Having been on a business trip to India, I roughly had 2 days to fulfil the wish to visit Srinagar. Hence a little time just to be far much too short to explore Kashmir. Anyhow, I booked a return flight from Delhi, and one of the thousands of houseboats. I happened to be the Zandari Palace Houseboat, located at a quiet end channel behind the floating and busy marketplace in the evening. To be frank, my expectations were not too high as I mange easily to stay in the range between simple and luxury. The best in all is definitely Imram, the owner. The houseboat has seen its best years and some refurbishing would be needed, once the Corona shock has been digested, morally and financially. Imram and many of his fellow boat operators are struggling. I noticed that tourism had not yet started. Among many Indians, I was probably the only foreigner. The good things is that Imram contacted me at his own initiative upfront on my mobile and provided airport pickup, everything to its perfection. He also arranged a visiting trip to Sonamarg. he has many more suggestions about interesting place to visit even the ones near the famous Line of Control. Another good thing is that one feels safe.
In overall, once you are more the adventurous traveller, booking the Zandari Palace is booking the knowledge and kindness of Imram. If you are up to luxury accommodation, you may not be satisfied from the overall setting-up.
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