Is It Safe to Visit Kashmir Now? Open, Closed and the Facts With Dates (October 2026)

Yes, with the facts in front of you. On 13 October 2026 the main tourist circuit of Srinagar, Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Sonamarg is open and busy, the airport and the highway are running normally, and we found no reported attack on tourists since the one at Baisaran meadow on 22 April 2025. Baisaran itself, Chandanwari and the high treks are still closed, and the UK and US governments still advise their own citizens against travel to Jammu and Kashmir.

This page is dated, and we update it when the facts change. It gives you the timeline since April 2025, what is open and what is closed, what the official advisories say, the risks that actually affect visitors, and the numbers to call. The rest of the planning is in our Kashmir travel guide.

Is it safe to visit Kashmir now?

For an Indian traveller sticking to the main places, yes. In 2025, the year of the attack, 1.77 crore people visited Jammu and Kashmir, 47 lakh of them in the Kashmir valley, and the valley has been busy again through the summer and autumn of 2026. Security is heavier than it was: checkpoints on the roads, registered and QR-coded pony handlers in Pahalgam, and police travel windows during the Amarnath Yatra. The places that the security review has not cleared stay closed, and we list them below.

Two honest caveats. First, Kashmir is not a place where every meadow is open: some of the most famous spots are shut, and a package that promises them is selling you something it cannot deliver. Second, the risks that most often spoil a trip here are not security risks at all. They are snow-closed roads, cancelled flights, altitude at the top of the Gondola, and being overcharged. This page covers all of them.

What happened in April 2025, and what changed after it

On 22 April 2025, militants attacked tourists at Baisaran, a meadow above Pahalgam reached only on foot or by pony, and killed 26 people: 25 tourists and a local pony operator who died trying to save visitors. It was the deadliest attack on civilians in Kashmir in decades, and everything about visiting the valley since has been shaped by it.

The attack, the memorial and what visitors notice in Pahalgam now are covered in Baisaran Valley: is it open?.

What is the current situation in Kashmir?

Quiet for visitors, and watched. The numbers that matter: the Observer Research Foundation counted 12 deaths in Jammu and Kashmir in the first half of 2026, ten of them militants, and reported one new militant recruit in 2025 against 166 in 2020. The two killings in July 2026, a policeman in Anantnag and two labourers in Kulgam, were the first in the valley after a long lull, and neither was in a tourist area. We found no reported attack on tourists since April 2025.

Tourism took the hit and is coming back. The Kashmir division had over 98 lakh visitors in 2024 and over 47 lakh in 2025; the government told the Assembly the drop was due to the Pahalgam attack. Pahalgam had about 2.5 lakh arrivals in the first four months of 2026 against 4.6 lakh in the same months of 2025. The summer of 2026 was busy in Gulmarg and Srinagar, the Amarnath Yatra ran from 3 July to 28 August, and the hotels we priced for December were filling for the New Year week.

What "watched" means on the ground: a security check on the highway and at the entry to the resorts, ID asked for at hotels, police at the Gondola base and the Pahalgam valley roads, and, during the Yatra, a rule that tourist vehicles travel only between 7 am and 6 pm. None of it stops a trip. All of it is why you carry an original photo ID.

Which places are open, and which are closed

The full field of places, with distances and seasons, is in the 30 best places to visit in Kashmir. For Chandanwari's status, see Chandanwari: is it open?.

Which part of Kashmir is safe?

The tourist circuit within three hours of Srinagar: the city, Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg and the day trips around them. These are the places with police posts, registered operators and other visitors around you. The places to treat differently are the border valleys along the Line of Control (Gurez, Keran, Tangdhar), which are open in season but checkpointed and remote, and the high treks, which are closed by order. Avoid wandering into unmarked meadows or forest away from the marked paths, which is exactly what Baisaran was.

Is it safe to go to Gulmarg?

