Baltal

Baltal is a camping site for Amarnath pilgrims. Baltal lies at a distance of 15 km from north of Sonamarg and lies at the base of Zojila pass in Kashmir. It is a little valley and provides an alternate shorter high-altitude route to the cave of Amarnath.

It lies at an elevation of 2,743m, Baltal serves as a base camp for pilgrims for their journey to Amarnath Cave, which is just 14 km away afterward. During pilgrimage time, Baltal is full of pitched tents for pilgrims to spend the night. Baltal is only one hour away from Sonmarg. Baltal is just 24 km away from Pahalgam which takes about 45 minutes to travel. For trekkers, it takes almost 5 hours to reach Baltal from Pahalgam.

Baltal meadows are famous for their serene beauty and they offer tent accommodation for pilgrims and tourists. One can book pony rides for the travel, furthermore, helicopter services are also available to the Amarnath Cave. Helicopter passengers have to disembark at Panjtarni and walk by foot afterward book a pony to the cave. For trekkers, the 14 km distance from Baltal to Amarnath takes approximately 4 hours on steep terrain. Small teashops are also available on route.

Baltal serves as a halt destination for all Amarnath Cave pilgrims and it serves as the base camp for devotees with pitch tents to spend the night.