Kashmir 10 days 2 pax minIn short
At Naseem Bagh, on Dal Lake in Srinagar, Butt's Clermont keeps its moored fleet, and The Tribune's report of 25 May 2015 traces it to a British owner who passed the boats to the Kashmiri Butt family around Independence. Soun Kashmir can book a night here with a cab or package.
Updated
At a glance
- Lake and place
- Dal Lake, at Naseem Bagh, below the Zabarwan hills (The Tribune, 25 May 2015)
- Origin
- The Tribune says a British owner, R Foster, gave the fleet to the Kashmiri handicraft dealer GM Butt around Independence
- Fleet
- The Tribune says Foster's fleet had eight boats; its photograph shows four; one boat was lost in the floods of the year before
- The name
- The name comes from Foster's home town in England, a letter on the reception wall says (The Tribune)
- Named past guests
- Nelson Rockefeller, Joan Fontaine, Dilip Kumar and Michael Palin, listed in The Tribune's report
- Garden
- About 70 kanals of lawns and chinar trees, says The Tribune
- Rates
- Not printed here: they change with the season, the boat and the meal plan, so ask for a quote
- With Soun Kashmir
- A night on its own or inside a package, with a cab and a shikara ride
Where are Butt's Clermont Houseboats, and which lake are they on?
They are moored on Dal Lake at Naseem Bagh in Srinagar. Three published accounts describe the setting: all place the boats among gardens on the shore, and the Macfilos writer calls it a quiet corner of the lake.
| Source | Date | What it says about the setting |
|---|---|---|
| The Tribune | 25 May 2015 | A fleet lying in a queue on Dal Lake at Naseem Bagh, overlooking the Zabarwan hills, beside a garden of about 70 kanals |
| Outlook, "Palaces On Water" | Published 5 February 2022 | Boats anchored between garden plots, away from the crowded houseboat rows near the city centre, afloat on lotus leaves, with the late-afternoon sun on the Hazratbal mosque |
| A traveller's account on Macfilos | Published 7 April 2023, about a visit in 2011 | Boats moored in a quiet corner of the lake under chinar trees |
Who started Butt's Clermont, and why is it called Clermont?
The Tribune says a Briton, R Foster, owned a fleet of eight houseboats in the 1940s and gave it, at Independence, to GM Butt, a handicraft dealer and a friend from Kashmir. A letter on the reception wall, the report adds, explains that the name Clermont comes from Foster's home town in England. At the time of that report, GM Butt's third generation was running the boats.
The 2023 Macfilos account tells the story with different names: an Englishman from Clermont Hall in Norfolk offered his houseboats to his friend Haji Butt, and the business began in 1947. Treat the personal names as reported rather than settled, and ask the owner for the family's own account.
Guests named in The Tribune's report include Nelson Rockefeller, Joan Fontaine, Dilip Kumar and Michael Palin, and the report quotes the family on a stay by George Harrison in 1966. These are historic guest lists, not a promise about who stays today.
How many houseboats does the fleet have?
The count depends on the source and the year. The Tribune gives eight boats under Foster, shows four in its photograph and says the fleet lost one boat to the floods of the previous year; it also quotes members of the Houseboat Association as saying that 15 houseboats collapsed completely and 250 were partly damaged in the floods. The Macfilos writer says Mr Butt began with eight and that four were lost over the decades, and names a three-bedroom boat, Firdous, and a two-bedroom boat, Khushal.
No source gives today's fleet or bedroom count, so ask which boat and which bedrooms your quote covers. A policy that the Administrative Council approved, reported by Kashmir Life on 8 April 2020, allows no new houseboat to be built on Dal Lake or Nigeen Lake.
What do visitors say a night on board is like?
Two visitor accounts describe the boats. They show the style of the stay, not what a current rate includes, so confirm each item with the owner.
| Detail | What the account says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Interiors | Carved panels and windows, old desks, heavy drapes, and boats that smell of cedar and pine | Outlook, 5 February 2022 |
| Service | A butler takes the dinner order and the cook prepares what the guests ask for; there was no menu card, and no telephones or televisions in the room | Outlook, 5 February 2022 |
| Sitting and dining | A carpeted dining-cum-drawing room on a two-bedroom boat | Macfilos, 7 April 2023 |
| Mornings | A boatman takes guests by shikara to the floating vegetable market before dawn | Macfilos, 7 April 2023 |
| Getting ashore | Every Dal Lake houseboat keeps its own shikara to take guests ashore | Wikipedia, Dal Lake |
Is a Dal Lake houseboat cold in winter?
Wikipedia puts the temperature around the lake at 1 to 11 °C in winter and 12 to 30 °C in summer, and says the lake itself freezes when a severe winter drops to about -11 °C. For a stay between December and February, heating is the first question to ask: what warms the bedrooms and the sitting room, and whether it runs through the night.
