A Holy Place with Pure Natural Beauty. Review on Vaishnodevi

Hey Friends, Here I come with another Hill Station review. This time I am reviewing a hill station, which is one of the most famous places through out India, and everybody wants to go there again and again and that place is Vaishno Devi.

Vaishno Deviisa religious and holy shrine situated in Jammu near Katra. It is situated at the height of 5300 feet from the sea level. It is one of the most visited places by devotees of Mata Vaishno Devi. It is placed in between the hills and it is about 14 km away from Katra.

How to Reach:

By Bus:You can go there by bus. You can book deluxe buses from your own area or can avail this service from Chandigarh. From Chandigarh you can book your tickets of sleeper buses. These buses are quite comfortable for the relaxed journey even in the night. These buses drop you at Katra and you can easily go to your hotel/rooms from there.

By Train:Well, it’s always a fun and comfortable to go to Vaishno Devi by train. It has its own charm to travel in a train for a long journey. But remember one thing that you have to book your tickets approximately 20-30 days before your journey because there’s been rush of tickets to Jammu. Train will drop you on the station of Jammu.

On the outside of Railway Station there are buses that will drop you till Katra. You have to buy tickets from the ticket counter. It will take round about one hour to reach Katra. And on the way security staff checks the bags of every passenger except Ladies bags. And they also stop the bus on the way for some refreshment.

By Air:

You can also go there by air. There’s an airport in Jammu; so if you want to go there by air you can.

Or you can also hire a car if you want to enjoy your journey in between the way.

But I would suggest going there by Train, as it is quite cheap and comfortable way to enjoy the trip.

It’s time to take some rest:

Well, obviously after such a long journey it will be the time to take some rest. And you can easily find the hotels as they are placed near by bus stand and taxi stand. A lot of average, good and luxurious hotels are available in Katra. So you can choose any hotel according to your budget. Or you can also go to any Dharmshala or Guest house if you don’t want to spend much money on hotels.

Start Your Yatra:

After taking rest it will be the time to start your Yatrato Vaishno Devi Mandir. You can do Yatra in three ways.

First way is by foot, second by Horse and third by Helicopter service. If you are going there by foot then you have to remember these things in your mind because Mandir is 14 km away from Katra; so keep these things in mind:

• Carry a travel bag with you with a towel, clean clothes (because people says that it is necessary to take bath and wearing clean clothes before going for Darshan of Mata Rani).

  
  




• Keep some money in your bag to have some food or drinks on the way.

  
  




• Don’t put a lot of or unnecessary things in the bag during Yatraas it will not be easy to pick all those things for you in the Yatra.

  
  




• Carry only one bag with you. Each person should carry a bag with his/her own necessary things because it would be painful for that single person to lift such heavy bag during Yatra.

  
  




• One bottle for water. It is not necessary to purchase a new water bottle every time. You can fill it with water on the way, as water taps are available on the way for the visitors.

  
  




• Start Yatra with comfortable clothes and comfortable footwear for comfortable journey.

  
  




• Don’t forget to take some woolen clothes with you because round about 5 pm temperature goes down and you will feel so much cold there.

  
  




• And off course, don’t forget a Camera to click some memorable Pictures.

  
  

It takes round about 15-16 hours to complete the Yatra by foot. You can take rest in between the Yatra.

If you decide to do Yatra on horses then be sure that ladies and children with you are not scared of horse riding; because horse riding in hilly area seems quite dangerous.

And if you decide to do Yatra by Helicopter service then you have to book your seat in advance minimum one month before your visit. You can book your seats via Internet. Helicopter will reach you there in just 8 minutes. They charge 900 Rs. Per person for this service for one way and it will leave you at Sanjhi Chhat. From Sanjhi Chhat you have to go ahead by foot but not to worry because the holy shrine is just 2 Km away from this place and the whole way is plain.

They operate flights daily but sometimes due to problems in weather they cancelled the flights with full refund of your money.

During Yatra by foot:

While Yatra by foot on the way you will find a place Ardh Kuwariwhere is a narrow cave of 15 ft. You can go through this cave or can go via simple way. This cave is also known as Garabh Joonwhere Maa Vaishno Devi hid herself for nine months from Bhairav Nath.There is a saying that when Bhairav Nath find Maa Vaishno Devi then she made a new way from the other side to escape from him.

I know you would be feeling hunger after so much of walking so it’s time to have something. After crossing holy Ardh Kuwari there is CCD on the way. You can enjoy Cold Coffee, Hot Coffee, Cold Drinks and Sandwiches etc.

But there are also some Bhojanalyaon the way. You can enjoy Kadi-Chawal, Chappatisand Rajma-Chawal etc. there.

On the way there is a place called Sanjhi Chhatwhere you can take rest with cool & fresh breeze. It is very beautiful and cool place in between the Yatra. And your destination is not so far from this place. Holy shrine is just 2 km away from Sanjhi Chhat and the whole way is plain from there. You will feel some freshness and satisfaction here that you are now very near from holy shrine.

After reaching to Bhawan firstly you have to take bath with Thanda-Thanda Pahadon ka Paani. There are two Sananghar –one for males and one for females. No matter in what weather you go there, you will definitely feel so much cold in the evening and when it comes to take bath in the cold water many people got afraid. But I am sure that after taking bath it will be so good. So don’t skip the bath there and wear clean clothes after taking bath.

Now it will be the time to be a part of that long line heading to the holy shrine. But before that you have to keep your bags in lockers. Yes, locker facility is there so put all the things in your bag. Mobiles, Cameras and leather things are not allowed in the temple so you have to put these things also in your bag and keep the key with yourself with care. Just keep some money in your pocket to buy some Prashad for devotion. It will take minimum 1 hour or more for Darshan.There are three Pindisrepresented Maa Laxmi, Mahakaali and Maa Saraswati.

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