The Keran Valley is located about 145 km from Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. It is a beautiful valley with breathtaking views; an opportunity for visitors to see another face of Kashmir. Its is not like Srinagar, Gulmarg, Sonamarg or Pahalgam which are more popular among tourists, the Keran Valley still remains an unusual place to visit, and is amound some least visited places in Kashmir. This means that you can enjoy calmness and privacy here since it’s not crowded with travelers like other destinations. Therefore if one desires going off track while exploring such places as these then certainly Keran Valley must not miss on his list of attractions when in search for hidden treasures
Before visiting Keran Valley, you must first travel to Srinagar, the capital city of Jammu and Kashmir. Srinagar is connected to the rest of the country by air and road, and it also has partial train connectivity as of 2024.
1. By Air:
Srinagar is simply accessible by air with Sheikh ul Alam Airport (SXR) serving the city. It is a domestic airport and offers regular flights connecting Srinagar to major cities in India, including Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, and Leh.
2. By Road:
Srinagar enjoys good road connectivity to major cities in North India. Here’s a glimpse of the road distances:
You can choose from government-run buses, private taxis, or self-drive options to reach Srinagar by road. The scenic beauty of the route, especially on the Jammu-Srinagar highway, is a bonus!
3. By Train:
While Srinagar itself doesn’t have a railway station, the nearest major station is Jammu Tawi Railway Station, situated approximately 290 km away. Regular trains connect various Indian cities to Jammu Tawi. From there, you can take a taxi or bus to complete your journey to Srinagar.
After reaching Srinagar this will be the route map to follow to reach Keran Valley:
Srinagar -> Handwara -> Kupwara -> Mandian -> Keran Valley
Srinagar is around 140 kilometres from Keran Valley. The distance between Srinagar and Kupwara is approximately 90 kilometres, and the distance from Kupwara district to Keran Valley is approximately 50 km. You can take a private taxi in Srinagar or a shared taxi to Keran. We also recommend that if you are a biker, rent a bike in Srinagar and enjoy the ride to Keran Valley to its utmost.
You can hire taxi service from Srinagar that can directly drop you at Keran and will take you back to Srinagar. You can also add the place in your Kashmir tour package and the plan accordingly, This is the most convenient way to reach Keran valley
Shared Taxi service is available for Keran Valley. You have to board a Sumo or a Tavera at Lalchowk and it will drop you at Kupwara, then you have to board another sumo for Mandian. Then Another Sumo from Mandian to Keran Valley.
Keran Valley is connected partially to Srinagar. You can travel to Kupwara in a bus but after that you have to take a Sumo (Shared Taxi) for Keran Valley
One of the best ways to go to Keran is by renting a bike in Srinagar and going to Keran on it. Bike rental service is available at Tripmore at best prices.
If you want to Visit Keran Valley in a self drive car we suggest you to book a 4×4 Car or Suv like a Rental Scorpio or Rental Thar for the trip for a smooth journey.
You can also visit Keran Valley in your own car.If you own a Suv or a 4×4 car then its a good option to take you own car to Keran Valley.
| Transport Option | Fare |
|---|---|
| Srinagar to Keran Valley in Shared Bus | Rs 250 |
| Srinagar to Keran Valley in Shared Taxi | Rs 550 |
| Srinagar to Keran Valley on Rental Bike | Rs 1500 |
| Srinagar to Keran Valley in Selfdrive Car | Rs 7000 |
| Srinagar to Keran Valley in Sedan Taxi | Rs 8000 |
| Srinagar to Keran Valley in SUV Taxi | Rs 12000 |
| Srinagar to Keran Valley in Tempo Traveller | Rs 20000 |
Before we get into all of the security concerns and checkpoints, we’ll discuss how to get Keran Valley passes and how vital they are to us. Passes are required to access Keran Valley; without them, you will be unable to go from Kupwara to Keran; nevertheless, passes are not required until Kupwara. But there are 7 checkpoints where you will have to provide the copies of passes in order to do Keran valley tour.
