Choharnag Lakes Trek

Day 0: Book your air ticket to Srinagar. Try and reach Srinagar before evening. Check-in to your hotel and arrive to collect the rentals and submit at Sheikh Feroze Tours & Travels, Sathu, Barbara Shah Chowk, near Flourmill, Srinagar.

Note: Some stay options if you have an extra day at Srinagar: Some stay options if you have an extra day at Srinagar: Hotel Chinar Inn , Royal Athena Houseboats and Alhamra Retreats.

Day 5:  Book a return flight ticket from Srinagar. Do not book plane tickets to your hometown from Srinagar on Day 4. 

Tip: Keep a buffer day for emergencies. Your trek is 4 days long, but keep an extra 5th day as your buffer day. This is outside the itinerary. On a trek, you cannot predict bad rain, landslides, or a political situation. If you don't use the buffer day on the trek, you can always use it for sightseeing in Srinagar. 

Always book your return flight/train tickets after including the buffer day in your itinerary.  

2. Planning your onward flight/train booking  

If you are travelling from Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai or any other city, book your air tickets for Day Zero, the day before Day 1 on the itinerary. If your trek start day is 24 July, book your air tickets for 23 July to either Srinagar. 

There are two options.

Option 1: Fly directly to Srinagar

We recommend this. It gives you an added rest day at Srinagar.

Option 2: Taking a train/bus to Jammu and reach Srinagar

(This option is not recommended. Many roadblocks en route from Jammu to Srinagar take as long as 24 hours to open. If you opt to travel via Jammu, keep at least 2 days in buffer)

If you are taking a bus to Jammu, you have multiple options. There are two gates outside Jammu ISBT. You will get shared cabs from both these gates. 

If you are reaching the Railway Station, the share cabs to Srinagar will cost between Rs 700 to Rs 1000.

Tip: Shared cabs are more from the Jammu ISBT than the Railway Station. You can travel from the Railway station to the bus stand. They call it "Bus Adda". The cost of the bus will be Rs 10. The auto will charge around Rs 80 to 120. 

Pro Tip: Go to Banihal and catch a train to Srinagar (Naogaon) (Reaching Banihal will be again via shared cabs, which cost Rs 500 to Rs 700)
Auto from Srinagar Railway station to Dal Gate, around Rs 150 to Rs 200 

This is faster than coming by cabs directly to Srinagar.

3. Planning your return flight/train booking

Booking your return tickets requires some thought. First, always book your return ticket, keeping in mind the buffer day.
The drive to Srinagar from Mattigawran is about 4 hours. You will reach Srinagar by 6.00 pm. There are no flights from Srinagar late in the evening. So you need to stay in Srinagar. Take the flight the next day. You can book your flight tickets at any time on Day 5. So plan your return journey for Day 5 or Day 6 depending on if you keep a buffer day. We recommend that you keep buffer day for Kashmir treks.

Note: The security check at the Srinagar airport is quite stringent. You will have 3 rounds of security checks. Reach the airport at least a couple of hours before your departure time.

Option 1: Flying out from Srinagar

Book your flight out from Srinagar.

Option 2: Taking a train/bus from Jammu

If you are taking the option of moving from Jammu, you will find shared cabs from Srinagar TRC to Jammu. The share cabs to Jammu will cost between Rs 700 to Rs 1000.

| Pro Tip: Go to Srinagar (Naogaon) and catch a train to Banihal
From Banihal, you can take a shared cab to the Jammu bus stand or Railway station. The cost will be around Rs 500 to Rs 700

4. Planning your hotel/stay

While booking hotels on your return, always book your rooms assuming the buffer day is not being used. Assume the trek is going to run without any hiccups. So what happens if you use your buffer day on the trek? Unfortunately, then you’ll probably lose your hotel booking. So book hotels where you may not have to transfer money in advance. Even if you do, consider it better than missing out on the trek. In Srinagar, it is difficult to find last-minute hotel bookings when you finish the trek.  

Hotel options at Srinagar

Hotel Chinar Inn is close to the pickup location. It has clean rooms with good amenities. 

If you are trekking with Indiahikes, the cost will be Rs 1,500 per person for a stay and meals (dinner and breakfast). This is for a twin sharing room.

For a single person per room, it costs Rs 2,300 per person for a stay and meals (dinner and breakfast)

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/5V3CgXgAyD2biGcK6

Contact Number: 7006608852 (Firoz)

Royal Athena Houseboats is another option. In addition to good amenities, it gives you the experience of staying in a boathouse. 

If you are trekking with Indiahikes, the cost will be Rs 1,750 per person including dinner and breakfast.

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/Zq4BCzTGuBGzawP18

Contact Number: 7006608852 (Firoz)

Alhamra Retreats is a guest house with good facilities available.
If you are trekking with Indiahikes, the cost of a twin-sharing room is Rs 2,100. For an extra bed in the same room, it costs Rs 700 extra. Triple sharing is Rs 2,800 and four sharing is Rs 3,500. 

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/6DCEkw7k7gDGwM449

Contact Number: +91 95965 56700 (Rehan Bakshi)