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The Dal is famous not only for its beauty but for its vibrance, because it sustains within its periphery, a life that is unique anywhere in the world. The houseboat and shikara communities have lived for centuries on the Dal, and so complete is their infrastructure on the lake, that they never have to step on land! Doctors, tailors, and bakers – you’ll see them all in tiny wooden shops on the lake, near picturesque vegetable gardens and acres of lotus gardens.
A shikara ride is one of the most soothing, relaxing aspects of a holiday in Kashmir. Shikaras are long boats which crowd the Srinagar lakes. They are used for getting back and forth from the houseboats or for longer tours. It is worth to take a pleasure ride around the lake in shikara. Shikara is a Gondola type light rowing boat. The two-hour boat ride takes tourists on a relaxing sightseeing tour of interior parts of the calm and placid waters of Dal Lake, and be part of shopping- by-shikara expeditions. Because the Dal is so central to the landscape of Srinagar, many places of tourist interest have, over the ages, been built in its vicinity. Nishat and Shalimar gardens, as well as Hazratbal mosque, are directly accessible by shikara. Mostly crowded, the Shikara boat rides in Kashmir are also used to transport you from land to your houseboat and vice versa. It is worth your time and money to take that joyride ride around the lakes of Kashmir in a shikara. You can also access tourist spots like the Shalimar Garden, Nishat Garden, and the Hazratbal mosque via the Shikara as the Dal Lake is quite central to these places in Srinagar.