To get your Online e-pass for Keran Valley you have to prebook it around 7 days prior to your visit. Here are the Steps to get you online pass for Keran Valley:
To get your offline pass for Keran Valley, you first have to reach a police called Kralpora Police Station. Here are the steps required:
There are 7 Checkpoints where the driver of the vehicle has to make entry of all passengers. Aadhaar cards will be checked frequently.
Yes, It is safe to visit at Keran Valley. The area is safe and peaceful and is secured by CCTV cameras all the time.
Any national ID cards like Aadhaar Card, Pan Card, Voter ID will work. ID cards will be checked in 3 security checkpoints.
For foreigners it is advised to carry passports with you as your main ID Proof and you are good to go.
When it comes to accommodation at Keran Valley, the options are very limited. You basically have two options one is to stay at a Guesthouse and other one is to stay in at a tent. You can do bookings of the same with Tripmore by calling on 7051909192. Or if you want to book accommodation on your own then the numbers of the Guesthouse owners are listed below. You can directly call or Whatsapp these numbers for bookings.
Zuhaib Hotel and Restaurant offers rooms for rent, and this guesthouse includes six rooms that can accommodate up to 18 people. The food is delicious and fresh, and the terrace offers a view of the Kishanganga River. The guest house is owned by Sajid bhai, and reservations can be made by phoning 7780890679 or 6006744233. You can tell them we get to know you from Tripmore for extra discounts.
Raja Tent Valley is the oldest guesthouse and has 4 rooms for rent and can accommodate up to 12 people. This guesthouse has a shop also that sells chips, cold drinks and cigarettes. The Guesthouse is owned by Raja Bhai and bookings can be done by calling on 6006464699 or 9149535834. You can tell them we get to know you from Tripmore for extra discounts.
Raja Adnan Guest House also provides home stays and food facility. We suggest if you are staying here only book tents as they have a lot of tents. Home stay is not so good there but tents are good. For bookings you can directly contact Adnan Bhai on 9906914725 and 7006149854.
The only guest home that was constructed recently and is in excellent condition is the Zohan Guesthouse, which is also the greatest of all. They offer wonderful food, a music system, TV, and a total of seven rooms. Please call 6006762261 to make reservations right away.
The Tent you are seeing in the picture is owned by Zuhaib Hotel and Resturant he has 4 more tents like these and the above in the picture tent accommodates 4 people at and time and is in very good condition. If you are looking for 2 person tents or 3 person tents they are also available. Reservations can be made by calling on 7780890679 or 6006744233. You can tell them we get to know you from Tripmore for extra discounts.
The above guesthouse called Raja Adnan guest house also provides tents on rent. They have around 9 tents with different options for like 2, 3, 4 person tents. Bookings for the tents can be done by contacting Adnan Bhai on 9906914725 and 7006149854.You can tell them we get to know you from Tripmore for extra discounts.
Hotels or guesthouses at Keran Valley are comparably very cheap then Srinagar or other parts of Kashmir. You can keep a budget of Rs 1000 to Rs 1500 per night for hotel stay and if you want to rent out a tent or a camp then the price ranges from Rs 400 to Rs 1200.
There’s food at every guesthouse. Both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food is available. Traditional Kashmiri dishes including daal (split lentils), chicken, rista, Goshtaba, and kebabs are the main dishes they offer. Along with handmade roti, Lipton tea and Namkeen tea are also options. Overall, there is a good amount of fresh and wonderful cuisine available in Keran Valley. In Keran Valley, there won’t be a food shortage.
Yes, there are local shops at Keran Valley selling food items , clothing and vegetable vendors. Also shops close after 8.30PM so do buy things before that.
No there is no ATM at Keran Valley. Only a Branch of Jammu and Kashmir is there but not an ATM, its better to take cash along with you.
