[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by yogi choudhary

Dear HK Kumar and others who have contributed to the thread. Need your advise I am planning to drive Fortuner from Delhi to Darjeeling - Gangtok and Bhutan I did some basic calculation on the travel plan which I am attaching below. Pl. validate the same and feel free to edit. I am travelling with my wife and two kids 10 and 12 yrs. so do not want too much of long drive. Also if you could suggest decent hotels or other good accommodations along the route. Will really appreciate the help. Thanks

Day 5: Bodh Gaya-Darjeeling - I presume you will drive through Patna, Begusarai, Purnea, Dalkola & Siliguri?
That is not going to be an easy day, you can expect slow down through Patna region, moderate speeds from thereon till Purnea, and also the proapects of climbing up the lovely hills from Siliguri in the darkness. Therefore, keep your options open this day.

Day 10: Phuntsoling-Thimphu - you will get your visa & car permits on a Sat/Sun, so you won't be able to cross the border & go towards Thimphu

Day 14: Paro-Patna - impossible. I would rate your chances of reaching only Siliguri or maximum Purnea that day

Day 16: Patna-Allahabad - unless you have a good reason to come back via Patna/Allahabad, why not try the EW Corridor from Purnea via Raghopur, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Kushalnagar, Gorakhpur & Ayodhya to Lucknow & Kanpur? Some sections are not great, but this will help you reach Kanpur the same day from Purnea (which you can plan your night halt)

[yogi choudhary]

Dear HV Kumar Thanks a lot for your inputs after reviewing the same and some other threads. My friend also has joined me with his family to explore North East our revised plan are as under travelling to Jalpaiguri by train and then taking a mini bus/Van to accommodate 4 adult and 4 kids to travel to Thimpu, Paro, Kalimpong, Gangtok, Darjeeling and back. let me know your thoughts on the itenery. SS traveller, Chevy_Lover and other pl. chip in thanks

Day Date Travel Time/Distance
1 04-06-2012 Mon Delhi to Jalpaiguri Depart in evening
2 05-06-2012 tues Jalpaiguri to Phuntsholing 108 km. 2.hrs
3 06-06-2012 wed phuntsholing to Thimpu 135 km 2 hrs
4 07-06-2012 thurs thimpu
5 08-06-2012 Friday thimpu to paro 66 km 1.3 hrs
6 09-06-2012 sat paro
7 10-06-2012 sund paro to kalimpong 313 km 6-7hrs
8 11-06-2012 mon Kalimpang to Gangtok 73 km 1.5 hr
9 12-06-2012 tues Gangtok
10 13-06-2012 wed Gangtok to Darjeelinng 100 km 2 hrs
11 14-06-2012 thurs Darjeeling
12 15-06-2012 friday Darjeeling to Jalpaiguri train at 12 noon 110 km 3 hrs
13 16-06-2012 Sat Reach Delhi by train

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by yogi choudhary

2 05-06-2012 tues Jalpaiguri to Phuntsholing 108 km. 2.hrs

Minimum 4 hour journey. Don't know how you got distances, it is almost 150 kms.

3 06-06-2012 wed phuntsholing to Thimpu 135 km 2 hrs

Distance is 200 kms. THis is not F1 track. Even a car takes a minimum 6 hours.

7 10-06-2012 sund paro to kalimpong 313 km 6-7hrs

Not possible. Almost 400 kms to go. Will take you at least 12 hours. Not counting breaks.

8 11-06-2012 mon Kalimpang to Gangtok 73 km 1.5 hr

At least 2.5 - 3 hours.

10 13-06-2012 wed Gangtok to Darjeelinng 100 km 2 hrs

2 hours!!!?? Takes not less than 4 hours.


I suppose you will switch mini buses at the India-Bhutan border? To get onto a BT-registered bus?

[yogi choudhary]

Thanks for correcting the distances have got them from google map I guess I typed wrong destinations, will change plan accordinlay. we do not plan to change vehicle but from what you write it appears we can not have same private vehicle for both countries (am i correct) - what other options we then have.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by yogi choudhary

Thanks for correcting the distances have got them from google map I guess I typed wrong destinations, will change plan accordinlay. we do not plan to change vehicle but from what you write it appears we can not have same private vehicle for both countries (am i correct) - what other options we then have.

AFAIK, only private vehicles from India are allowed into Bhutan. You can take the Indian bus to the border, then hire a similar one at Phuntsoling. Contact a travel agent there or at THimphu to make arrangements in advance.

To ascertain distances, you can use my log book (attached)

[abbey4u]

I am planning a trip to bhutan from delhi. Will need advice on the itenerary and stay option at various cities

Day 1: Delhi - Gorakhpur via kanpur - Lucknow. ANy idea where to stay in gorakhpur
Day 2: Gorakhpur - Phuentsholing via gopalganj - musahri - samstipur - purnea - kishanganj - Phuentsholing. Now google map shows another route from musahri via darbhanga - pratapganj - forbesganj. Any odea on this route? or should i stick to pernea route? How is the road condition. Any place to stay near the border so that we can go for permit next morning?
Day 3: Phuentsholing - Thimpu. Any stay option in thimpu?
Day 4: Thimpu - Phunakha? I think the stay option will be near Khuruthang? Any comments?
Day 5 Phunkha - Phobjika - Bhumthang:
day 6 Bhumthang - paro: Is it doable?
Day 7Paro
Day 8 Paro - Siliguri
Day 9 Siliguri - Gorakhpur
Day 10 Gorakhpur - Delhi

Please comments on the itenerary and suggest if any improvement can be made? Also is there any must visit place in bhutan which i should cover in my itenerary.

