Tourism in Kashmir stumbles: Hotels struggle with less than 20% occupancy
Srinagar, Sep 23: Hotel occupancy in Kashmir has plunged to a mere 20 percent, five months after the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, leaving the Valley’s once-thriving tourism sector in deep crisis with arrivals collapsing, jobs vanishing, and businesses staring at unprecedented losses.
The slump has wiped out the record gains of the past four years, when Kashmir’s tourism had bounced back strongly, registering all-time high arrivals in 2022 and 2023. Now, shutters are down at many hotels, and taxi stands stand deserted.
Mushtaq Ahmad Chaya, Chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Hotels Club, painted a grim picture. “We are staring at disaster. Hotel occupancy is below 20 percent, and rooms are lying vacant every single day. Hoteliers are finding it difficult to pay their staff salaries, and many hoteliers are cutting jobs to survive. The situation has gone from bad to worse since April, and tourists keep asking why places like Doodhpathri and Aru Valley are still closed. How can we convince them to come?”
Chaya acknowledged Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s efforts to promote Kashmir across the country but insisted the crisis demanded a much larger push. “The Chief Minister is leading from the front, but this is not enough. We urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lead a nationwide tourism revival campaign. Unless the top leadership intervenes, our industry will not recover. LG Manoj Sinha must also ensure destinations are reopened immediately so that we can offer tourists more than empty promises.”
Travel agents echoed the same frustration. Farooq Ahmad Kuthoo, President of the Travel Agents Association of Kashmir (TAAK), said tourist influx is down to a trickle. “Arrivals have dropped to less than 10 percent. Tourists are scared after the Pahalgam attack, and despite our participation in Travel Trade Fairs in Kolkata, Ahmedabad and other cities, the response has been negligible. The moment agents outside ask why Pahalgam or Betaab Valley are closed, we have no answer. Promotion without reopening destinations is meaningless,” he said.
Kuthoo said the tourism circuit needs urgent rethinking. “We cannot rely only on Gulmarg, Sonamarg, and Srinagar Mughal Gardens. Pahalgam is now a two-day destination turned into half a day. Unless Betaab Valley, Aru, and other spots reopen, tourists will skip it. We must promote new circuits like Doodpathri, Yusmarg, Kokernag, and Daksum to spread the load. Tourists want three to four-day itineraries, not one-day stopovers. The government must create this ecosystem now, or we are finished.”
Taxi operators, often the first to feel the downturn, are already suffering. “Our cabs are standing idle. Earlier in September, we would have no time to rest — two or three trips daily. Now, we wait for days to get a single booking,” said Mohammad Altaf, a driver at the Srinagar Tourist Reception Centre.
The slump is alarming for Shopian, Pahalgam, and other apple-rich and tourism-dependent districts where livelihoods are deeply tied to both horticulture and hospitality. With over 85 percent of households in South Kashmir depending on either tourism or horticulture, the crisis is rippling through every sector of the local economy.
“Tourism is not just hotels and travel agencies — it feeds artisans, shikara owners, pony wallas, handicraft sellers, and daily wage workers. If this collapse continues, the entire chain will suffer. We appeal to the Centre and the UT administration to act urgently,” Chaya cautioned.
