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Tourism in Kashmir hit hard by Pahalgam massacre
Twelve months after militants killed 26 people in the Himalayan resort town of Pahalgam, Kashmir's tourism industry remains in decline. Visitor numbers have plummeted, hotels stand empty, and guides spend evenings reassuring nervous travelers that the region is safe.
Visitor numbers collapse
Official figures show tourist arrivals across Indian-administered Kashmir fell from nearly 3 million in 2024 to under 1.2 million in 2025. Pahalgam, once a bustling destination, recorded 259,000 visitors between January and mid-April this year-less than half the 469,000 who came during the same period before the attack.
Of the 87 tourist sites in the region, authorities closed 48 in the immediate aftermath. While most have since reopened, Baisaran meadow-the site of the killings-remains off-limits.
Local businesses bear the brunt
Mohammad Abubakar, 25, invested 2 million rupees ($21,254) to open a hotel just four months before the attack. "After April, we earned almost nothing," he said. The hotel is now closed.
Mushtaq Ahmad Magrey, head of Pahalgam's hotel association, reported occupancy rates as low as 20%. "Last year my target was 20 million rupees, but I could only make 1.5 million," he said.
Security crackdown deepens uncertainty
In the days following the attack, protests erupted across Kashmir, prompting a sweeping security response. Authorities detained nearly 3,000 young men for questioning and demolished homes of suspected militants in some areas, drawing criticism for collective punishment.
Abdul Rashid, whose home in Pulwama district was razed, described enduring a winter in a makeshift shelter. "Temperatures dropped below zero. If someone has committed a crime, why should the family suffer?" he asked.
A fragile balance shattered
Kashmir's tourism sector had long coexisted with instability, even during periods of unrest. Pahalgam's pine forests and alpine meadows were largely spared from direct violence-until last April.
"This attack sent a very negative message," said Abdul Waheed Bhat, head of Pahalgam's pony riders' association. "We've seen difficult times before, but this is different."
Rayees Ahmad Bhat, a horse rider who was among the first to reach the meadow after the shooting, still struggles with the memory. "I saw bodies lying all around. People crying for help," he said. He sought therapy in the months that followed.
Memorial and lingering trauma
A memorial now stands near the meadow. Visitors approach cautiously, some leaving flowers, others pausing briefly to read the names of the victims before stepping away.
Syed Haider Shah, whose son Adil-a pony rider-was killed while shielding tourists, said: "We miss him every day. But we are proud of him."
Officials tout stability, but doubts remain
Kashmir's tourism director, Syed Qamar Sajad, declined to share specific figures but claimed the broader security situation was stable, with violence at one of its lowest levels in decades. "We are hinged to hope," he said, noting increased outreach efforts across India.
Some visitors, like Kiran Rao from Kerala, have returned. "There were worries before we booked," he admitted. "But it feels good to be here."
For many locals, however, the scars of last year remain raw. Nazakat Ali, a tourist guide, answers calls nightly, repeating the same reassurances. "Nothing in the landscape has changed, and yet the place does not feel entirely the same," he said. "The place feels cursed now."
