Kashmir to witness grand Christmas, New Year celebrations

Srinagar, Dec 16: The picturesque destinations like Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Sonamarg are all set to witness the grand celebration of the New Year as the tourism department has geared up to make all the arrangements including the decoration of these places.
The New Year celebrations will be organized at four destinations including Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg and Srinagar.
Director Tourism, Kashmir, Raja Yaqoob Farooq said that four destinations have been identified for the grand celebration of the New Year event, adding that the local as well as the national level artists will perform in the events.
Besides, he said the people will also witness the laser shows on the occasion.
Furthermore, the department is planning to lighten up and decorate the famous destination on the eve of Christmas, saying that all the major destinations across the Valley will be decorated with lights and other things from December 25 to January 02 to give a festive look on the occasion.
The Director also said that on the eve of Christmas, a cake making competition will be held at Institute of Hotel Management (IHM) Srinagar on December 23 while another celebratory programme is set to be held at Gulmarg Club on December 24.
The ski-resort Gulmarg and other places usually witness huge rush of tourists on the Christmas and New Year as the people from different parts of the country flock to the picturesque places to celebrate the occasion.
According to the reports, Gulmarg will be completely booked for Christmas and the New Year celebrations from December 20, 2024 to January 5, 2025 while the travel operators have been receiving the queries ahead of the events.
In 2023, Gulmarg recorded over 10,000 tourists on Christmas eve, with a significant influx of foreign visitors while on the eve of New Year, the place witnessed an increase in the number of visitors.
In 2024 also, the twin events witnessed a massive footfall of the events as all the hotels remained jam-packed and occupied by the visitors.
This year also, the hotel owners from Kashmir’s famous tourist destinations and tour and travel agents said the bookings for the New Year celebration in the valley have been already sold out at Gulmarg and Pahalgam.
At the famous destination – Pahalgam, a hotel owner said they have witnessed a good response for New Year bookings. He also said Christmas reservations have been limited. Similar views were expressed by many other hoteliers in Pahalgam.
At Sonamarg, the travel operators said that they are observing nearly 70 to 80% occupancy for the holiday period while in Doodhpathri, the hotel owners are expecting an increase in the footfall during Christmas and New Year celebrations.