Visit to Kargil - Virgin Snow Land in Himalaya Mountains

Some new scenic places are being found continuously in India so that it is always possible for the tourists to get new places to visit and enjoy. Kargil, located in Ladakh is one such place. It has gain importance as a tourist place after the last attack of Pakistan on Kargil. Kargil is situated on Leh - Shrinagar highway at a distance of around 120 miles from Shrinagar. All the buses plying between Shrinagar - Leh takes a night halt here at Kargil. Kargil is very vital transportation link between Kashmir and Ladakh, the most important areas from India's security point of view.

You can reach Kargil by bus or hired car or taxi from Shrinagar. Shrinagar is also well connected by air through regular daily flights from Delhi and other major cities of India. The best time to visit Kargil is from April to September as there is extremely severe cold here in winter months. Even, summer months can be severely cold sometime and you need to protect yourself with proper warm clothes. There are many luxurious hotels available here to stay in various categories. The A grade hotels like Broadway, Suru View, Scons, and Caravan Saral can provide double room at around Rs. 4000 ($100) per day. B grade hotels like Greenland, Tourist Margina, and Hotel International can provide double room at around Rs. 2000 ($50) to Rs.3000 ($75) per day. There are C category hotels like Crown, Evergreen, Economy Class, New light, and Popular Cha-cha that can provide a double room at around Rs.1000 ($25) per day. It is essential to book your hotel in advance as there can be heavy rush at Kargil during summer season. The local Kashmiri food and the Punjabi food items are available here in large varieties. Some special nonvegetarian dishes of Chicken are very delicious and tasty. The estimated expense for food can be around Rs.200 ($5) per person per day. You can get all the travel information pertaining to Kargil from the tourist information center that is situated in the city of Kargil. You may be required to stay for around 2 to 3 days here at Kargil.

There are many site seeing places in and around Kargil. The first is the village of Dras. This small village is located in the West of Kargil. The breathtaking views of Dras valley is the prime attraction here. This is one of the coldest places in entire continent of Asia. However, the valley becomes lush green during spring and summer. There is a large horse polo ground here, where horse polo is played regularly during summer. The local people here speak Shina language. There are very few people in the world today who know this language. The Suru valley is the next tourist spot to be seen. This is the most beautiful area of Ladakh that consist of snow clad mountains, water falls, snow glaciers, and most beautiful and exquisite flowers.

This valley touches the river Suru in the East direction. The river completely freezes during winter and various snow games like ice hockey are played at that time. Mulbekh is the religious village, located at around 27 miles in the East of Kargil. The 9 feet tall statue of lord Maitreya, engraved from one piece of stone, is worth seeing here. Make sure to visit Zanskar valley that is a long and narrow valley full of natural beauty. Though, this valley remains closed for around 8 months in a year due to heavy snowfall. Padum is the next place to be visited. This was the capital of old Zanskar State. The most beautiful engravings on the rocks at the river shore, Stagrimo Math, and the ancient village Pibting are the main tourist attractions here. Sani is a small village located at around 4 miles away in the West of Padum. The most famous Kanik stoop, built in the shape of a fort, is really fantastic. The famous Indian yogi Naropa performed dhyan here at Kanik stoop. There are most exquisite wall paintings here at this stoop. The two days fair is held here every year on the birthday of yogi Naropa. There are many other excursions like Burdan Math, Karsh, Zangla, and Zongkhul available all around Kargil that can be visited in a hired car or taxi.

Kargil is still developing as a tourist place and hence, there may be some limited facilities of transport, food, and hotels. However, it has the most exquisite virgin Himalayan beauty to offer and that is the prime reason of its importance as a tourist place.