July 6th, 2016 by Abhijit Chakraborty

Srinagar, popularly known as ‘Heaven on Earth’, is as surreal as the most aesthetic painting ever painted. Interspersed with Chinar trees and green pastures, it makes for a wonderful vacation spot for your family.

An evening in Dal Lake
An evening at Dal Lake

Dal Lake

The first thing to do when you land in Srinagar is to close your eyes and breathe in the fresh, unadulterated air. The second thing to do is to hire a houseboat, for it makes no sense for you to ignore the ethereal beauty of the Dal Lake and live in a hotel. Wooden, rustic, warm and cosy, these houseboats have charming wall murals and balconies for you to sit in and enjoy your Kahwa in the evening.

OYO Houseboat
OYO Houseboat

OYO Houseboats

OYO Houseboats offer an excellent option for those who are looking to experience a houseboat stay with the assurance and comfort of OYO. Check out the entire range of OYO Houseboats here.

Inside an OYO Houseboat
Inside an OYO Houseboat

To make your evenings even more pristine and beautiful, you should take a Shikara ride from the backwaters that traverses through the local villages, and if you’re lucky enough you might just get to see a rainbow.

If you’re looking for Pashmina, you would find a variety of stores that you can visit while enjoying your boat ride.

A shop selling authentic Pashmina products
A shop selling authentic Pashmina products

The Gardens

Another popular attraction that you shouldn’t miss are the floral gardens, namely the Nishat Bagh and the Chashma Shahi gardens. Endowed with clear water streams and natural hot water springs, you also get to witness terraced formations in the gardens here that are intricately interspersed with freshly bloomed flowers.

Nishat Bagh. Srinagar
Nishat Bagh. Srinagar

Pari Mahal or The Fairies’ Abode is a seven terraced garden located at the top of Zabarwan mountain range over-looking city of Srinagar and south-west of Dal Lake.

Pari Mahal, Srinagar
Pari Mahal, Srinagar

Srinagar is all this and more. That’s why it makes perfect sense to travel to this amazing destination and the best time to visit srinagar is during summer.

Book your OYO in Srinagar here.

 

Editor’s note – Srinagar also has a number of manmade tourist attractions and bustling markets which would be covered in detail in another blog post.

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