Tulip Garden in Srinagar, properly the Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden, is the largest tulip garden in Asia, planted with about 1.5 million bulbs on seven terraces below the Zabarwan hills. It opens for a few weeks each spring, usually from the first days of April, and closes when the last beds go over. Outside those weeks there is nothing to see, so the dates decide the trip.
Duke Kashmir Travels is a Srinagar travel agency, registered with the J&K Department of Tourism as JKTA00003978 since 2011. We build April itineraries around the bloom; Kashmir packages start near ₹6,350 per person, two sharing a room.
By Duke Kashmir Travels Team · Reviewed by Rayies Ahmad Zargar, Founder · Published · Updated
Key takeaways
- About 1.5 million bulbs in some 48 varieties, on seven terraces facing Dal Lake.
- Open only for the bloom, normally from early April; the festival runs inside that window.
- Daffodils, hyacinths, narcissi, muscari, iris and ranunculus fill the beds between the tulips.
- Laid out as a government floriculture project; now the largest garden of its kind in Asia.
- Mornings are the quietest hours and the best light for photographs.
- Chashme Shahi and Nishat Bagh are minutes away on the same road.
When does the Tulip Garden open?
Usually in the first week of April, and it stays open two to four weeks depending on the weather that spring.
A warm spell brings the beds forward and shortens the season; a cold one delays the opening. The Tulip Festival is held inside the same window. We confirm the year's dates with the department before finalising an April itinerary, because a week either way changes what you see.
What is planted there?
Around 1.5 million tulip bulbs across roughly 48 varieties, in blocks of orange, yellow, red, purple and several hybrids.
The beds are underplanted and edged with daffodils, hyacinths, narcissi, muscari, iris and ranunculus, so there is colour even where the tulips have gone over. Seven terraces step down towards the lake, which is what lets you see the whole planting at once from the top.
How long do you need, and when should you arrive?
An hour to ninety minutes covers it. Arrive at opening: by late morning the paths are full and the light is flat.
The garden is ticketed and gets very busy at weekends during the festival. Weekday mornings are markedly calmer, and the snow still on the Zabarwan ridge behind the terraces photographs best before noon.
How do you reach the Tulip Garden?
It sits in the Siraj Bagh area at the foot of the Zabarwan hills, about 8 km from Lal Chowk on the road towards Chashme Shahi.
Our April groups travel by private vehicle and start here before the gardens, then continue to Chashme Shahi and Nishat on the same run.
What else is worth seeing in tulip season?
Almond blossom at Badamwari overlaps with the early tulip weeks, and the Mughal gardens are replanted for spring at the same time.
A shikara ride on Dal Lake and the ridge view from Pari Mahal round out the day. The Srinagar page lists the rest; Kashmir tour ideas has spring itineraries.
Booking this with us
Duke Kashmir Travels has held Department of Tourism registration JKTA00003978 since March 2011 and has been an IATO allied member since 2016. The full list of registrations sits on our About Us page.
Send your dates and traveller count and we will build the itinerary around it. Call +91 9018 44 0000, email info@dukekashmirtravels.com or use the contact page.
About the founder
Rayies Ahmad Zargar founded Duke Kashmir Travels in Srinagar in 2011 and still runs it. He co-founded the JK Tourism Council and reviews the guides published here, including this one. Profile on LinkedIn.