This winter, Christmas festivities lift spirit of moribund Kashmir tourism

Christmas celebrations revived the spirit of the moribund tourism industry in Kashmir on Thursday, December 25, 2025. While hundreds of domestic and local tourists flock to Gulmarg and Pahalgam, the terror attack earlier this year dealt a blow to the increasing tourist influx.

The center of attention of tourists was St. Mary’s Church in Gulmarg, north of Kashmir. Built in 1902 on a snow-covered plateau in the Gulmarg meadow, the well-lit church became the scene for visitors to experience Christmas celebrations. “Gulmarg provides the perfect backdrop for Christmas celebrations. Snow, bells are ringing and festivities are going on everywhere,” said Naresh Kumar, a tourist from New Delhi.

According to local hoteliers, the occupancy rate of most hotels increased from 20 percent to 70 percent on Christmas Eve. There are approximately 2300 beds in the tourist hotspot.

In Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which was the scene of a major terror attack on April 22 this year, six-year-old tourist Maira Gupta from Maharashtra inaugurated the winter festival. “Maira won the hearts of millions in Kashmir by inaugurating the winter festival that will continue till the New Year,” said an official from the tourism department.

Srinagar, the summer capital of J&K, organized a Christmas Kehwa Festival on the banks of Dal lake in Srinagar to celebrate Christmas. Kehwa is a saffron-based local beer. “Our focus is on revival of tourism. These initiatives will bring a big change in Kashmir tourism,” said Baber Chowdhary, president of J&K Hotel and Restaurant Association (JKHARA).

Fresh heavy snowfall in upper reaches of Kashmir earlier this week has come as a good omen for the tourism industry. “The number of pedestrians has increased significantly since the snowfall. Many hotels are packed. It is accelerating,” said Waseem Raja, Joint Director, Tourism Department.

Kashmir witnessed a drop of at least 40% in the number of tourists due to the Pahalgam attack and the May 7-11 military conflict between India and Pakistan.

Mr Raja said Christmas provides a platform to celebrate festivals together. “Kashmir has a tradition of participating in the celebrations of major festivals. We have seen locals joining tourists to celebrate Christmas. We are hopeful that people will come together to celebrate New Year and Lohri,” Mr. Raja said.

Taking action with the increase in the number of tourists, the Tourism Directorate was planning to organize a series of events to attract more tourists. “The coming months are full of promotional events. We are working on winter tourism and next year’s spring tourism. Promotional tours will be organized across the country to increase the number of visitors,” Raja added.