Kashmir tourism breaks records, arrivals highest in 10 years

With hotels and houseboats fully booked and tourists queuing up for shikara rides on the famous Dal Lake, Kashmir Valley is witnessing record-breaking tourist footfall in the past one decade.

According to the tourism department of Jammu and Kashmir, 600,00 tourists have visited the valley in the past four months—the highest in the last ten years.

And with Amarnath Yatra (pilgrimage) starting in June, the government expects the numbers to grow further.

''As you knowthe winter season, i.e., from January to March, has been good, and even the April figures have been better. More than 600,000 tourists have arrived in the first four months of this year, which is turning out to be a great tourism season and year for Kashmir. Given the fact that the pilgrimage is also happening, tourism in the valley will get a further push. This time, we will be welcoming tourists for yatra as well as other destinations. It's a good sign for the tourism industry. We suffereda lot due to the pandemic. As we see the figures, and keeping in mind the holidays across India, we expect a lot of tourist arrivals. We are also exploring new tourist destinations,'' said G N Itoo, Director, Tourism Department.

The tourism industry in the Kashmir Valley had incurred huge losses in the last three years. Following the revocation of Article 370 and the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the world, the tourism sector in the valley went out of business.

''It's true that around 500,000 to 600,000 tourists visited the valley in the last few months. This is the first time after decades that we are seeing so many tourist arrivals to the Kashmir Valley. We suffered a lot during the Covid pandemic. But after witnessing tremendous tourist footfall, we are hopeful that momentum will continue to grow further,'' said Manzoor Ahmad, travel operator.

One of the main factors Kashmir is seeing a plethora of tourists is the heatwave conditions that have been wreaking havoc in the northern parts of the country. With temperatures hovering around 20 degrees Celsius, people are thronging to the valley to get respite from unrelenting summers.

“This is my second visit to Kashmir. I came in 2014 for the first time and witnessed snowfall. Tulip Garden was so beautiful. I am sure millions of people have come here and it looks much more developed now. It's a great place and everyone should come. Those who don't are missing out on something beautiful,'' said Nimisha Kapadia, a tourist.

The preparations for the Amarnath Yatra are currently in progress with the government expecting around 500,000 to 600,00 people to take part in the pilgrimage this year.