Kashmir

Kashmir opens with the view from a shikara gliding across Dal Lake at sunrise, the Pir Panjal range reflected in still water and floating vegetable markets drifting past. Srinagar’s Mughal gardens — Shalimar Bagh and Nishat Bagh — are terraced right up to the lakeshore, built centuries ago for exactly this view.

Further out, Gulmarg’s meadows turn to ski slopes in winter and wildflower fields in summer, connected by one of the highest cable cars in the world. Pahalgam adds pine forests and river valleys for gentle trekking. Nights are spent aboard a traditional houseboat, wood-panelled and lantern-lit, with the lake silent outside the window.