Patnitop is a hill station in the Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir state of India. It falls on the national highway No.1 from Udhampur to Srinagar; it is about 113 Kms from Jammu and 35 Kms from Udhampur. It is located on the Shiwalik ranges of Himalaya Mountains lying at about 2025 meters altitude. The River Chenab flows adjacent to this resort. The original name of the station was ‘Patan Da Talab’ which means the pond of the princes. Earlier a pond existed here and royal families used to bathe in it. A small portion of the Pond still exists near the youth hostel. The British having difficulty in pronouncing the name correctly, entered the name in their records as Patnitop, which is still carried on in use.
The nighibouring town of Batote is famous for Rajma (the Kidney Beans), and Kud is famous for Patissa (A kind of Sweets). A thick forest of Cedar/Deodar surround Patnitop town. It is scenic holidaying spot between Jammu and Udhampur; in winter covered with snow it offers many snow games to the visitors. Skiing is among the most popular winter sport here. The Jammu and Kashmir and the Indian Army has a Holiday home here. Paragliding is another popular sport here.
