Bandipore Tourism

Bandipore, also known as Plan Bandipora, is located in the Bandipore District of Jammu and Kashmir.  As in rest of Kashmir Valley, Bandipore also offers exotic locations seeped with natural beauty. Magnificent mountains and swift flowing streams make the area in and around the city a tourist’s delight.

Parks and Gardens within Bandipore

If you are in Bandipore, do not miss Nishat Garden. It is a terrace garden located near the main market. It has been modeled after the Nishat Garden, Srinagar and has been named accordingly. Indeed, the Nishat garden in Bandipore provides a wonderful place for relaxation.   Another lovely place to visit is Walnur Vintage Park. However, it is located just outside the city in a village called Gurura.

Wulnar Lake in Bandipore

However, the biggest attraction of the town is the Wulnar Lake. It is sprawled over a large area on the southern end of the town. For the benefits of tourists, the Department of Tourism has launched different water sports such as boating and water skiing in this lake. In addition, the place is also the bird watcher’s delight. It sustains a large variety of birds. One can see different species of hawks, kites, eagles, partridges, pheasants, doves, cuckoos, swifts, swallows, orioles, rollers, woodpeckers, hoopoes etc in and around this lake.

Other Places to Visit inside Bandipore Town

Zanalankh Island in the middle of Wulnar Lake is an artificial island built in 1444 by Kashmiri Sultan Zain-ul-Abidin. You may visit that as well. Darul-Ullom-Rehamia is another of the attraction of this town. It is not only the largest religious institution in Jammu and Kashmir, but is also very beautiful. Besides, one may visit the Forest Training and Research Institute located at a distance of 3 Km from the town.

Some Places to Visit from Bandipore

Dhanishwar, known as Chhota Amarnath, is a cave in a dense forest called Erin. It has feature of Lord Shiva engraved on its wall and one has to crawl around 60 meters to reach it. The cave is deemed holy by the Hindus and Shavan Purnima is said to be the most auspicious day for its visit.

Lies Gurez is another beautiful valley that you can visit from Bandipore. It is located at a distance of 86 km from the town. The main town in the valley is known as Dawar.  Shared taxis offer regular trips between Bandipur and Dawar. Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation (JKTDC) has also set up a hotel here. Besides, the town also has few other guest houses and restaurants. Therefore, fooding and lodging is no problem if you do decide to spend a night here. Do not miss the sunrise at Habba Khatoon, the main peak in this area.  It offers an unforgettable experience.

The road to Dawar offers spectacular view of Wulnar Lake. One can also get a glimpse of Harmukh Mountain from Razdan, a small town en route to Dawar. However, due to heavy snow fall, this road remains closed for three months in the winder. Connectivity to the town is maintained y helicopters.

Adventure Tourism in Bandipore

Arin Nullah near the town provides ample scope for angling. The stream is full of different types of trout such as rainbow trout, grey trout and silver trout. For those interested in trekking and mountaineering, Mount Harmukh, located on the eastern side of the town offers plenty of scope. Although the mountain actually lies in the Ganderbal District, it is best approachable from Bandipore.

To scale Mt Harmukh from Bandipore, one must first go to Kodara. You can travel this distance by commercial vehicles, available from Bandipore. Trekking starts from there. Climbers generally put up their base camp at Sheera Lake; you can do that as well.  It may be interesting to note that K2, the world’s second highest mountain was discovered from top of this mountain.

Hotels in Plan Bandipore

Although tourists’ infrastructure in Bandipore is not as highly developed as in some other cities in Jammu and Kashmir, it does have few good hotels and therefore, if you decide to spend a few nights here you can do so in comfort.

Following is a list of hotels in Plan Bandipora:

Hotel Palak
Nowpora
Bandipora Chowk
Phone No: 98589-99366

Mahboob Hotel
Hospital Road
Plan Bandipora
Phone No: 96224-90871

Saba Hotel
Muslim Abad
Bandipora Chowk
Phone No: 88038-49237

Sheeraz Hotel
Main market
Bandipora Chowk
Phone No: 96225-45646

Mehboob Hotel
Nowpora, Bandipora
Phone No: 97971-91278

Hotel Pamposh
Owngam, Bandipor
Phone No: 96227-47386