Yes. Gulmarg is a small resort with a police presence at the Gondola base and on the Tangmarg road, and it was open throughout 2025 and 2026. The real risks there are the weather and the altitude: Apharwat is near 4,000 m, Phase 2 closes in wind, and the road needs chains in snow. Details in our Gulmarg guide and Gulmarg weather by month.

Is Srinagar safe?

Yes, in the way any Indian city is. The old city is open and welcoming in the morning; the lake and the gardens are busy till sunset; the city winds down by 9 pm and cabs are scarce after that, so book your ride back. Is there a "red alert" in Srinagar today? There is no such public alert system for tourists; when the police restrict movement, it is announced through the J&K Police and the traffic advisories linked below. See our Srinagar guide.

Is Pahalgam safe?

The town, Betaab and Aru are open and the most policed part of the valley: QR-coded pony handlers, checks on the valley roads, and in spring 2026 a rule that visitors leave the valleys by 4 pm. Baisaran and Chandanwari are closed. Go in the morning, use the union taxi, and do not pay anyone who offers to take you somewhere on the closed list. See our Pahalgam guide.

Is Sonamarg safe?

Yes, and open all year through the tunnel. The risks are the mountain ones: avalanche warnings after big snow (one hit the Sarbal area on 27 January 2026, with no one hurt), and Zoji La closing for days. See our Sonamarg guide.

What the foreign advisories say

If you are reading this from outside India, your government's advice is stricter than anything an Indian traveller will see. The UK Foreign Office "advises against all travel to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir", with the only exceptions being travel by air to, and within, Jammu city. The US State Department puts Jammu and Kashmir at Level 4, "Do Not Travel", except Ladakh and Leh, and notes that violence has also occurred in Srinagar, Gulmarg and Pahalgam. Those advisories affect travel insurance for foreign visitors, and some border areas need a permit for foreigners.

India issues no domestic advisory. What Indian travellers get instead are the J&K Police travel windows and road advisories, the district lists of closed destinations, and the security review that reopens places in phases. That is why this page quotes dates and lists rather than a single verdict.

The risks that actually spoil trips

In our experience, and in what visitors report, these are the things that go wrong, in order.

For the airport itself, see Srinagar airport status.

• Weather and roads. Heavy snow cancelled every flight at Srinagar on 23 and 27 January 2026 and closed the Jammu highway. In summer, rain closes the highway for landslides. Keep a spare day before your flight home, travel in daylight, and check the traffic advisory on the morning you drive.
• Altitude. Apharwat at the top of the Gondola is about 3,980 m and Zero Point 3,528 m. Headaches and breathlessness are common; keep children and older parents at Kongdoori, and do not drink your way up.
• Overcharging and scams. A shikara quoted per person instead of per boat, fake saffron at the gardens, "handmade" shawls that are machine-made, and agents who sell packages with closed places in them. Agree every price before you start, and buy saffron only from an authorised, GI-tagged seller.
• Phones. Prepaid SIMs from other states do not work in Jammu and Kashmir. Bring a postpaid SIM or buy a tourist SIM on arrival with your Aadhaar.
• Closed places sold as open. Check the list above against any itinerary before you pay.

For what to pay and what visitors were charged, see what a shikara should cost and the Pahalgam union taxi rates.

Women, solo travellers and families

Women travelling alone or in groups report the same things as anywhere in North India: cover shoulders and knees at shrines and in the old city, expect attention in markets, and avoid empty streets after dark. Kashmiri hospitality towards guests is real and visible, especially in homes and small hotels. Solo travellers do well on the main circuit; the border valleys are better in company. Families should plan around the cold, the altitude and the short winter days more than around security. The women's helpline is 181.

How to check on the day

Do not rely on a social media reel, ours or anyone else's. Use the sources the police and the tourism department run, and the numbers below. All of them are official.

Coming by train from Jammu or Katra? The timetable and the station checks are in our Katra to Srinagar train guide.

Our rule for a safe trip

Then plan the trip itself: our Kashmir itinerary, what it costs and the best time to visit. We update this page when the district lists or the advisories change; the date at the top is the last check.