How does Butt's Clermont compare with the other houseboats Soun Kashmir books?
| Houseboat | Lake | What its own site or the press says |
|---|---|---|
| Butt's Clermont | Dal Lake | A family fleet at Naseem Bagh with a press record of notable guests |
| Chicago Group of Houseboats | Dal Lake | The operator lists Luxurious, Deluxe and Super Deluxe rooms |
| Sukoon Houseboat | Dal Lake | A restored boat with five bedrooms, says its operator |
| Mascot Houseboats | Nigeen Lake | The operator lists five room types, from 350 to 550 sq ft |
| New Jacquline Heritage Houseboats | Nigeen Lake | The operator lists five rooms and suites of 168 to 248 sq ft |
What should you ask before you pay?
- Which boat and how many bedrooms the quote covers, and whether bathrooms are attached.
- Which meals are in the rate, and whether the cook can follow a special diet.
- How guests reach the boat, from which ghat, and whether a shikara ride is part of the stay.
- How the boat is heated in winter and how late the heating runs.
- The registration category of the boat: the draft tourist trade rules reported by Kashmir Observer on 6 August 2024 sort houseboats into Deluxe and A to D categories.
How do you book Butt's Clermont with Soun Kashmir?
Send your dates, the number of guests and the nights you want through the contact page, by phone or on WhatsApp. Ask the planner to compare the options, explain what each rate includes and confirm the boat and the bedrooms before you pay. A planner can add a cab, an airport pickup and a shikara ride on Dal Lake to the same quote.
Soun Kashmir is an independent travel company and is not part of the fleet, so the stay is confirmed with the owner and the owner's terms apply. Couples can compare our Kashmir Honeymoon, listed at ₹21,550 for 10 days, and ask for a custom quote with a houseboat night. Our houseboats in Srinagar page covers the Deluxe and Super Deluxe boats Soun lists on Dal Lake and Nigeen Lake, and the hotels list shows the rest.
Where do the facts on this page come from?
On 6 November 2026 we read The Tribune's report "Witness to history, Clermont struggling to stay alive" of 25 May 2015, Outlook's "Palaces On Water" (published 5 February 2022, updated 13 February 2024), a traveller's account on Macfilos of 7 April 2023 that describes a 2011 visit, Wikipedia's article on Dal Lake, Kashmir Life of 8 April 2020 on the houseboat policy, and Kashmir Observer of 6 August 2024 on the draft tourist trade rules.
The Tribune report is from 2015 and the Macfilos visit from 2011, so the fleet, the family and the rooms may have changed. No current page from the owner was available to read, so confirm the rooms, the rates and the rules with the owner when you book.
Questions and answers
Where are Butt's Clermont Houseboats?
On Dal Lake at Naseem Bagh in Srinagar, below the Zabarwan hills, according to The Tribune's report of 25 May 2015. Ask for the exact mooring and the ghat where the shikara picks you up.
Who started Butt's Clermont?
The Tribune says a Briton, R Foster, handed his fleet to the Kashmiri handicraft dealer GM Butt around Independence. A 2023 traveller's account gives the Englishman's home as Clermont Hall in Norfolk and the Kashmiri owner as Haji Butt, so the names differ by source.
How many houseboats and bedrooms does it have now?
No published source gives the present count. The Tribune reported eight boats under Foster and one lost to floods, and a 2023 account names a three-bedroom and a two-bedroom boat, so ask which boat your quote covers.
Does a Dal Lake houseboat have its own shikara?
Wikipedia says every houseboat on Dal Lake keeps a shikara of its own to take guests ashore. Whether a longer ride on the lake is in your rate is a separate question, so ask before you pay.
Is a houseboat on Dal Lake cold in winter?
Wikipedia gives 1 to 11 °C around the lake in winter and says the lake freezes at about -11 °C in a severe winter. Ask how the boat is heated and whether the heating runs all night.
How much does a night at Butt's Clermont cost?
The rate depends on the season, the boat and the meal plan, so no figure is printed here. Send your dates and the number of guests and the quote lists what is included.
Can I book Butt's Clermont without a package?
Yes. A night can be booked on its own or with a cab, an airport pickup and a shikara ride, and the quote lists exactly which pieces are in the price.
Packages to start from
Plans that fit, listed with their price.
Each package is a starting point: we change the route, the days and the hotels to suit you.
- Kashmir 10 days 2 pax min
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HouseboatSukoon HouseboatSukoon Houseboat on Dal Lake, Srinagar: five bedrooms, a sun terrace, the operator's eco claims set against press reports, and booking a night through Soun.Read more 
HouseboatMascot HouseboatsMascot Houseboats on the west side of Nigeen Lake, Srinagar: the five room types its own site lists, the family behind it, Nigeen against Dal Lake, and booking.Read more 
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