No, there is no internet connection at the valley. Connection is lost before 10 KM on the way to Keran Valley.
No, There is no network connectivity in Keran Valley. Its due to Security concerns.
Yes you can ship local items like walnuts, almonds and more from the India post at the LOC which has a Pincode 193224. Locals use it to send Letters to there loved ones. yeah still happens in 2024 🙂
Activities to do in Keran are :
No, Drone photography is strictly prohibited at Keran Valley. Its a no drone zone.
Yes, medical facility is available 24*7 at Keran Valley. It is Called PHC Keran.
You can plan you Keran valley trip by staying one night at any guesthouse or camp. You can plan it like this:
We initially planned a one day return trip to Keran Valley, but what happened is that we got late and we left our home at 11:00 AM in the morning. So we left Srinagar and enrouted towards Kupwara district, we thought that we could still return home till late in the night but after reaching Handwara we got to know that we are still have one hundred kelometers left to cover. We decided to have food at a local vendor, he provided us some Kashmiri dishes like Rishta and Goshtaba with some normal rice. That local vendor suggested us to stay for a night at Kiran Valley as it was not safe to drive back home on the hilly roads and then we decided to stay there for the night.
After reaching Kupwara we had to make offline passes now, the more convenient way of creating E-passes for Keran Valley is by creating it by online, but what happened with us was that we applied it only two days prior to our trip and did not receive a reply from the online team. This is so because it takes around 7 days for the online E-passes to get generated. To make offline passes we stopped at a police station called Kralpora police station. There we met a local vendor he suggested us to take a permission paper that had all the necessary details that had to be filled by us like our Aadhaar card details, our names and information about passengers who are travelling with us and number of passengers with their name and their parents name. After filling the form he suggested us to go to the police station and get it manually verified by the local SHO we did that and got the permission for Keran Valley from the police station itself, after this we went back to the local photostat vendor and created 10 hard copies of the permission paper, which we had to give one by one at the checkpoints and then we had routed towards Kiran Valley from Kupwara
After getting the passes we left for Keran Valley. We then drove around 10 kilometers and then we were stopped at the first checkpoint where we gave one copy of our offline passes and then we continued our journey. Then after further travelling and getting passed through around five checkpoints like this with same process and finally reached at the second last checkpoint. Here they will provide you a entry token that you have to return to the checkpoint on departure the next day, After receiving the token and driving forward the road started to get really bad and it was really hard for us to drive on it because the road was so slippery as water was flowing over the road, which made our car’s Tires to loose grip and skid back. The road is further bad after reaching a point called “Dead Bridge”. As you can see the road in the pictures below. We took this picture as our car overheated due to acceleration and then we waited for car to cool down.
After the car finally cool down we pushed the car at multiple points in order drive on some steep slippery hills. After all this misery we finally reached Keran Valley and the Last checkpoint where you have to do checking of you bags. Also you have to provide you Aadhaar cards of all passengers to the security personal which you will get back once you go back to your home later or the next day. They will give you a unique identification number and when you tell the number on the next day you will recieve your Aadhaar cards back.
We reached Keran Valley at 7.30 PM and it was getting dark, hence we decided to book our self a room. As we Stepped down from our car the owner of Zuhaib Hotels, Sajid bhai met us and pitched us about his guesthouse and tents we dicided to go for it and booked a tent for the night. We had some traditional Kashmiri food and slept for the night. Once we woke up at the morning we were able to witness the beauty of the Kishanganga river separating India from Pakistan. We were amazed by the fact like its a border area but feels like a tourist spot with amazing meadows and we were able to see Mount K2 . Then we went for a walk and Waved to the people at the other end and they waved us back. We then trekked a bit and reached a point called cobra point. After all this we went back to the Guesthouse and had some tea and checked out of the guesthouse. We then head back towards home and while going back you again have to go through checking at the checkpoints and mark an exit at the same also return the token that we got when you entered the second last checkpoint. It tool us 4 hours to reach back home.
