During summer, we have had several biker expeditions reaching Kashmir whose members were all praises for the beauty and hospitality which the Valley has to offer, but the participants of those expeditions were mostly from Middle-East, while points to the fact that somehow, we have not been able to present what Kashmir has to offer to the west in countries like the US and Europe because the number of tourists from that part of the world reaching Kashmir has been on the lower side.
There have been many factors contributing to it, but in the last some time, Tourism Department has been actively pursuing the promotion of Kashmir Tourism with a special focus on the winter attraction which the Valley has to offer at spots like Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg and others, but apart from promotion, there also is a need for having the necessary and prerequisite infrastructure in place at these tourist destinations. To attract foreigners to Kashmir during winters, making them cherish their stay at a place like Gulmarg, we must put in place world-class infrastructure and ensure to do away with the mediocrity which has been the trademark for decades.
There is no fun in the concerned department carrying out the promotion of tourism and closing the key tourist destinations closed with the advent of winter—like what has been happening in Sonamarg. Tourism has to be at the forefront with active support and facilitation from the Government and a special focus on building up the infrastructure which holds the key for paving a way for Kashmir tourism to have a booming season during the winter.
Tourists from the rest of the country are pouring in almost every day and even when the Valley is in the grip of intense cold, the focus needs to shift now on having more foreign tourists heading to Gulmarg and other places in Kashmir this winter and ensuring that the necessary infrastructure to facilitate their stay is put in place well in time because having foreign tourists at a destination like Gulmarg with snow in the foreground as well as the background, completes the picture and turns it into an unforgettable adventure and a memory which remains there for the lifetime. The Government must facilitate such adventure, making such hard-to-forget memories possible from Gulmarg this winter.
