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Best months: Sep – Nov
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Kashmir Great Lakes — small batch

4.5(19 reviews)7 daysStart and end in
5 photos
Kestrel High Routes
Runs this trip
7 Days · 6 Nights
Fully planned multi-day journey
Accommodation
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
Fully guided
A guide travels with the group for the whole trip.
Trekking
Seven days, seven alpine lakes, three passes above 4,000 m
High Intensity
Travelers can expect 6-8 hours of challenging high-altitude trekking
Group Size 1 - 14
1 guide per 10 ratio
Ages 14+ Welcome
The operator's minimum age for this trip is 14
4,190 m at the highest point

Where this operator goes

7 days · 15 stops

Itinerary

7 days, planned by Kestrel High Routes

Pickup point

Day 1 · Fri, 18 Sept, 2026

Meet atSrinagarSrinagar, Jammu & Kashmir
Reporting time08:00 - 18:00
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What the price covers

Included in the price

You arrange yourself

Most of these can be added to your booking later — the operator confirms within a day.

Where you'll stay

Published by the operator. Nights on the ground can move with weather and permissions.

Sonamarg Courtyard

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 1

Nichnai Inn

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 2

Vishansar Courtyard

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 3

Gadsar House

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 4

Satsar Retreat

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 5

Gangbal House

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 6

What you'll eat

6 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 6 dinners across 7 days, at camp. It opens with dinner on day 1 and closes with breakfast and lunch on day 7.

  • DinnerServed on days 1–6
  • BreakfastServed on days 2–7
  • LunchServed on days 2–7

18 meal services named in the itinerary. Vegetarian and vegan covered; Jain, gluten-free and allergies on notice at booking

One other operator runs this trailThe same trail, at their own price, group size and refund window.Stonefoot Trails₹13,300See all 2
BEFORE YOU GO · CAUTIONARY DETAILS
Break the boots in before you come
The single most common reason a trek stops being enjoyable. New boots on day one means blisters by day two and a descent on ruined feet by day four. Walk fifty kilometres in them at home first, on hills if you can find any.
Deal with a hot spot immediately
The moment something rubs, stop and tape it. Everyone on the trail will wait two minutes for that and nobody wants to wait an hour later while it is dressed properly.
The group moves at its slowest walker
That is not a courtesy, it is how groups stay together and how nobody ends up alone on a ridge in cloud. If that person is you on a given day, say so early rather than falling quietly behind.
Never leave the group to go ahead
Almost every serious incident on a marked Indian trail starts with somebody moving faster than the guide and taking a turning that looked obvious. Waiting at junctions is the whole discipline.
Treat your water
Streams above the villages look clean and mostly are; below them they are not, and giardia will ruin a week. Filter, boil, or use tablets — and drink more than you feel like.
Weather turns faster than you can descend
An afternoon build-up in the Himalaya arrives in under an hour. That is why days start early and why a guide who wants to turn back at eleven in the morning is not being cautious for the sake of it.
A stream is not the same in the afternoon
Snowmelt peaks with the day's heat, so a crossing that was ankle-deep at eight is thigh-deep at three. Cross early, unclip your waist belt, and face upstream.
Carry original photo ID
Forest and park entry in the Indian Himalaya is permitted through the district administration and checked at the gate against the permit your operator holds. A photocopy is not always accepted.
The medical certificate is not a formality
Several states now require a doctor-signed fitness certificate on higher and glacier-bound routes, and more ask for one over 55 or with a pre-existing condition. Get it early; it is a reason people are turned back at the road head.

Who runs this trip

Operated by
Kestrel High RoutesVerified

“Himalayan trekking with a fixed guide ratio and no offloading surcharge”

Based in Dehradun Running treks since 2011
Rating
4.5(19 reviews)
Response time
—

About Kestrel High Routes

Started by two IMF-qualified leaders who were tired of watching groups of thirty share one guide. Ratios are written into the price and are not negotiable downward.

View Operator Profile
Cancellation policy: Full refund up to 21 days before departure

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Customer reviews

Overall rating
4.5/5
Based on 19 reviews
Review summary
Food
4.3/5
Guide
4.2/5
Itinerary
4.4/5
Transport
4.3/5
Accommodation
4.3/5
Tour operator
4.3/5
Sort by:Recommended
4
A
Arjun Pillai – Kochi2026-05-08 · Verified booking

Did this over 7 days and it was the best walking I've done in years. Good value for what's included.

Reply from Kestrel High Routes

Thanks for writing this up. We've passed your note to the team.

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5
C
Carla Mendes – Berlin2026-05-08 · Verified booking

Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. Hotels were clean and central, which saved a lot of time. Worth every rupee.

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5
S
Sneha Kulkarni – Nagpur2026-05-08 · Verified booking

Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. Hotels were clean and central, which saved a lot of time. Solid operator.

Reply from Kestrel High Routes

Thank you for travelling with us — glad the route worked out.

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4
R
Rohit Verma – Jaipur2026-05-08 · Verified booking

Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. Good value for what's included.

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3
N
Nina Hoffmann – Dublin2026-05-08 · Verified booking

The trek itself is good but the group was too large for the trail on the summit day. The team read the group well and adjusted without making a thing of it.

Reply from Kestrel High Routes

Thank you for travelling with us — glad the route worked out.

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5
S
Sofia Marchetti – Amsterdam2025-12-30 · Verified booking

Kashmir in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. Solid operator.

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5
D
Divya Reddy – Kochi2025-12-30 · Verified booking

Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. No complaints about any of the hotels — all of them well placed.

Reply from Kestrel High Routes

Appreciate the honest feedback; we're looking at the pacing on that section.

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5
P
Priya Nair – Chennai2025-12-30 · Verified booking

Kashmir in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. The team read the group well and adjusted without making a thing of it. Would book with them again.

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Questions people ask

The passes hold snow until late June and the meadows are under it again by October. The window is genuinely three months and the first and last departures are weather-dependent.

One other operator runs this trail. See all 2 side by side →