Boulevard Road is the lakefront promenade that runs along the western and southern edge of Dal Lake for about 12 km, from Dalgate in the south to the Mughal Gardens approach roads in the north. It is the main artery of tourist Srinagar: houseboats line the lake side, hotels and restaurants face them from the land side, and a constant procession of shikara boats passes below the road on the water. In the evenings it becomes a genuine promenade — locals and tourists walking in the cooler air, vendors selling kahwa and roasted corn, the lake surface darkening as the light fades.
The road itself is dual carriageway and not particularly pleasant for walking in the heat of the day, but the shikara landing ghats are spaced at regular intervals and getting onto the water is straightforward from anywhere along it. The stretch between the Tourist Reception Centre at Dalgate and the Nehru Park houseboat colony is the most active. Further north, as the road curves toward Hazratbal, the traffic thins and the lake views open up. Boulevard Road is the practical base for most visitors; even those staying on houseboats use it as their reference point for restaurants, transport, and orientation.