Srinagar

Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, sits on the banks of the Jhelum river and around Dal Lake, its skyline of houseboats, shikaras and Mughal-era gardens making it one of the most instantly recognisable cities in India. The old city's wooden mosques, shrines and the narrow lanes of the downtown bazaars sit alongside the more manicured, garden-lined avenues that grew up around the lake, giving Srinagar two quite different faces within a single compact city.

Most visitors use Srinagar as the natural hub for exploring the wider Kashmir valley, staying in a houseboat on Dal or Nigeen Lake and using the city as a base for day trips to Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Sonamarg. Beyond the lake itself, the Mughal gardens, Shankaracharya hill and the bustling floating vegetable market at dawn on Dal Lake are among the experiences that give the city its particular character, distinct from anywhere else in the country.

Founded, according to tradition, by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka, Srinagar grew to prominence under successive Hindu, Muslim and Mughal rulers, with the Mughals in particular shaping much of the garden architecture and urban character still associated with the city today.

Srinagar International Airport connects to major Indian cities; the city is also reachable by road via the Jammu-Srinagar highway.