About Pahalgam
Pahalgam is a riverside town in Anantnag district, set where the East and West Lidder rivers meet at 2,200 metres in a valley of pine and fir forest. Once a shepherds' village, it grew into Kashmir's best-known hill resort and is the traditional starting point for the annual Amarnath cave pilgrimage each July-August.
From the town, roads and pony trails branch out to the meadows of Baisaran and Betaab Valley and up the Lidder valley toward Aru.
Visitor essentials
What to look for
- Baisaran meadow, Kashmir's "mini Switzerland"
- Betaab Valley and the Lidder riverside
When to go
In season now
Best months: Apr–Oct.
From Srinagar
- Nearest town
- Anantnag
- Road ends at
- Pahalgam town (Baisaran and Aru beyond are pony/walk or local-taxi only)
On the map
Nearby
Betaab Valley
Pine-forested valley on the Lidder, a short drive from Pahalgam
Yusmarg
Pine-ringed alpine meadow in Budgam, on the banks of the Doodganga
Nishat Bagh
Terraced 'Garden of Joy' on Dal Lake, backed by the Zabarwan hills
Dal Lake
Srinagar's iconic urban lake, ringed by Mughal gardens and houseboats
Shalimar Bagh
Jahangir's 1619 terraced garden on the shore of Dal Lake
Sonmarg
Glacier-fed meadow on the Ladakh highway, gateway to Zojila and the Kashmir Great Lakes
Srinagar
Summer capital of Kashmir on the shores of Dal Lake
Distances are straight-line, not by road.