The Mughal gardens of Srinagar

What it is

The Mughal emperors loved Kashmir and built pleasure gardens on the slopes above Dal Lake. Shalimar Bagh was laid out by Jahangir, Nishat Bagh rises in broad terraces with the lake in front and the Zabarwan hills behind, and little Chashme Shahi is built around a spring. All follow the Persian idea of a garden: a central water channel, fountains, pavilions and symmetrical beds. In spring the beds hold pansies, tulips and irises, in summer roses and annuals, and in autumn the great chinar trees turn red and gold. Families from the city picnic here on holidays.

Before you go

• Take a shikara across Dal Lake to Nishat for the best approach.
• Late afternoon light is kind to the terraces.
• October and early November are the time for chinar colour rather than flowers.

The flowers you will see

RoseWoody perennial plants with showy, often fragrant flowers in many coloursTulipSpring-blooming bulbs with showy, cup-shaped flowers in many coloursIrisA large group of perennial flowers with striking, six-lobed bloomsPansyA large-flowered garden hybrid with a face-like blotch in many coloursDahliaA bushy perennial with tuberous roots and bright, star-shaped blooms

Read more

Shalimar BaghA Mughal-era garden of terraces, fountains and chinar trees by Dal Lake, Srinagar

More in Srinagar

🇮🇳 Srinagar · Mar to AprTulip garden of SrinagarA hillside of tulips above Dal Lake, open for only a few weeks each spring. 🇮🇳 Mumbai · All yearDadar flower market at dawnMumbai's wholesale flower market beside Dadar station, at its busiest before the city has had breakfast. 🇮🇳 Kolkata · All yearMullick Ghat flower market under Howrah BridgeA crowded riverside flower market on the Hooghly, in the shadow of Howrah Bridge. 🇮🇳 Bengaluru · All yearKR Market flower hallBengaluru's old city market, where the flower floor is best seen from the stairs above. 🇮🇳 Chennai · All yearKoyambedu wholesale flower marketThe flower block of Chennai's vast Koyambedu wholesale complex, busiest before sunrise. 🇮🇳 Madurai · All yearMadurai malli at the Mattuthavani flower marketThe wholesale market that sets the daily price of Madurai malli, the jasmine the city is famous for.