Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Darshan

JAI MATA DI..

It is said that you can only visit the holy shrine if you are fortunate and called by Mata Vaishno Devi.

It happened with me too. I had been trying for several years to visit this holy shrine and my number came last year. Earlier there had been occassions when I didn't get reservation and once I had to cancel my confirmed tickets.

I am fortunate enough to have visit this holy shrine twice that too at the time of last Navratra.

Way to Vaishno Devi Shrine

My route was from Delhi to Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra.

From Delhi it is an overnight journey. I got reservation sleeper class of Shalimar Express. It starts from New Delhi station at 3.50 pm and reaches Jammu Tawi railway station in the morning at around 5:30 am (scheduled time is 5.10 am).

After reaching you can book a taxi or take bus for Katra. Government bus station is within the Jammu railway station premise. It will on to your right hand side when you step out of station. You have to take ticket from counter. Ticket price range starts from Rs 27 to Rs 48 per person.

It takes an average of two hours to reach Katra. At Katra there plethora of hotels where you can book room , stay there and relax.

The price of each hotel varies from Rs 150 to Rs 800. All these rates are negotiable but negotiation is limited up to off seasons. Peak season to visit this HOLY Shrine is during Navratras and summer season.

From Katra, the holy shrine is 12 kms from Katra(official figure)on the hill. There are four modes of transport you can use to reach this shrine. You can hire pony or palki. There are counters from where you can get these two booked at fix price other wise you need to negotiate and the final price will be still higher than the price at which you can get it from counters managed by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board(SMVDSB).

The ponies are extremely irritating. It creates fear in the mind of both the rider and pedestrians on the mountain. Therefore avoid ponies. Palki is for old people. Even young people can have it but it is embarassing to see old and kids on foot and young fellow on Palki or Pony.

The third means is Helicopter from Katra to Sanjhichat. Sanjhichat is 2-3 kms away and above Bhawan (as the holy shrine is called). You can easily walk down in 20-30 minutes.

The fourth one is the 11 number ie your foot. It is the most preferred and enjoyable mode of transport. To make your 12 kms walk more interesting, it is advisable to go in as much big group as you can. It takes 6 hrs on an average to reach Bhawan for a normal person.

There is another important holy spot in mid-way from Katra to Bhawan, Adhkuwari. It is a place where there is a very narrow holy passage. It is said that Maa Vaishno Devi stayed in this cave for few days to avoid conflict with Bhairo Nath.

To pass through this cave you will often find long ques and people have to wait for three days and one needs to register at counter to enter in these cave. If on day 1 you register to enter this cave then you can expect your number to come on third day. A rough estimate is that will take around 60 hours for your chance to come.

From Adhkuwari there are two ways to Bhawan. One Via Sanjhichat and other directly to Bhawan. Via Sanjhichat , its tough to trek beacuse at places the path is very steep. I would suggest that one should go to Bhawan directly from Adhkuwari.

After visiting Bhawan, it is important for one to visit Bhairo Nath Temple which is 2 kms above Bhawan. Its important because it is said that the pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi is not considered complete without visiting Bhairo Nath in Bhairo Ghati.

After visiting Bhairon Nath Temple, those who want to visit Sanjhichat can easily go to there as it is below Bharon Ghati.

Travel Dyne Tips

First thing , if you want to take from New Delhi then please avoid going in Sleeper Class of Shalimar Express. First it takes a big route and hence lot of time to reach Jammu station.

Also it has no pantry car. Once incident that I would like to mention here about the pantry service of Indian Railway. IRCTC has put framed placard in almost all of the train boggies with prices but the food is served at highr price inside the train.
I asked the pantry guy to serve me food and also give the bill. He started yelling at me and said " Koi bill nahi deta hai. Agar khana hai to khao varna rehne do.Har cheez ka jaise tum bill hi lete chalte ho"(No one gives bill and if you want to have the food then have it or leave it.Looks as though you ask for bill each and every thing.)

This patry guy was under impression that I would compromise with his statement but he was wrong. I reported this to pantry manager. He said we give bill when asked and assured to serve me food but I had to go and remind him at least two times. The last time I asked him to ancel my order an give me 'Suggestion cum Complaint Book'.It is a book that is there in every train with pantry manager. A passenger is always free to write his suggestion and complaint in this book. It is , I believe, is taken seriously by IRCTC and railway officials. After this the food was served finally.

Earlier the vendor asked for Rs 35 per meal but later on it was charged at Rs 32 per meal. The IRCTC placard mentions Rs 30 per meal.

Accomodation: Though there are lot of Hotels in Katra but I would advise visitors to go for accomodation provided by SMVDSB.

It can be booked online also through their website (see. useful links). The rates are non-negotaible but decent accomodation. Accomodation can be booked for Jammu, Katra, Adhkuwari, Sanjhchat, Gauri Bhawan and Manokamna Bhawan. Manokamna Bhawana is at Bhawan.

Everything is well managed by SMVDSB except toilets and bathrooms.Therefore it is good to have either a dormitory or room booked at Manokamna Bhawan or Sanjhichat or Gauri Bhawan. Manokamna Bhawan is nearest(almost at the entrance) accomodation to Bhawan.

Katra to Bhawan: Before starting from Bhawan to Katra , one needs to take Yatra Slip. It is free of cost and valid for six hours. Within six hrs this slip should be presented at Ban Ganga. Ban Ganga is around 1 Km from Katra.Only one person can travel on one Yatra Slip.

While travelling keep you luggage as light as you can because it becomes vary tiring for those who are not regular walker or jogger.Keep only single set of clothes. Wear shoes without laces.

There is no need to carry water bottle or food as it is available through out the way to Bhawan from Katra. Even there are Cafe Coffe Day, Nescafe stalls, local vendors and some good cafeteria. There are arrnagements from SMVDSB for food as well.

Last, everything is well managed by SMVDSB. Therefore to avoid any fraud and thugs you can always take help of SMVDSB counters.

FOOD at Katra

There are som restaurants in Katra but prefer to go for SMVDSB. If you want to try something different, please avoid some gaudy restaurants at the central market place of Katra. There are some Dhabas inside the market, the way other than way to Ban Ganga. At these Dhabas you can get genuine food in budget.

Shopping

The speciality of Katra is that you can buy appricot (akhrot). Rest of the things are transported from Delhi market. SMVDSB sells gold and silver coin which you can also buy.

Cricket bats is another genuine thing that can be bought from here. After baragining, the minimum price of bat falls around Rs 150.The thing that a buyer should check is that the often the defect in the handle of bat is covered by stickers. Therefore please check this defect before buying.

Thats all from Travel Dyne as of now for Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Darshan.