Vaishno Devi Yatra Tips: Rules, Packing List and What to Know Before You Go

Liquor, intoxicants, non-vegetarian food, smoking, tobacco and betel are prohibited on the whole yatra, and so are flammable or sharp objects and heavy luggage. The Shrine Board also bars video cameras and other electronics from the track. Inside the Holy Cave only cash and offerings are allowed, so belts, wallets, combs and shoes go into the free cloak room opposite Gate No. 1. Kanya poojan at the shrine is strictly prohibited.

No. Phones are not allowed inside the Holy Cave, and the Shrine Board's cloak-room notice says mobile phones, video cameras and other electronics are not allowed on the track for security reasons. Leave your phone at your Katra hotel or in a free Shrine Board cloak room in Katra. If you do carry one up, it must go into the Bhawan cloak room before you join the darshan queue.

Yes. The Shrine Board has no formal dress code and does not ban jeans. It asks pilgrims to avoid loud clothing and to wear clean clothes for darshan. Jeans get uncomfortable over a 13 km climb, though, so most pilgrims prefer track pants, a salwar kameez or a kurta with loose trousers, with shoes that grip and slip off easily.

Carry original photo ID, your yatra slip and RFID card, drinking water, light snacks, prescribed medicines and flat shoes with good grip. Add a raincoat in the monsoon and heavy woollens, gloves and a thermal layer in winter. A light woollen is needed even in summer, because the Bhawan stays cool at night. Leave blankets and prasad behind, since both are available on the way.

You must cross the first check post at Banganga, about 1.5 km from the registration counter, within 6 hours of the card being issued. If you don't, the card is confiscated and you register again. Plan the collection around your start time, especially for a night walk, and re-check the rule on maavaishnodevi.org before you travel, because press reports have described other windows before peak seasons.

Yes, on both counts. Every pilgrim needs an RFID Yatra Access Card, issued free by the Shrine Board at the Katra bus stand counter, at YRC-II on the Udhampur road, or after online registration on online.maavaishnodevi.org. Registration also gives free accident insurance, valid only for accidental death.