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Kashmir |
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Perfection beyond this world makes Kashmir a
paradise. The land of sparkling rivers and
sleepy lakes, of startling gardens and regal
Chinar trees, Kashmir boasts of some of the
most beautiful flowering meadows and
snow-capped peaks. The abundance of natural
beauty has earned the valley a nickname of
the 'Switzerland of the East'. It is
mesmerizing to see how this endless beauty
never fails to charm the viewers with its
changing scenes from dazzling white snow of
Winters to blooming fragrance of Spring. The
sparkling greenery of Summers are welcome
too as the flaming beauty of Autumn. Kashmir
is famous for its beautiful and natural
scenery and varieties of flora and fauna
throughout the world. It is also widely
known for its different kinds of
agricultural products, fruit, vegetables,
saffron, herbs, minerals, precious stones
and finest kind of embroidery on clothes. |
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Mata Vaishno Devi |
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One of the holiest Hindu pilgrimage in North
India, it is a cave shrine of the Mother
Goddess, who is said to be the merger of
three mightiest deities of Maha Kali
(Goddess of power), Maha Saraswati (Goddess
of knowledge), and Maha Lakshmi (Goddess of
wealth). The number of pilgrims who come
here to pay homage to the Goddess keeps on
swelling year after year. It is believed to
cleanse the spiritual persona and bless a
true devotee with resuscitation for the
heart. Nestled amidst the Trikuta Mountains,
61 km north of Jammu, Vaishno Devi is
perched at a height of 5,200 feet above the
sea level. Katra, a town situated at the
foot of the Trikuta hills, serves as the
base camp for the Vaishno Devi shrine. It is
open all the year round but it is difficult
to cover the route during the winters as it
is often blocked by snowfall.
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Patnitop |
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112 km from Jammu, Patnitop boasts of being
a hill resort of matchless beauty. Perched
on a beautiful plateau and encased by
thickly wooded forests, it offers pretty
picnic spots, tranquil walks and panoramic
views of the mountainous of the basin of
River Chenab. Snow enwraps it in winters and
there are endless opportunities for various
snow games such as skiing. Natural charm,
climate, pine forests and lush green cover
compliment the best-developed touring spot
of Jammu region. Situated at a high
altitude, there are many pleasant walks
around Patnitop. It is also a starting point
for many short or long treks into the nearby
mountains such as the attractive one-day
11-km walk to Shiva Garh, situated at an
altitude of almost 3,500 m.
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Pahalgam |
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Famous for scenic beauty, the jewel of the
Liddar valley, Pahalgam is situated in the
western part of the state of Jammu and
Kashmir. Set at 2130 m above sea level,
surrounded by the great Himalayas, it is
positioned on the banks of the Liddar
River.The natural beauty of Pahalgam and the
luxuriant Liddar valley attracts the
tourists. There are number of picnic spots
on the shores of River Liddar, flowing near
Pahalgam. Pahalgam is also a part of Asia's
only saffron growing area |
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Gulmarg |
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Gulmarg is a hill resort of repute, not only
for its beauty and prime location but also
as being the highest natural golf course of
the world, situated at an altitude of 2890
m. Hub of activity from mid-December to
March, Gulmarg is an enviable winter sports
resort with all the equipment and training
facilities available for skiing,
tobo-ganning, ski-bobbing and paragliding
along with a T-bar lift, a chair lift and
three modern ski-lifts.
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Ladakh |
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Ladakh is bounded by two of the world's
mightiest mountain ranges, the Great
Himalaya and the Karakoram and lies
transversely to the Ladakh range and the
Zanskar range. In geological terms, it is a
young land, formed only a few million years
ago by the buckling and folding of the
earth's crust as the Indian sub-continent
pushed with irresistible force against the
immovable mass of Asia. Today, a
high-altitude desert, Ladakh was once
covered by an extensive lake system. The
remnants of such a lake system still exists
in the southeast plateaus of Rupshu and
Chushul where there are drainage basins such
as Tso-moriri, Tsokar, and grandest of all,
Pangong-tso. Despite the rainfall by some
stray monsoon clouds that cross over to the
area, the main source of water remains the
winter snowfall.
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Amarnath |
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145 km from Srinagar, the holy shrine of
Amarnath is situated at an altitude of 4,175
m above sea level. Covered by snow from
September to June, the harsh weather
conditions obstruct the path of the visitors
and it is only accessible during the
monsoons, from July to August. According to
the popular legend, Lord Shiva distributed
celestial nectar among the gods and made
them immortal. The word 'Amarnath', thus
means, 'Lord of Immortality'. There is a
mention of this ancient shrine in the first
historical treatise on India, Rajtarangini
by Kalhana.
One of the most important Hindu pilgrimage
centers of India, the devotees believe that
in every lunar month, the icy Shivalinga in
the cave of Amarnath begins to take its
shape on the first day of the bright half of
the month. The Linga reaches its full size
on the full moon day and then begins to wane
and disappear on the no moon day. The
Amarnath cave faces south and inside the
cave, there are four to five ice formations
resembling figures of various deities.
According to the tradition, the largest one
is accepted as Amarnath, one on its left as
Ganesha and ones on the right as Parvati and
Bhairava respectively.
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Dalhousie |
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Dalhousie occupies 13 sq km of area spread
over five different hills, namely, Kathlog,
Portreyn, Tehra, Bakrota and Balun. Of the
five hills, the main hub of Dalhousie is
Portreyn. This region, initially under the
state of Chamba, attracted the British so
much that they decided to establish a
sanatorium here for the Europeans. in 1851
AD, Lord Napier of Magdala approached the
king of Chamba to give them the region of
the outer Dhauladhar Range.The most popular
place to stroll in Dalhousie is the Figure
of Eight at Portreyn. This promenade begins
at Portreyn Mall and traverse Subhash Chowk
and Gandhi Chowk. All through the way, the
Tibetans have carved colorful pictures on
the rocks. |
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Shimla |
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At an elevation of 2130 m above the mean sea
level, Shimla is the capital city of
Himachal Pradesh and one of the most popular
hill stations in India. Shimla is spread
over a long crescent-shaped ridge connecting
five different hill peaks, namely, Jakhoo
Hill, Prospect Hill, Observatory Hill,
Elysium Hill and Summer Hill. Shimla was
initially a small hamlet as a part of the
Nepalese Kingdom when discovered by the
British in 1819 AD. In 1830 AD, Lord William
Bentinck persuaded the local rajas to give
this region to the British. Gradually, the
British developed Shimla as a summer resort
where they escaped to every summer. In 1864,
Shimla was declared the Summer Capital of
India. After India acquired independence,
Shimla was made the capital of Punjab till
1966 when it became the part of the newly
carved out state of Himachal Pradesh.
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Amritsar |
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The state of Punjab is blessed with fertile
soil in combination with its rich culture.
The state is home to many places of tourist
interest that you can visit on your tour.
Amritsar, home to the Golden Temple is one
of the most ancient and fascinating cities
of India. It is an important seat of Sikh
history and culture. Being the gateway for
travelers coming to India on the overland
route from central Asia it soon became the
centre of various commercial activities.
Golden Temple was founded by the fourth Guru
of Sikhs, Guru Ramdas and completed by his
successor Guru Arjan Dev.
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