Srinagar, India

Sukoon

Price per night from$213.19

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (including tax) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (INR17,773.44), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

Style

Tradition floats

Setting

Mountain-view shoreline

Surrounded by water lilies on the edge of Lake Dal in Srinagar, carefully restored houseboat hotel Sukoon is blissfully tranquil; its name means peace, wisdom and contentment, and it delivers on all three. Inside, you’ll find locally carved walls and decorative screens; large windows and bright colours keep things light. Spend your days soaking up the sun on the boat’s roof deck (the only one on the lake), or tour around the lakes and markets by gondola-like shikara. In the evenings, dine alfresco on traditional Kashmiri dishes, then let the gentle lapping of water lull you to sleep.

Smith Extra

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A bottle of wine and a boat ride on a traditional shikara

Facilities

Photos Sukoon  facilities

Need to know

Rooms

Five, including one suite.

Check–Out

11am, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in: noon.

Prices

Double rooms from £216.14 (INR22,750), including tax at 28 per cent.

More details

Rates generally include à la carte breakfast and dinner (excluding drinks).

Also

The beautiful carved wood throughout the houseboat – including intricately detailed screens, sundecks and balconies – is typical of the woodwork Srinagar is known for.

Hotel closed

15 November to 15 February

At the hotel

Free WiFi throughout. In rooms: iPod dock, free bottled water, Kama Ayurveda bath products and air conditioning.

Our favourite rooms

All five of the cosy rooms are similar, with intricately carved wood panels and colourful furnishing. If you’re looking for a bit more space, spring for the suite at the end of corridor; it has a larger bathroom, too.

Packing tips

Bring your breezy linen best to beat the heat and pack delicate slippers to pad about the houseboat in the mornings.

Also

Bring books and plan for a digital semi-detox: WiFi can be sporadic on the lake.

Children

An extra bed can be added for Smiths eight and under, an extra room must be booked for over-nines. The hotel is child friendly and the staff love children, but keep in mind you're on a boat and parental vigilance will be required.

Sustainability efforts

Sukoon uses green cleaning products and toiletries, has its own waste-management plant and leads a campaign to regularly clean the lake.

Food and Drink

Photos Sukoon  food and drink

Top Table

The diminutive dining room is dark and cosy; perfect for cold, winter nights. In warmer months, dine alfresco on the Fizaa Deck.

Dress Code

Deck yourselves out in loose cottons and colourful natural fabrics in the warmer months, and cosy fleece wraps in the winter.

Hotel restaurant

Chef Deepak cooks up traditional Kashmiri cuisine, along with Thai, Asian-fusion and internationally-inspired dishes. Expect themed dinners, including the famous Kashmiri wazwan, a meat-heavy multi-course feast, and spicy harissa at the breakfast table. Breakfasts and dinners are included; beer and wine are on hand to order if you’re feeling parched. For lunch, choose from a menu of healthy salads, smoothies and fresh fruits. 

Hotel bar

There’s no bar, but beer, wine and assorted non-alcoholic drinks are available; try the zingy and refreshing Kashmiri Kahwa green tea, made with saffron, cardamom and ginger.

Last orders

Breakfast from 7am to 10am, dinner from 7pm. Guests are welcome to eat lunch or snack at any time from 10am to 7pm.

Room service

Guests can request breakfast in their rooms, but everyone typically eats together.

Location

Photos Sukoon  location
Address
Sukoon
Kabootar Khana Near Rani Mahal, Dal Lake, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir
Srinagar
India

Sukoon houseboat is moored on Dal Lake, surrounded by lotuses and lilies; the snow-covered peaks of the Pir Panjal mountains are visible in the distance.

Planes

Srinagar International Airport is 18 kilometres away; arrange a transfer with the hotel for up to five people for INR1800 each way.

Trains

Udhampur Railway Station is a seven-hour drive from Sukoon. Transfers can be arranged for up to five people for INR8500 each way.

Automobiles

There’s no parking available by this houseboat hotel, so we recommend arranging private transfers or using public transport instead.

Other

Hail a rickshaw from nearby Srinagar to experience public transport the Kashmiri way.

Worth getting out of bed for

Hop on a wooden shikara boat to sightsee through the lake’s backwaters, keeping an eye out for colourful local birds; early risers can peruse the floating markets on Dal and Nagin lakes at dawn, too. Get your daily dose of greenery by exploring the Unesco-listed Mughal Gardens of Srinagar, or join in one of Sukoon’s guided nature walks. Wind your way through Old City Srinagar to spot mosques and temples, or trek up to what remains of Hari Parbat, the Mughal emperor's impressive hilltop fortress. 

Local restaurants

For local cuisine, look to look to Ahdoos Restaurant; it also dishes out Mughlai and Chinese cuisine. If you’re in the mood for Western fare, snag a seat on the terrace at Latitude.

 

Local bars

For coffee with cakes and pastries in town, stop by 14th Avenue Café and Grill; both the cheesecakes and the red velvet are especially fluffy and light.

Reviews

Photos Sukoon  reviews

Anonymous review

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this houseboat hotel in India and unpacked their local wood carving and souvenir kurta, a full account of their boutique Kashmiri break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside Sukoon in Srinagar…

Surrounded by water lilies on the edge of Lake Dal, houseboat hotel Sukoon lives up to its promise of delivering contentment. Spend your days watching the tiny boats glide across the water from the covered lower balcony and sunning yourselves silly on the boat’s roof deck; the extra height advantage gives a direct gaze-line to the snow-capped mountains in the distance. 

Inside, your den-like room is all intricately carved wood panels (including the ceiling) and large picture windows that fill the space with natural light. Take your meals on the alfresco dining deck for a bit of a breeze with your Kashmiri cuisine, and at night let the houseboat almost imperceptibly rock you to sleep. This is life at a lake-pace. 

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Price per night from $213.19