Description
Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden is one of the largest tulip gardens in Asia and hosts an annual Tulip festival during the onset of spring season in the valley. Previously it was a Model Floriculture center and overlooks Dal Lake located at the foothills of the Zabarwan Range. A good variety and many other species of flowers can be found here.
Overview
One of nature’s finest creations in the world is Kashmir. The picturesque valley with intense beauty and varied landscape – pristine lakes, colossal mountains and glaciers, raging rivers, unexplored valleys with its unparallel beauty makes it picture perfect. It is the uppermost alpine region of north India and has names like ‘The Last Shangri-la. The Moghuls referred it as a ‘paradise on earth’, and it is rightly called ‘Heaven on earth’ these days. The four seasons are extravagantly beautiful with colorful grasslands, trout filled crystal clear lakes, Shrines, temples, rich history, culturally and ethnically diverse people has something to offer to every traveller and an adventure seeker. The art and craftsmanship of Kashmiris have a rich heritage and their handicrafts are brought and given as precious gift around the world. The Sumer capital of the state is Srinagar on the lap of serene Jhelum River with Dal and Nagin lake to enhance its picturesque setting, Be it on foot, bike, raft, kayak, the place has surreal wild places to explore and this land has something where you could find your adventure and solitude.
Inclusion
- Meals (Breakfast and dinner). - A limited decent spread of Indian food would be served for breakfast, dinner & anything else ordered apart from the spread should be paid by the customer. - Accommodation in double/twin-bedded rooms in hotels/Guest house/House boats as mentioned in the itinerary (or similar category hotels). - Taxi tours (Innova or similar), transfers, sightseeing tours and surface transportation as indicated in the itinerary. - Accommodation in handpicked hotels chosen to suit your comfort, needs and convenience of location.
Exclusion
- Air fares, airport taxes, entry fee at park,monuments, and anything not mentioned in the inclusions and itinerary. - Shikara ride at Dal lake. - Lunch, tea, coffee, mineral water, tips, transfers not mentioned in the itinerary. - Doctor, telephone, laundry and other personal expenses. - Cost of personal emergency exit or expenses due to external factors such as climatic conditions. - Travel Insurance. - Any other activities like skiing, sledge rides, rafting, paragliding that are not mentioned in the itinerary. - Horse riding or any fun activity at Gagangeer, Sonamarg or Pahalgam. Note: - Horse riding charges starts from INR 500 (2 hours) and goes upwards to INR 3000 at Sonamarg & Pahalgam, the rates varies for the points you choose to go. - white water rafting charges is around 500-1000 per pax, fun skiing and sledge sliding costs around 1000 per pax.
Itinerary
- Your trip begins with your arrival at the ancient city of Srinagar, which has been a site for major historic events and also been a cultural center for decades. - The state of Jammu and Kashmir is situated at the northernmost part of the country surrounded by the Pir Panjal Himalayan range. - On arrival you would be met by our representative and you’re driven in a private cab in the city towards the Dal Lake, Our representative would help you check-in at the house boat. - Relax and unwind at the house boat for a while and later in the evening you’re taken for a Shikara ride in the lake amidst the backdrop of the majestic mountain surroundings. - Dinner and stay at house boat for the night.
- Post breakfast you would visit the local places around Srinagar in your private cab. - Srinagar is the largest city and the summer capital of the state on the banks of the serene Jhelum River. - The city is famous for its Mughal gardens, Shankaracharya Hill, PariMahal, Hazaratbal, Khanqah Shah-I-Hamadan, Jama Masjid, Naqshband Sahib, Rozabal, PirDastgir Sahib, SriPratap Singh Museum. - Visit the beautiful spring tulip festival. - We would try to cover as many places as possible based on time availability for the day and your co-operation in adhering to timings provided. - Return to house boat for the night.
- We make an early morning start today and head towards Pahalgam in our cab, it’s a 4 to 5 hour ride based on the snow conditions and traffic. - On the way to Pahalgam we would be making a quick stop at the historical Martand Sun Temple dedicated to Surya built during the 8th century CE by Lalitaditya Muktapida during Korkata Dynasty. - Martand temple was also featured in the Bollywood movie Haider. The song Bismil from the movie was shot at this temple and it is a site of national importance. - You would spend the entire evening exploring places around Pahalgam. - The horse riding charges at Pahalgam should be paid by the customer & it starts from INR 500 to INR 4000 per pax depending on the spots you choose to visit. - The famous places around Pahalgam are Betaab valley, Aru Valley Chandanwari where the AmarnathYatra starts during summer months towards the cave to witness the ice Shivling. - Stay for the night at Guest house/hotel or homestay.
- You would spend the entire day at Aru exploring its surroundings. - It is a popular tourist destination for its scenic meadows, nomads, Lidder valley and Lidder River. It is one of the most sought after place for movie directors and lot of movies has been shot at this surroundings. - The famous places around Pahalgam are Betaab valley, Chandanwari where the AmarnathYatra starts during summer months towards the cave to witness the ice Shivling. - Aru serves as a base camp for trekkers going towards popular trails during summer months like Kolahoi glacier, Tarsar-Marsar Lakes and Katrinag valley. - Experience Spring at its best in the valley.
- We start the day early and it would be a long drive back to Srinagar and towards Gagangir around 7 hours based on weather and traffic on NH1D. - NH1D is the highway that connects Srinagar to Leh. - We would try to cover few local attractions en-route to Gagangir. - Gagangir is about 10km before Sonamarg and it is the last village accessible as Sonamarg is closed during the winters and inaccessible by road. - Stay at guest house for the night.
- Gagangir is the last village that is accessible during the winter months as the road to Sonamarg which is further 10kms is closed and inaccessible. - Gagangir is a beautiful village with scenic views of the mountains around and spend some time at the Sindh River with its full glory. - Explore the village and its surroundings. - Head out for a horse ride exploring the villages of Rezan, Zoorpora and Kullan on direct payment. - You can head out for a fun Ski session based on the snow conditions on direct payment. - Stay for the night at guest house.
- It is time to bid adieu to Kashmir and head to the airport to your flight back home with an enriched experience and memories of a lifetime. - En-route to Srinagar you could buy dry fruits, spices and fruits at the whole sale market located at Kangan, Inform your taxi driver to halt for few minutes to make your purchases.
Accommodation
- 2 nights house boat stay at the pristine Dal Lake. - 2 nights home stay or local guest house stay at Aru. - 2 nights at Gagangir.
Cancellation Policy
Life is unpredictable and we understand that sometimes you have to cancel or change your trip dates and it is our endeavor to make it as easy as possible for you. However, please understand that we plan everything including guide fees, permits, accommodation and ration in advance. Therefore, any cancellation means inconvenience and certain losses to the people involved in various stages of the programme. Keeping that in mind, our cancellation charges are as below – - Cancellations prior to 30 days from the start of the event: Full refund as cash - Cancellations between 30 days and 15 days to the start of the event: 50 % refund as cash. - Cancellations less than 15 days to the start of the event: No refund. - Cancellations will be accepted only by email. Note: Western Mountains reserves the right to cancel a programme before departure in the event oflogistical problems arising due to natural calamities, strikes, wars or any other circumstances that make the event inadvisable. In this case, we will refund 50% of the event fees.
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