Some people prefer to take vacations in unpopulated areas.  This is why Gulmarg is so popular.

A favorite ski resort during the winter season, the area remains unpopulated because of a curfew which was set way back in the 90s.  All visitors, other than hotel employees and guests, are required to leave the the village by sunset.

History of Gulmarg

The name of the area was given by Sultan Yusuf Shah, who saw the slopes full of green grass and wide flowers and named it Gulmarg, which literally translates into “Meadow of Flowers”.  The same area was used by the British as a holiday destination while they had a colony in India.  An uprising in Kashmir during the 1990s stopped people from visiting the area, but a ceasefire between India and Pakistan in 2003 did wonders for this vacation spot, which quickly became the country's favorite ski resort.

Tourism in Gulmarg

There are a number of reasons why one should travel to Gulmarg.  Though most would say that the best time to visit the city would be during the winter, it also boasts of the highest green golf course in the world.  This alone gives anyone a reason to travel to Gulmarg at any time of the year.

Gulmarg is not just a ski resort.  Being in India, a tour of the city can prove to be fruitful.  One of the first places that would call to any visitor would be the temple of Shiva.  Known also as the Rani Temple or the Maharani Temple, it was built by the wife of the last king of Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh.  It was done is such a way that the temple would be seen from any corner of the city.

Another church was built in Gulmarg during the British Colonial rule - and this church should always be included in every tour of the city.  Named St. Mary's church, it was renovated in 2003 but still retains the feel of a hundred ten year old church.

On the slopes below Gulmarg also lays the shrine of Baba Reshi.  He is a well known Muslim saint who died in the late 1400s.  He is known as the king's courtier who renounced his worldly ways and lived an ascetic for the rest of his life.  One needs not to get a tour, but just learn the location of the shrine and then maybe ski to the area to see it.

With just a few people around, well managed hotels and sites to see, Gulmarg definitely has a lot to offer anyone who travels to enjoy the slopes and see the sites.