SRINAGAR: Tourists visiting the famous ski resort of Gulmarg are experiencing a memorable holiday after the upper reaches of Kashmir received the season’s first snowfall on Thursday. Gulmarg was covered with a white blanket of snow after it began snowing at night, bringing freezing temperatures earlier than usual this year. About 3-4 inches of snowfall was recorded in the main ski resort while the upper reaches received 6-inch snow.
As the entire plains and upper reaches of Gulmarg wore a carpeted look, many tourists enjoyed a lifetime experience. Several of them had never seen snowfall before. A recently married couple from Surat in Gujarat said that they could not believe it that they have witnessed snowfall during their first visit to the Valley. “It is a wonderful experience and we are enjoying it. We are very lucky to be here while it is snowing,” they told this newspaper.
Chetan Pandya from Maharashtra said they were very excited about the experience. “This is a perfect time to visit Kashmir and people should visit this place at least once a year,” he said. “It is awesome. I cannot describe the feelings in words,” Pandya added, stressing that once he returns to his hometown, he would urge everybody to visit Kashmir.
Another tourist from Gujarat said that when they reached here yesterday, the weather was pleasant and there was greenery around. “However, when we woke up in the morning, the entire Gulmarg was covered with a white blanket of snow. This experience will remain with us throughout our lives,” he said.
Aasha Mandoth, a tourist from Ahmedabad said while she has visited Himachal Pradesh and other places, this was her visit to Kashmir.
“This is really a paradise on earth,” she added. Stakeholders in the tourism sector are hopeful that the early snowfall will lead to a further increase in footfall of tourists. An all-time high of over 2 million tourists have visited Kashmir this year so far.