Record 2.5 lakh tourists visit Kashmir in two months
SRINAGAR: The tourists have kept their date with the picturesque Kashmir even during the harsh winter and a record 2.5 lakh tourists visited the Valley in the first two months of this year.
Bollywood has also returned to Kashmir and actors Ranvir Singh and Alia Bhatt are busy with shoots in snow-covered Gulmarg for their upcoming movie “Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani”.
Director of Tourism Kashmir, Fazl-ul-Haseeb told The New Indian Express that the tourist inflow to the Valley during the winter has been very good.
The tourists not only thronged the world-famous ski resort of Gulmarg but Pahalgam resort in south Kashmir, which used to be empty during winter, also witnessed a good footfall of tourists this winter.
Haseeb said over 2.56 lakh tourists have visited Kashmir in the first two months of this year, which is a record.
“About 1.27 lakh tourists visited Kashmir in January and 1.29 lakh tourists visited Kashmir in February,” he said, adding they are hopeful of a bumper tourist season this year.
Last year 163154 tourists visited the Valley during January-February.
Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) Kashmir chapter president Zahoor Ahmad Qari said there has been good tourist footfall and the ski resort of Gulmarg is packed till March-end.
“We are receiving queries from the intending travellers and there is an expectation that like 2022 this year too will witness a good tourist season,” he said.
Qari said the houseboats, which used to be closed in October after the onset of winter, had good occupancy during the winter this year.
The foreign tourists from South East Asia including Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia also visited Kashmir during the first two months of this year, he said.
Kashmir Hotels and Restaurant Owners Federation (KHAROF) president Bashir Ahmad Bhat said there has been good tourist footfall in the Valley during the 2022 and 2023 winter.
He said the hotels in Srinagar are at present witnessing 70-75 per cent occupancy and they hope that Kashmir will receive tourist inflow to its full potential this year.
The tourist arrivals are likely to pick up with the opening of Asia’s largest Tulip garden in Srinagar by the end of this month. Last year, an all-time high of 2.7 million tourists including 3.65 lakh tourists visited the Valley.
Meanwhile, Bollywood is also keeping its date with picturesque Kashmir and filmmakers are visiting the place to shoot their movies here.
At present, actors Ranvir Singh and Alia Bhatt are shooting for Karan Johar’s film Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani in Valley.
A song from the film will be shot in snow-covered Gulmarg in north Kashmir, Pahalgam in south Kashmir and Srinagar.
While Alia has already shot in Kashmir for a few movies including the ‘Student Of The Year’, it is the maiden film shooting for Ranvir in Valley.
Last year, prominent filmmaker Onir shot in Gurez, close to the Line of Control (LoC) in north Kashmir, for his Chahiye Thoda Pyaar movie.