Jammu

Jammu, the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir, is known as the 'City of Temples' for the sheer number of shrines packed into its old quarter, most prominently the Raghunath Temple complex in the city centre. Considerably warmer and lower-lying than Srinagar, Jammu has a distinctly different character from the Kashmir valley, functioning both as a pilgrimage and transit hub and as a destination with its own historic core.

The city's hilltop Bahu Fort, overlooking the Tawi river, and the older Mubarak Mandi Palace complex, once home to the Dogra royal family, are among its more significant heritage sites, reflecting Jammu's history as the seat of the Dogra dynasty that once ruled the wider princely state. For most travellers today, Jammu functions primarily as the gateway to Vaishno Devi and the starting point of the road journey into the Kashmir valley, though its own temples and old city are worth a stop in their own right.

Jammu served as the winter capital of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir under the Dogra dynasty, founded by Maharaja Gulab Singh in the 19th century, and its Dogra royal heritage remains visible across the old city's palaces and temples.

Jammu Airport and Jammu Tawi railway station connect to major Indian cities; well linked by road to Srinagar via the national highway.