A Kashmir lake ringed by autumn-gold chinar trees.

Kashmir Valley Classic

The complete valley week — Dal Lake and the Mughal gardens, two full days in Gulmarg for the Gondola and the walks, and the Lidder valley at Pahalgam.

Day by Day

7 Days, In Full

The trip to book if Kashmir is the whole holiday. Three nights in Srinagar: the lake, a dawn shikara, the Mughal gardens, the hilltop temple, Hazratbal and a walk through the old city. Two nights in Gulmarg: the drive up to the meadow, the two-stage Gondola toward Apharwat, and a slower day for Khilanmarg and the church. One night in Pahalgam: the Lidder river and the pine forest. It is paced so the high days in Gulmarg have room to breathe. Seven days, and nothing important left out.

Srinagar

Arrive in Srinagar and a First Shikara on Dal Lake

You land at Srinagar and drive to the lake, twenty minutes or so. The afternoon is easy. A shikara ride on Dal Lake is the way to start: a slow paddle past the houseboats, into the lanes of the floating gardens, out to open water for the light on the mountains. Back on shore there is time for tea and a walk along the boulevard. The evening is free. Srinagar sits at about 1,600 metres, so the air is cool even in summer.

Srinagar

Srinagar — the Mughal Gardens and Pari Mahal

A day along the eastern shore of the lake, where the Mughal emperors built their gardens. Nishat Bagh climbs the hillside in twelve terraces, one for each sign of the zodiac. Shalimar Bagh, built by Jahangir for Nur Jahan, runs water down a central channel between chinar trees. Chashme Shahi is small and built around a spring. Above them, Pari Mahal is a terraced ruin with the best view in the city. The afternoon can add the tulip garden in season, or a carpet workshop.

Srinagar

Srinagar — the Old City, Hazratbal and Shankaracharya

A day in the older parts of Srinagar. The Shankaracharya temple sits on a hill above the city, up a long stair, for a wide view over the lake and the valley. Hazratbal, the white marble shrine on the western shore, holds a relic of the Prophet and looks straight across the water to the mountains. In the old city, downtown, a walk on foot takes in the wooden Jamia Masjid, the riverside shrines, and workshops for papier-mache and copper. It is the day that shows how the city lives.

A snow-dusted mountain with pine trees and a trail near Gulmarg.

Srinagar → Gulmarg

Srinagar to Gulmarg and the Gondola

The drive to Gulmarg takes about two hours, out across the rice fields of the valley and then up through pine forest to the meadow at 2,650 metres. Gulmarg means the meadow of flowers, and in summer it is exactly that. After checking in, the afternoon is for the Gondola: stage one to Kongdoori, and stage two, weather allowing, to a shoulder of Mount Apharwat near 4,000 metres. The air is thin at the top, so the visit is short. Warm layers are needed even in July.

Gulmarg

A Full Day in Gulmarg — the Meadow, the Church and the Walks

A day to slow down in the mountains. The meadow itself is for walking, with the small wooden church of St Mary's at its centre and the world's highest eighteen-hole golf course spread around it. A path leads up to Khilanmarg, a higher meadow with a view of the Kashmir valley on one side and Nanga Parbat, on a clear day, on the other. If the Gondola was closed for weather the day before, this is the day to try again. The evenings here are cold all year.

A river running through a green Kashmir valley lined with trees and mountains.

Gulmarg → Pahalgam

Gulmarg to Pahalgam through the Valley

A long transfer day across the width of the Kashmir valley, about five hours with stops. The road comes down from Gulmarg, skirts Srinagar, and heads southeast along the Jhelum. Pampore, the saffron town, is on the way, and so are the ninth-century temple ruins at Avantipur. The land rises again into pine forest as you near Pahalgam, at about 2,400 metres, where the Lidder river runs through the town. The evening is for a walk along the riverbank.

The Lidder river flowing over rocks through a wooded valley below Pahalgam.

Pahalgam → Srinagar

Pahalgam Back to Srinagar and Departure

The drive back to Srinagar takes about two and a half hours, down the Lidder and along the Jhelum. There is usually time for a last stop: the saffron fields at Pampore, a carpet or papier-mache workshop on the edge of the city, or a final shikara on Dal Lake if the flight is late. Then the short drive to the airport for the flight out. Bags of dried apricots, walnuts and saffron are the things people carry home.

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luxury · 6 Nights