Srinagar Budget Travel Guide helps you prepare for a trip to visit the capital of Jammu & Kashmir in northern India. Srinagar is the capital of the state of Jammu & Kashmir in northern India. This is one of the more out-of-the-beaten-path destinations that we are describing in AsiaExplorers. It's hard to describe Srinagar though. To me, it is like a mediaval city that dropped out of a storybook. A place that has been left behind by time. Srinagar is located in the heart of the Kashmir valley at an altitude of 1,730 m above sea level, spread on both sides of the river Jhelum. The Dal and Nagin lakes enhance its picturesque setting, while the changing play of the seasons and the salubrious climate ensures that the city is equally attractive to visitors around the year.
Kashmir has a turbulent history, with Srinagar in the midst of it all. Everywhere we went, we saw soldiers with machine guns. Coming in from the airport, we passed through several checkpoints, and even before we could board the plane, our luggage underwent several checks.
The city was founded by Pravarasena-II, and Hiuen Tsang, who visited Kashmir in 631 AD, found it at the same site as it is today. The most famous ruler of Kashmir was Laltaditya Muktapida during the Hindu period, which ended in 1339 AD. King Zain-ul-Abidin (1420-70 AD), popularly known as "Budshah", was a great patron of Sanskrit. Akbar captured Kashmir valley for the Mughals, who endowed Srinagar with beautiful mosques and gardens.
The Sikhs overthrew the last Muslim ruler in the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1819. In 1846 the Dogras secured the sovereignty of Kashmir from the British under the Treaty of Amritsar, and in 1947 the state of Jammu and Kashmir with Srinagar as its capital, became part of the Indian Union.
Getting there
It is strongly encouraged that you use a travel agent to plan your visit to Srinagar. Srinagar is not yet fully open to free independent travellers. There are regular flights by Indian Airlines, Jet Airways, Air Deccan, SpiceJet, Kingfisher Airlines, Go Air and Jet Lite between Delhi and Srinagar. The fare is approximately Rs 2500 per way. Security is tight for all flights to and from Srinagar, with your luggage being check and re-checked - you may even be called to identify them on the tarmac. At the airport itself, if you travelling in a group, be sure to provide a list of participants along with their passport numbers and expiry dates. On returning to the airport, you may not be allow to the terminal building without a ready ticket in hand.
Getting Around
Srinagar is served by a battalion of auto-rickshaws that can take you around easily. Always negotiate the price before stepping on board, or else prevent that you know the way.
If you're planning a trip to Srinagar, the Srinagar Budget Accommodation Guide provides a regularly updated list of budget accommodation in the city, showing you an estimated price for each place. If you prefer to say at a hotel, click to view list of Srinagar Hotels.
Before booking a hotel room, make sure you are getting the lowest price for it. Different hotel booking websites offers the same room at different prices. If you stick with one site all the time, you could be paying more for the same room. Now why pay more?
The form below is a Research Engine. It doesn't take bookings. Instead it lets you find the hotel booking website that offers the room you want at the lowest price. You can see and compare what different sites are offering, and then click to choose the one with the best price. Do this, and you're guaranteed to save a whole lot of money on your room reservations!
If you're flying somewhere, use our Flight Checker to compare the rates from different airlines. To use it, enter where you will be flying from, where you will be flying to, your departure date and return date. Select the number of passengers, and then click search.
Our engine will return you a list of possible flights that you can take. You can compare the fare of different airlines for your trip. Click on your selected airline, and we transfer you to the airline website.
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