Dal Lake: The Shikara Hour

What we work through with you

1. Your date and who is joining

   Tell us the date you want and who is coming, with children’s ages and any access or food needs, so we can check suitability with the operator.

2. The practical arrangements

   We check available times, the meeting point, transport if listed and the operator’s requirements. Optional extras are confirmed separately.

3. Your written quote

   Review the final arrangements, total price, inclusions and payment and cancellation terms before booking. An enquiry does not reserve this trip.

The experience outline

Boarding time and point are confirmed for your date.

1. Step 01

   The Evening

   Two hours on the water at the hour that matters. Board at a lakeside ghat in the late afternoon and be rowed out by shikara, which is a flat wooden boat with a canopy and cushions, moved by a single heart-shaped paddle rather than an engine, so the lake stays quiet. The route crosses to Char Chinar, the small island with four chinar trees planted at its corners, and threads the channels past the floating gardens, which are rafts of weed and soil anchored in the shallows and genuinely farmed, with lotus in bloom from roughly July to September. Vendors will row up selling saffron, papier-mache and photographs, which is part of it. Kahwa is served on the boat. The Zabarwan hills go pink for about twenty minutes before dusk, which is the whole reason to go now rather than at noon.

What this package lists

Use these inclusions and exclusions when reviewing your quote. The displayed price starts from ₹1,499 per person; your written quote confirms the total for your dates and arrangements.

Read this package’s booking terms →