SRINAGAR
After the unexpected snowfall in the month of September, yet another snowfall on Friday in the higher reaches of Kashmir brought cheers among the tourists present here. It has also brought hopes in the tourism industry here that the coming winter season would witness record-breaking tourist arrivals here.
Ski resort of Gulmarg was snow covered on Friday, much to the thrill and excitement of visiting tourists. Authorities were busy on Friday clearing snow on the Srinagar-Leh highway to allow enthusiastic tourists to visit Sonmarg. All those tourists who are present in Kashmir valley have started changing their tour days in order to visit snow covered tourist destinations like Sonmarg and Gulmarg.
Earlier, Kashmir witnessed an unexpected snowfall in September, bringing more tourists to Kashmir valley during that month. Secretary Tourism Syed Abid Rashid said that they are expecting a huge influx of tourists from December 2023 onwards. Social media platforms are already buzzing with tourists enjoying snow in various parts of Kashmir valley on Friday.
As snowfall is only adding to the delight of tour operators, they are expecting houseful Gulmarg hotels and huts especially on the eve of Christmas and New Year. “There would be no rooms available from 15 December onwards in Gulmarg as the bookings are almost complete,” said a tourism department official who is in charge of Gulmarg.
Gulmarg was in focus in February during the grand third edition of the Khelo India Winter Games. It was a mega winter sports event and it kept Gulmarg on top of media headlines for days together.
Tour operators have recently said that they have not only the queries, but the bookings for the coming winter season, including for less known tourist destinations in Kashmir valley. Recently, a high-level meeting was held by Secretary Tourism Syed Abid Rashid regarding preparations to host tourists during the winter season, especially in Gulmarg. “We are ready to host tourists for the winter season and all the facilities are in place, especially for the foreign tourists in Gulmarg,” the Secretary Tourism said.
The J&K administration is expecting a lot of heli-skiers during the winter season from Europe. Apart from heli-skiers, thousands of locals, along with their wards, come to Gulmarg as they participate in winter games activities.
The J&K Tourism Department and J&K Sports Council hold a lot of winter sports events in Gulmarg during the winter months. Currently, there are thousands of tourists in Kashmir and most of them are heading to snow-clad tourist destinations to enjoy the snowfall here. The administration is preparing itself to keep ready the facilities for the coming tourists at places like Yusmarg and Dodipathari in Budgam district and Sonmarg in Ganderbal district.
Men and machinery have been kept ready for the snow clearance operations, especially for the important roads like Bandipora-Gurez road, Srinagar-Leh road and Kupwara-Karnah road. A huge numbers of tourists are keen to visit snow-clad Keran in Kupwara, Gurez in Bandipora district and other such tourist destinations during winters. Tourism authorities here in Kashmir are expecting recording-breaking arrivals of tourists during the winter season.