Team Building Activity – LinkPanda Team Meet-Up Kashmir 2026

This June, I travelled to Srinagar in Kashmir to meet with our LinkPanda team in person. It has been a very productive and enjoyable visit I will never forget.

Over the last years, LinkPanda developed a strong team base in Kashmir and it was time to arrange a visit in person. We had earlier plans for a team meet-up in other parts of the country, but I am glad we went with Srinagar for an extended stay, beyond a short team retreat.

Departing from London, the journey took me via Delhi to Srinagar, in the beautiful Kashmir valley in Northern India.

The last flight leg takes you past the snow-covered mountain tops of the Himalayas. The region is also widely known as the “Heaven of India” or “Switzerland of India” due to its valley, mountain regions and impeccable, untouched nature.

Arriving in Srinagar by plane, showing the military airfield and the Himalayan mountains in the background.

At an elevation of 1,500 meters, the Kashmir valley gets hot in summer but has much more pleasant temperatures than the Indian subcontinent.

Srinagar airport connects the valley to the world, providing some international flights, but most European and American travellers will likely have a stopover in one of India’s major airports like Delhi or Mumbai before arriving here via domestic flights.

Arriving in Srinagar

I quickly noticed that Kashmiri locals are very welcoming and approachable. Fortunately, we already had a ride to the hotel arranged in advance. Our HR manager Mohsin was so kind to pick me up from the airport, making the arrival seamless and relaxing.

Greeting with Mohsin Hassan (left), our head of HR at Srinagar Airport.

Driving through the airport perimeter towards the city, I realized that life runs a bit differently in this part of the world.

It is noticeable that Kashmir is one of the most heavily militarized regions in the world. Armed military personnel are present around the city, at nearly every street corner, at least in the central parts of town. The airport itself is considered a highly sensitive, high-security installation due to geopolitical tensions.

While this level of heightened security may be an unusual experience to visitors at first, I am happy to share that it did not affect the quality of my stay and the positive impression of Kashmir as a region.

With the LinkPanda team in Srinagar’s SmartCity, a central leisure spot in the city.

I was repeatedly amazed at the hospitable and welcoming nature of the locals, be it at the hotel, local shops, restaurants, offices or random interactions in town.

The purpose of my visit to Kashmir was spending quality time with everyone on the team, getting productive work done together, and discussing new ideas and strategies for LinkPanda and our client operations.

Productive Time at Work

During the weekdays, we had an amazing time working together in the same office. I got to learn and understand our workflows even better.

There is great energy having everyone in the same room. Having everyone around, and just having to turn to your left or right for answers, helps move faster and achieve better results.

Even when I am not around in person, our team shares the same workplace and I am thankful for the strong team culture we built. Credit goes to our local head of HR Mohsin, and our team lead and sales development representative Anaan, who has been instrumental in developing our team culture.

Team lunch, with Aqib Yaqoob (right) and Anaan Masoodi (middle).

Over the years, this culture helped create a productive work environment. With a hybrid work model in place, the team gets a good amount of time together in person.

It has been important to me that we followed our regular work and meeting schedule as usual. This year has been particularly active on client campaigns.

Meeting in the office.

Exploring Kashmir

Besides productive work time and strategy sessions, it has been a very eventful trip with great team lunches and weekend trips exploring nature and the city.

I am thankful for everyone on the team for the flexibility with their time, hospitality and local tour guidance, helping me explore and see much of the city and countryside.

Weekend trip to Pahalgam, 2,200 to 2,740 meters above sea level, surrounded by picturesque mountains, nature and wildlife.

On the weekend, we went on a nature excursion, travelling from Srinagar to Pahalgam, a scenic place higher up in the mountains.

While the road distance is only about 100km, it is not uncommon to be stuck in heavy traffic, especially during the summer season. The journey took us more than 3 hours one-way.

Starting early at 8am in the morning, we drove in two cars and one 17-seater bus. Our first stop was a road-side breakfast place in Lethpora Pampore, the “Saffron Town of Kashmir”, where we tasted the local Kehwa tea, served from a traditional coal burner, which I very much enjoyed.

Arriving in Pahalgam, we explored nature, the beautiful Lidder River and animals in the Pahalgam Zoo. It has been a really long day, returning back at night, but the extended time with the whole team and the breathtaking nature definitely made it well worth it.

Snow-covered mountains in the Himalayas, visible from Pahalgam.

Driving past rice fields in the Kashmir valley.

Srinagar’s Dal Lake and Parks

On a Sunday, the team invited me to experience the city of Srinagar. We had a nice time exploring Kashmir University, the Dal Lake and a Mughal park named Shalimar Garden.

Srinagar’s Shalimar Garden on a sunny weekend in June, a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its three terraced levels and over 400 fountains. The garden was built by Mughal Emperor Jahangir in 1619.

The 18 square kilometre large Dal Lake is part of a natural wetland surrounding the city. It is famous for hosting over 900 houseboats that include residential homes and hotels, floating on the shores of the lake.

LinkPanda team in front of the Dal Lake, Srinagar.

Team Recognitions

One of the highlights of the team meet-up in Kashmir were the team award recognitions. This special get-together was planned to celebrate and recognize team members for extraordinary achievements in different areas of our work.

Issued by Mohsin Hassan, LinkPanda head of HR and owner of Mount Dev Solutions, and myself, we were delighted to pass on our appreciation and gratitude for outstanding achievements from team members this year.

Irfan Rashid received the Innovation and Initiative Award for his outstanding efforts in developing a coding-based solution, while Aqib Yaqoob received the Innovation and Initiative Award for developing a Google Apps Script solution that enhanced email marketing and outreach operations.

Aqib Yaqoob (right) receiving the Mount Dev Innovation and Initiative Award.

Irfan Rashid (right) receiving the Mount Dev Innovation and Initiative Award.

Afshan Mairaj received the Excellence in Client Success Award, recognizing her efforts for developing and expanding LinkPanda client relationships in Spain.

Afshan Mairaj awarded with the Client Success Award.

Social Events

The Kashmir trip was full of joyful moments and surprises. We attended a local sports field to play football where a curious local team of junior players stopped by.

We received a hospitable welcome and I got to greet the kids and share a few words of encouragement for their football careers, a sport I once used to play myself for many years as well.

Greeting a local Srinagar football club at their training session.

Group photo with the children’s football team.

Conclusion

Kashmir has been a wonderful experience and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with our LinkPanda team. We had a productive time and planned our next moves for expanding LinkPanda and our SEO and link building teams. I already look forward to more team meet-ups, and to our continuing journey of working towards our next milestones and goals together.

Thank you to everyone who made this trip so memorable, first and foremost to Mohsin for the excellent assistance in planning and organizing the meet-up. Thank you to our LinkPanda team, the office staff, our HR partner Mount Dev Solutions and my business partner Waseem for developing Kashmir into a vital place for our business over the last years. This experience would not have been possible without any of you!

About The Author

Christopher Lier

Christopher is an experienced Search Engine Optimization (SEO) marketer and digital marketing specialist. He is Co-Founder of LinkPanda and leads the marketing and sales teams. Mostly known as a Software-as-a-Service co-founder of LeadGen App, he has helped grow the website to become a renowned player in the lead generation space with steadily growing user base and readership.