoon you are driving back to Srinagar to check in to a traditional luxury houseboat on Dal Lake for your last night.
Breakfast on the houseboat, then, if your flight time allows, a quick shopping stop at Lal Chowk or a local market. We drop you at Srinagar airport. Security checks there start at the outer gate and can take a while, so don't cut it fine.
Hotels are named before you pay. If one is unavailable on your dates we will tell you what we are substituting and requote. We never swap it silently.
“We did the six-day valley circuit in October and it was handled beautifully from the first email. Our driver knew exactly when to leave Pahalgam to catch the light at Betaab, and the houseboat night turned out to be the highlight of the trip for my parents.”
“Third time in Kashmir, and the first time with a local operator instead of an online aggregator. The difference is enormous - real hotels, no last-minute substitutions, and someone who picks up the phone at 11 pm.”
Send your dates and we will confirm availability and price, usually the same day.
₹16,500
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Tell us your dates and we will send an itinerary and a quote, usually within a few hours.
