Originally Posted by GUWonder

While Jammu hotels are really nothing special, a good number of people do stay overnight in the city on arrival into IXJ airport and/or after returning to IXJ from the the holy site. A very early start as suggested above is a very good idea if possible for the OP's circumstances.

Originally Posted by Zaara

I suspect it'll be difficult to do within 24 hours unless you know someone to facilitate your trip because the lines at the shrine can be very long, particularly since you won't be arriving until late in the afternoon. I'd advise you plan your trip to stay at Vaishno Devi overnight and then set out for the shrine as early as you can in the morning. Early in the morning when the sun is rising is a very beautiful time of the day to ascend the mountain and you can miss much of the crowds (it can be chaotic in the afternoon).

If you don't use the helicopter service (if the weather is bad, it doesn't operate), palki & horses are available which can shorten the trip up & down (we've used all of these in the past depending on how much time we have; I personally like going by palki the best). You might be able to make a flight back out late that day, but you'll probably be better off taking one the next morning & not worrying about missing your flight. Plus the trip can a lot more tiring than you might anticipate.