Chashme Shahi — the royal spring garden above Dal Lake
What it is
Chashme Shahi, also spelt Chashma Shahi, means the royal spring. It is a small Mughal garden built in 1632 around a freshwater spring in the Zabarwan Range, overlooking Dal Lake in Srinagar. Ali Mardan Khan, the governor, built it on the orders of Shah Jahan as a gift for his eldest son, Dara Shikoh.
Photos: Mili Ghosh (CC BY-SA 4.0) — via Wikimedia Commons, resized.
The spring
Wikipedia says the saint Rupa Bhawani found the spring, which was first named for her family, Sahib, and that over time the name became Shahi. The water comes down in three stages. A Kashmiri hut of two floors marks the top terrace, where the spring begins. A water ramp then drops to a pool with a large fountain, and a second ramp ends in a square pool of five fountains at the entrance. It is about 108 m long and 38 m wide.
Getting there
By road it is about 11 minutes from the centre of Srinagar on our routing, near Raj Bhawan on the hillside. Pari Mahal stands just above, where Wikipedia says Dara Shikoh studied astrology.
Combine it with
Nishat Bagh and Shalimar Bagh are the other two gardens of the shore. The one-day plan covers all three, and the spring tulip day adds the tulips. See things to do in Srinagar.
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Questions people ask
What is Chashme Shahi?
A small Mughal garden built in 1632 around a freshwater spring in the Zabarwan Range, above Dal Lake. Ali Mardan Khan, the governor, built it on the orders of Shah Jahan as a gift for his eldest son, Dara Shikoh. The name means the royal spring, and the spring flows down the terraces in a chain of pools and fountains.
How big is Chashme Shahi?
About 108 m long and 38 m wide, on about one acre, according to Wikipedia, which makes it the least extensive of Srinagar's three Mughal gardens, with Shalimar the biggest and Nishat next. It takes less time than the others, so many visitors fit it in between Pari Mahal and Nishat Bagh.
How far is it from the centre of Srinagar?
About 11 minutes by road on our routing from the city centre, near Raj Bhawan on the hillside. Pari Mahal is close above it. We have no verified opening hours or entry fee, so ask locally. The spring is the draw, so go when the water is flowing and the terraces are not crowded.