Winter in Kashmir: Six Days Through Srinagar, Gulmarg & Pahalgam

The journey

Kashmir in December had been on our family travel list for a long time, and when we finally planned it for Christmas week, I was probably the most excited person at home.

The plan was six days covering Srinagar, Gulmarg and Pahalgam, with absolutely no intention of rushing from one place to another.

And honestly, winter Kashmir deserved exactly that.

The moment we landed in Srinagar, the cold hit differently. Jackets came out immediately, hands disappeared into pockets, and suddenly everyone who had said, "Itna bhi cold nahi hoga," became very quiet. 😭

Our first proper Kashmir experience was Dal Lake.

We took a shikara ride in the afternoon, wrapped in warm clothes while the boat slowly moved through the lake. The mountains in the distance, colourful shikaras passing beside us and that winter silence made everything feel almost unreal.

My parents were enjoying the view peacefully while I was obviously trying to photograph everything.

We also spent time exploring Srinagar, visited the Mughal gardens and walked around the local markets. Shopping with family in Kashmir is dangerous because suddenly everyone has something they "should definitely take home."

Shawls.

Dry fruits.

Saffron.

Kahwa.

Random souvenirs.

Our bags were already gaining weight. 😂

Then came Gulmarg, which was easily the most exciting part of the trip.

The drive itself kept getting prettier as we went higher. And once we reached the snow, suddenly everyone in the family became ten years old again.

We had proper snowball fights, walked around trying not to slip and took approximately a hundred family pictures.

The Gulmarg Gondola was probably my favourite experience. As we went higher, everything below slowly became white—mountains, trees, rooftops, literally everything.

It was freezing.

Absolutely freezing.

But nobody wanted to leave.

There was something really wholesome about watching my parents enjoy the snow just as much as I was.

After Gulmarg, we headed towards Pahalgam, and the vibe completely changed again.

It was quieter and slower, with the Lidder River flowing beside the road and mountains surrounding us everywhere.

We explored Betaab Valley and the areas around Pahalgam, stopping constantly because every viewpoint somehow looked better than the previous one.

One afternoon we found a little place for chai and Maggi and ended up sitting there much longer than planned.

Hot chai when it's freezing outside genuinely tastes different.

That's just science. 😭

The evenings were probably my favourite part of this family trip.

We'd return to the hotel completely exhausted, order dinner, make kahwa and sit together talking about everything we'd done during the day.

Nobody was busy with work.

Nobody had anywhere else to be.

And for six days, everyone's routine basically disappeared.

By the last day, we'd accumulated hundreds of pictures, way too many dry fruits and enough winter memories to keep talking about Kashmir for months.

The places were obviously beautiful.

But what made this trip special was seeing all of it together as a family.

Standing beside Dal Lake.

Playing in the snow at Gulmarg.

Driving through Pahalgam.

Having chai together while it was freezing outside.

Those little moments eventually became more important than the itinerary itself.

Kashmir was somewhere we'd wanted to visit for years.

And experiencing it together, right in the middle of winter, made it worth the wait. 🤍