Weather at Keran Valley is truly unpredictable and if you want to get some insights on the real time weather you can check the e weather of Keran Valley here. Keran Valley being a hilly destination so expect 5 degree differences in weather as of Srinagar for example if Srinagar has 25 degree here you will feel its like 20.
Keran Valley is located at an elevation of 1,524 metres (5000 feet) and is separated from Pakistan-administered Kashmir by the Kishanganga River. The river serves as a barricade because there are no fences or other man-made borders there. The valley has various interesting features, such as a 30-minute time difference at the same spot. You may hear radio stations from both nations and wave to individuals on the other end, who will wave back. This is the polar opposite of what people expect from a border, which includes heavy forces, machine guns, and tanks. And here, it feels like people should be at peace with one another.
According to my research, the town of Keran was established by Raja Karn in the 10th century therefore its name. The area has been thought to have been a center of commerce and education with reference to the Sharada Peeth temple and Sharada University (POK) which are dated back between the 6th–12th centuries CE with the belief that it was situated in the valley itself because of these two places being nearby. When India was divided in 1947, an LoC (Line of Control) divided the valley into two parts with each country having its own village called Keran cutting off people from one another and their cultures.
An additional historical event took place when due to heavy shelling and firing villagers were compelled to leave from Indian Kashmir to Pakistan-Administered Kashmir along the LoC at the POK border. Once in 1992 the valley was also flooded which also damaged the valey. Following the ceasefire the position in Keran has changed for good. In 2012 the valley was opened for tourists in Pakistan and in 2021 in India. Currently the spot is peaceful and quiet so any traveler would enjoy a lot their visit there.
Keran Valley is around 145 km away from Srinagar.
Keran Valley is around 50 km away from Kupwara.
Keran Valley is famous for border tourism. Its on the edge of India-Pakistan LOC. People wave to each other from two countries embracing friendliness.
Keran Valley is 145 km far away from Srinagar by road.
You can reach Keran valley by reaching Srinagar and then going to Kupwara and then to Keran Valley.
Keran Valley is in Kupwara District
The temperature at Keran Valley is on the cooler end it will be around 5 digree cooler than Srinagar. Take a sweater with You.
Kupwara is around 50 Km Away from LoC. At Keran Kishanganga river acts at a border.
Yes, Permission is mandatory to visit Keran Valley.
There are total of 7 Checkpoints on the way to Keran Valley
No Sim will work at Keran Valley
At the Keran valley no SIM will work, but Airtel works till the closes checkpoint.
Yes, Keran Valley is Safe to Visit
Yes, Keran Valley is Open for Tourists
Keran Valley was opened for tourists in India in 2021.
In Keran Valley most of the guesthouses are budget friendly. The most budget friendly stay option is a tent which starts at Rs 400 only.
There is a public health center at Keran valley called PHC Keran.
Yes, Food is available easily in Karen Valley.
No, there is no fuel station at Keran valley.
Keran valley is secured by the Indian Army. Sniper Shooter are protecting us 24*7. And complete area is under CCTV surveillance.
Distance between Pahalgam to Keran Valley is 210 KM
Distance between Gulmarg to Keran Valley is 110 KM
Distance between Sonmarg to Keran Valley is 200 KM
To Book tour package for Keran Valley all you have to do is contact Tripmore on 7051909192.
To Book Taxi service for Keran Valley all you have to do is contact Tripmore on 7051909192. Tripmore is the most trusted taxi and tour package service in Jammu and Kashmir.
Srinagar to Keran Valley Taxi fare will be Rs 8000.
No Drones are not allowed at Karen Valley.
Yes, you can buy junk food from local vendors at Keran Valley.
It takes around 4 hours to reach Karen valley from Srinagar
It is possible, But 8 hours of the day will be gone in just travelling hence its not suggested.
Some Tips are:
