When I think of Winter, I think of thick snow, snowflaked greenery, mulled wine and layers & layers of clothing which literally makes you feel like a big fat ball. When I went to Kashmir, it felt like I had entered heaven, a paradise I had always imagined it to be, So let me take you through my heavenly experience that lasted for five whimsical days which I highly suggest everyone needs to tick it off their bucket list as soon as one can!
Ski In The Day & Be In A Snowmobile At Night, Here's Everything Fun To Try On Your Kashmir Trip
What Makes It Awesome
What's My Pro Tip?
Here are my top recommendations and advice for when you eventually plan a trip to Kashmir and make sure you do not miss them.
Spend a day in Srinagar: We were excited to hop straight to Gulmarg from Srinagar, but we made a wise decision to stay a night and relish Kashmir in its true local form. You get to see the city life of the locals and venture out to local markets experiencing and finding unique accessories and food ingredients. We even dropped by the Dal Lake, but due to the smog and cold weather, the lake's true charm and beauty were hidden. The best time to stroll through the lake is during autumn and summer seasons when you get to see the clear blue skies with the mountainous landscape around you, a truly magical view they say, and it truly is.
Where to stay in Srinagar you ask? Why not The LaLit Grand Palace Srinagar or maybe even Vivanta By Taj-Dal View Srinagar!
Drive down to Gulmarg: The drive from Srinagar to Gulmarg is really one of a kind - snow-tipped pine trees and a smorgasbord of birds chirping around is something you will enjoy. In my words, it’s a drive practically through cloud nine!
Make sure you stay at The Khyber Himalayan Resort & Spa when you make your way to Gulmarg.
Plus, the drive to Gulmarg is just not enough, to continue a dream-like experience make sure you stay at The Khyber Himalayan Resort and Spa, Gulmarg. Their service, wooden structures and cosy ambience gives you a forever Christmas feel. A visit to L’occitane Spa is a must if you ask me!
Learn to ski if you haven't already: If you haven't skied all your life, now is definitely the time to do it. A lot of people say it is a difficult sport, but the minute you get a hang of it, you'll surely crave for more. Make sure you devote half a day to this particular activity and get yourself a personal trainer for a fun-filled experience.
Snowmobiling under the stars: Who said all the activities are done during the day? The best ones are kept for the nightriders for an enhanced adventurous journey. My favourite of the lot was snowmobiling amidst snow-flaked woods in a midnight blue sky twinkling with a million stars. Trust me, it couldn’t get any better than this!
Drive through Gulmarg on an all-terrain vehicle {ATV}: Get your adventurous caps on because Gulmarg offers all snow-related activities you can possibly think of. One of the books is to ATV through the roads of Gulmarg where they show you everything you need to know about Gulmarg. From the strawberry fields to an array of army camps, you shall witness full of Gulmarg in an hour and that too in style!
Gandola it to Phase 2: Gandola, in other words, cable car, isn’t your ordinary cable car journey, while you hop on to this four-seated trolling car, beneath you in a tone of snow surrounded by igloos that is a site you don’t want to miss. The icing on the cake is the skiers you shall see drifting away through slopes and risky edges which makes you dream of the champ you are when it comes to being a true sport!
As beautiful as you think it can get, there is actually more waiting. Phase 2, the highest peak of the mountain is somewhere I can spend 10 days of every month. The snow that you can eat like a flavourless gola, the sun that sparkles on your face giving you the additional warmth and views that are meant for the gods is something that you should not miss. Oh Jesus, take make back there right now!
Spend a day in Srinagar: We were excited to hop straight to Gulmarg from Srinagar, but we made a wise decision to stay a night and relish Kashmir in its true local form. You get to see the city life of the locals and venture out to local markets experiencing and finding unique accessories and food ingredients. We even dropped by the Dal Lake, but due to the smog and cold weather, the lake's true charm and beauty were hidden. The best time to stroll through the lake is during autumn and summer seasons when you get to see the clear blue skies with the mountainous landscape around you, a truly magical view they say, and it truly is.
Where to stay in Srinagar you ask? Why not The LaLit Grand Palace Srinagar or maybe even Vivanta By Taj-Dal View Srinagar!
Drive down to Gulmarg: The drive from Srinagar to Gulmarg is really one of a kind - snow-tipped pine trees and a smorgasbord of birds chirping around is something you will enjoy. In my words, it’s a drive practically through cloud nine!
Make sure you stay at The Khyber Himalayan Resort & Spa when you make your way to Gulmarg.
Plus, the drive to Gulmarg is just not enough, to continue a dream-like experience make sure you stay at The Khyber Himalayan Resort and Spa, Gulmarg. Their service, wooden structures and cosy ambience gives you a forever Christmas feel. A visit to L’occitane Spa is a must if you ask me!
Learn to ski if you haven't already: If you haven't skied all your life, now is definitely the time to do it. A lot of people say it is a difficult sport, but the minute you get a hang of it, you'll surely crave for more. Make sure you devote half a day to this particular activity and get yourself a personal trainer for a fun-filled experience.
Snowmobiling under the stars: Who said all the activities are done during the day? The best ones are kept for the nightriders for an enhanced adventurous journey. My favourite of the lot was snowmobiling amidst snow-flaked woods in a midnight blue sky twinkling with a million stars. Trust me, it couldn’t get any better than this!
Drive through Gulmarg on an all-terrain vehicle {ATV}: Get your adventurous caps on because Gulmarg offers all snow-related activities you can possibly think of. One of the books is to ATV through the roads of Gulmarg where they show you everything you need to know about Gulmarg. From the strawberry fields to an array of army camps, you shall witness full of Gulmarg in an hour and that too in style!
Gandola it to Phase 2: Gandola, in other words, cable car, isn’t your ordinary cable car journey, while you hop on to this four-seated trolling car, beneath you in a tone of snow surrounded by igloos that is a site you don’t want to miss. The icing on the cake is the skiers you shall see drifting away through slopes and risky edges which makes you dream of the champ you are when it comes to being a true sport!
As beautiful as you think it can get, there is actually more waiting. Phase 2, the highest peak of the mountain is somewhere I can spend 10 days of every month. The snow that you can eat like a flavourless gola, the sun that sparkles on your face giving you the additional warmth and views that are meant for the gods is something that you should not miss. Oh Jesus, take make back there right now!
Anything Else?
Also, make sure you're well equipped with warm clothes when you're heading far North. Here are few of my recommendations: waterproof boots from Decathlon {at Atria Mall or buy them online}, waterproof gloves from Decathlon, thermals from Marks & Spencer and also bennies, caps, hoodies!