(Part – 1 : Gulmarg)
It was finally happening! Kashmir was now a dream we would be living shortly.
We arrived at Srinagar and directly departed for Gulmarg on our very first day. The 3 hour journey was filled with scenic beauty and the most renowned Khyber Resorts was waiting for us. After a 15 hour journey from Surat to Gulmarg, we were finally ready for all the adventures along with our favourite couple Shreyans and Krishna.
We were enchanted by the Heaven in Heaven. Located at just 5 minutes from Gondola,The Khyber Resorts is one of the best luxury resort in Gulmarg, Srinagar.8,825 feet above sea level in the Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas, stands a world-class resort that captures the beauty of its pristine setting. With majestic views of the Affarwat Peaks, The Khyber Himalayan Resort & Spa is spread over 7 acres of a sylvan coniferous forest.
We were welcomed with the refreshing Kashmiri Kahwa which is a must have if you are in Kashmir. The corner popularly called, Kash in Kashmir at Khyber has a great hospitality team and made sure that they served us even at 2:00 AM in the night with warm coffee whilst we were freezing at 8 degrees. We enjoyed the hotel on the first day and post the dinner we sat out amongst the woods listening to songs and enjoying the cold.
Day 2 saw an early morning. As we had our breakfast with a view of the partly snow covered mountains and brisk rain, we were preparing to leave for the world famous Gandola Ride. Though we were unfortunate as Phase 2 was closed due to COVID norms, however, the Phase 1 experience was something worth remembering. Gulmarg Gondola, an administered union territory of India is a high altitude cable car. The two-stage gondola lift ferries about 600 people per hour to and from Kongdoori Mountain, a shoulder of nearby Apharwat Peak(13,780 ft).
Instructions- Take horse to Gandola skiing and sledging place. Book the skiing, sledging and horse together at the start point to have a hassle free experience. Note that Kashmir has Tip system apart from the fees to be charged which you would happily be paying seeing the amount of efforts the people do and the amount of humbleness they have. It is truly heaven not just for the natural beauty it has but also for the kind of people who live there. Extremely sweet and helping nature wouldn’t suffice the qualities they actually poses.
After an adventurous day at the top of Gulmarg Valley, we went back to the hotel, walked around in the city and prepared ourselves for Day 3. Having seen the morning view, there was no chance we were going to miss it on the third day. Having followed our morning ritual, we left for the bottom of Gulmarg Valley visit via ATV. On our way towards exploring the lower Gulmarg on ATV, we stopped by a beautiful valley of grassland and had the most amazing experience. Amidst the sunshine and cold breeze, the natural array of mountains and valleys felt exquisite. And the ATV ride should be your bucket list item for Gulmarg, Kashmir. Though a little expensive, it totally worth it. The cold breeze brushing against your skin, driving amidst the farms, village, lands, seeing the army positioned at multiple places and much more. Having a tour around the city for over 2-3 hours, seeing the River fronts, Waterfalls, Greenery and much more, we realised why Kashmir is called the Heaven on Earth and why Gulmarg is called the Heaven in Heaven.
We came back to the hotel by the evening and planned our way to Pahalgam on the next morning.
Oh, and did we forget to mention we had the world famous Maggie of Kashmir at every spot we stopped, from ‘Humari Barf waali Maggie’ to ‘Riverview Waali Maggie’!
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