Is it safe to travel to Jammu and Kashmir?

Is it safe to travel to Jammu and Kashmir?

That’s what many are asking after the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 dead.

The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Many in Kashmir’s tourism industry, which had been on the upswing since 2018, are despairing.

Meanwhile, the United States and UK have also issued travel advisories urging their citizens not to travel to Jammu and Kashmir.

Let’s take a closer look

Tourism industry in despair

Within Kashmir, the attack is being seen as a tragedy.

Both for the loss of life and its potential impact on the tourism sector.

As per Business Today, between 2019 and 2025, the Union Territory witnessed a compound annual growth rate of 4.89 per cent. Meanwhile, the per capita income was at Rs 1,54,703 for the 2024-2025 financial year – an all-time high.

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The number was an increase of 10.6 per cent from Rs 1,39,879 in the 2023-2024 financial year.

Kashmir’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) had been estimated at Rs 2.65 lakh crore in 2024-2025.

The GSDP was anticipated to grow at 7.06 per cent.

The terror attack – the first in Kashmir in 2025 came as the Valley was witnessing a period of relative calm.

There 26 terror incidents in 2024 and just 27 incidents in 2023.

Compare that to 107 terror incidents in 2022 and 228 terror incidents in 2018.

This allowed tourism to flourish in Kashmir over the past couple of years.

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As per Economic Survey, the year 2024 witnessed 2.35 crore tourist arrivals – the highest ever in Kashmir – of which 65,452 were foreigners.

The year 2023 witnessed an impressive 2.11 crore arrivals of which 55,337 were foreigners.

Tourism is the one of the big drivers of Kashmir’s economy.

It comprises between 7 and 8 per cent of Kashmir’s GSDP.

The survey has estimated the annual value of tourism of the entire Union Territory between Rs 18,500 and 21,200 crore.

The government wants to increase tourism’s share of GSDP to 15 per cent over the next four to five years.

“Within this sector, tourism can make a significant contribution and there is a substantial potential for tourism development, leveraging Jammu & Kashmir’s natural beauty and cultural heritage which can create numerous jobs and spur economic growth,” the survey stated.

As per Business Today, the 2025 season had begun auspiciously with 8.14 lakh footfalls at Srinagar’s Tulip Garden in less than a month.

Now that is in jeopardy – and businesses from hotels to handicrafts are in despair.

“We will incur heavy losses,” a local operator told Business Today.

Restaurant owner Mushtaq Ahmad told Al Jazeera, “We are condemned forever. I don’t think the industry will recover now.”

Hotelier Arshad Ahmad added, “All my 20 rooms were booked for the next month.”

“But everything changed overnight. All my customers left early this morning. They were sad, frightened, and terrified – and rightly so.”

Naushad, the brother of Syed Adil Hussain Shah, the pony rider who attempted to fight back against the terrorists and save lives, added, “Terrorism has no religion. We have always taken care of tourists and have been their support in the high mountains. This tragedy will hit us in the worst ways.”

Thousands of tourists are also fleeing the Valley.

“I had come to Kashmir on April 21 and was planning to stay till the 28th, but now I am terrified and leaving for my home in Haryana,” 45-year-old Himani Sharma told the outlet.

Sharma was put up at hotel on the banks of the picturesque Dal Lake in Srinagar city.

“My two kids and husband are scared.”

Taxi driver Gulzar Ahmad Wani, 40, makes a living ferrying tourists from parts of India to Palhagam.

“They are brought to us by travel agents. I generally make two back-and-forth rounds across three destinations in a day. One from 9am to 12noon, and the second from 1pm to 4pm,” Wani said.

“What has happened is akin to pouring a vial of poison into the food that has just been prepared,” Wani added. “This was the peak tourist season, and we were expected to keep this momentum and earn a decent income this year.”

US, UK issue travel advisories

The US and UK have both issued travel advisories urging its citizens not to travel to Kashmir.

The US on Thursday issued an updated ‘Do Not Travel’ advisory for Jammu and Kashmir owing to the “terror attacks” and possible “violent civilian unrest” in the Union Territory.

“Terrorist attacks and violent civil unrest are possible in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Do not travel to this state (with the exception of visits to the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh). Violence happens sporadically in this area and is common along the Line of Control (LOC) between India and Pakistan. It also occurs in tourist spots in the Kashmir Valley: Srinagar, Gulmarg, and Pahalgam,” the US Department of State’s updated travel advisory for US citizens said.

It also asked its citizens to avoid going within 10 kilometres of the India- Pakistan border “due to the potential for armed conflict”.

The UK on Thursday also issued an updated travel advisory.

As per News18, an official advisory by the Foreign Office (Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office), stated, “FCDO advises against all travel to the region of Jammu and Kashmir (including Pahalgam, Gulmarg, Sonamarg, the city of Srinagar and the Jammu-Srinagar national highway) except for travel by air to and from the city of Jammu, travel within the city of Jammu, travel within the Union Territory of Ladakh."

“The India-Pakistan border in Gujarat and Rajasthan is unmarked in some areas. Approaching it away from an official crossing point could be dangerous. Where it is unmarked, you could enter Pakistan illegally. There is a continuing threat, towards Indian government targets and civilians including tourists and foreign nationals," it added.

Meanwhile, Panun Kashmir, an organisation advocating for the cause of displaced Kashmiri Pandits, urged the Centre on Thursday to issue a travel advisory for Kashmir, asserting that the situation in the Valley is “far from normal” and tourists, particularly Hindus, face a serious threat.

Panun Kashmir Chairman Ajay Chrungoo said the terrorist attack in Kashmir sends a “clear message” that the Valley is unsafe for visitors and residents alike.

With inputs from agencies