Snow lies knee-deep in the pastoral town of Gulmarg, or 'meadow of flowers,' on Kashmir's high plateau.
Image Credit: AP
2 of 12
With its blanket of white, the idyllic hill station is seeing tourists again fill its hotels and ski, sledge and trek its Himalayan landscape.
Image Credit: AP
3 of 12
The heavy influx of tourists is a dramatic change for the tourism industry in Kashmir, which faced the double whammy of the coronavirus pandemic and harsh curbs on civil rights India imposed in the region in August 2019.
Image Credit: AP
4 of 12
Gulmarg was developed as a resort by the British nearly a century ago, and the region's eternal appeal with foreign visitors has made it a year-round destination.
Image Credit: AP
5 of 12
In summer, tourists meander through meadows, ravines and evergreen-forested valleys. In winter, they snowboard and trek on Asia's largest ski terrain.
Image Credit: AP
6 of 12
The 2019 end of Kashmir's semi-autonomous status and an unprecedented security clampdown morphed Gulmarg into a ghost town, an illustration of the region's economic ruin.
Image Credit: AP
7 of 12
The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries pegged the economic losses in the region at $5.3 billion and about half a million jobs lost till August last year.
Image Credit: AP
8 of 12
But worse was yet to come. Last March, Indian authorities enforced a harsh lockdown to combat the coronavirus, all but halting foreign travel.
Image Credit: AP
9 of 12
The pandemic, however, made Indians reconsider their own vacations.
Image Credit: AP
10 of 12
Once snow coated the hill station last month, they decided to travel to Gulmarg when otherwise they might have gone abroad.
Image Credit: AP
11 of 12
And for the first time in 15 months, hotels are sold out till the end of February.
Image Credit: AP
12 of 12
'Nobody is worried about the virus. Everybody is feeling free,' said Meenu Nanda, 38, an Indian tourist.
Image Credit: AP
This website stores cookies on your computer. These cookies are used to improve your experience and provide more personalized service to you.
Both on your website and other media. To find out more about the cookies and data we use, please check out our Privacy Policy.
