Situated at the base of the Trikuta Mountains, the shrine of Vaishno Devi is located in Katra, a city and Tehsil in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, an Indian union territory. Katra, the starting point for pilgrims traveling to the Mata Vaishno Devi Temple, is situated 24 km (15 mi) from the town of Reasi, 42 km (26 km) from the city of Jammu, and around 685 km (426 mi) north of New Delhi, the nation’s capital.
The location of Katra is 32.98°N 74.95°E. It is located at an average elevation of 2,474 feet, or 875 meters. The settlement is traversed by the Banganga River.