And Finally, If someone from delhi or nearby want to join us, You are more than welcome. It will be fun to drive in groups

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by abbey4u

I am planning a trip to bhutan from delhi. Will need advice on the itenerary and stay option at various cities

Day 1: Delhi - Gorakhpur via kanpur - Lucknow. ANy idea where to stay in gorakhpur

Quite a drive. Possible only if you leave early morning, cut out breaks.
Lots of hotels in Gorakhpur.

Day 2: Gorakhpur - Phuentsholing via gopalganj - musahri - samstipur - purnea - kishanganj - Phuentsholing. Now google map shows another route from musahri via darbhanga - pratapganj - forbesganj. Any odea on this route? or should i stick to pernea route? How is the road condition. Any place to stay near the border so that we can go for permit next morning?

Very very difficult for a day's drive.
The appropriate route is the EW Corridor via Gorakhpur-Kushalnagar-Gopalganj-Muzaffarpur-Darbhanga-Forbesganj-Purnea-Dalkola-Kishanganj-Siliguri-Sevoke-Birpara-Hashimara-Phuntsoling

Road is bad around Gopalganj & incomplete between Darbhanga & Forbesganj, expect lots of diversions & some dirt roads. I would be more conservative in my target for the day & perhaps target Dalkola or Siliguri.

Phuntsoling has several hotels, but please make sure you cross the border before 10 pm when the gate closes. Jaigaon has some horrible hotels too.

Day 3: Phuentsholing - Thimpu. Any stay option in thimpu?

Full of hotels. Depends on your budget.

Day 4: Thimpu - Phunakha? I think the stay option will be near Khuruthang? Any comments?

There are also now hotels in Punakha.

Day 5 Phunkha - Phobjika - Bhumthang:

Not an easy day, can take longer than that. Consider stay in Gangtey in Phobjka Valley.

day 6 Bhumthang - paro: Is it doable?

Yes, via Thimphu. But then sight-seeing in Bumthank/ Jakar itself can take 3-5 hours, and you need at least 10-12 hours to reach Paro.

[abbey4u]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Quite a drive. Possible only if you leave early morning, cut out breaks.
Lots of hotels in Gorakhpur.

The plan is start day 0 in the evening and reach day 1 evening to gorakhpur.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Very very difficult for a day's drive.
The appropriate route is the EW Corridor via Gorakhpur-Kushalnagar-Gopalganj-Muzaffarpur-Darbhanga-Forbesganj-Purnea-Dalkola-Kishanganj-Siliguri-Sevoke-Birpara-Hashimara-Phuntsoling

Road is bad around Gopalganj & incomplete between Darbhanga & Forbesganj, expect lots of diversions & some dirt roads. I would be more conservative in my target for the day & perhaps target Dalkola or Siliguri.

Can i plan to drive more on day 0 and day 1, and reach till may be mujjaffarpur. not sure though. and plan to have a relatively short ride on day 2. What should be ideal stopover then?

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Phuntsoling has several hotels, but please make sure you cross the border before 10 pm when the gate closes. Jaigaon has some horrible hotels too.

Can i enter bhutan and stay in Phuntsoling without having visa. Means stay there till next morning and then apply for visa and RTo entry etc

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by abbey4u

The plan is start day 0 in the evening and reach day 1 evening to gorakhpur.

OK, doable then.

Can i plan to drive more on day 0 and day 1, and reach till may be mujjaffarpur. not sure though. and plan to have a relatively short ride on day 2. What should be ideal stopover then?

After Gorakhpur, hotel facilities are pretty poor although there are hotels in Gopalganj & Muzaffarpur. I would not drive after dark in this sector because all petrol pumps are closed at night till Purnea.

If you leave previous night from Delhi, you stand good chances of reaching Muzaffarpur or maybe even Purnea. In Purnea, Hotel Sree Nayak.

Can i enter bhutan and stay in Phuntsoling without having visa. Means stay there till next morning and then apply for visa and RTo entry etc

Yes, you can enter Phuntsoling between 6 am - 10 pm without any visa and stay there too. YOu obtain your visas to go beyond Phuntsoling.

[abbey4u]

HVK sir, How about going through Patna - begusarai - Purnea -Siliguri

Can i drive all the way from Delhi to Patna/Begusarai on day 0 and 1 and then target for Bhutan border on day 2. What's the current road conditionfrom varanasi to patna?

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by abbey4u

HVK sir, How about going through Patna - begusarai - Purnea -Siliguri

Can i drive all the way from Delhi to Patna/Begusarai on day 0 and 1 and then target for Bhutan border on day 2. What's the current road conditionfrom varanasi to patna?

If you leave Delhi in the evening, you stand a good chance of reaching Purnea the next evening. Alternatively, you can stay in Gorakhpur, Gopalganj & Muzaffarpur. Be prepared for some bad roads around Gopalganj & between Darbhanga & Forbesganj, prior to Purnea. In Purnea, stay at Hotel Shree Nayak. If you do succeed in reaching Purnea on Day 1, then Phuntsoling is possible on Day 2. Be sure to dock into Bhutan before the border gates close at 10 pm (visas the next day though, no need for visas to get into Phuntsoling). Problem with going via Patna is having to go through Allahabad (remember Kumbh) & traffic congestion in Patna region and not so-great roads via Begusarai to Purnea. Current condition of Varanasi-Mohania-Patna is good

[Judemayne]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

If you leave Delhi in the evening, you stand a good chance of reaching Purnea the next evening. Alternatively, you can stay in Gorakhpur, Gopalganj & Muzaffarpur. Be prepared for some bad roads around Gopalganj & between Darbhanga & Forbesganj, prior to Purnea. In Purnea, stay at Hotel Shree Nayak. If you do succeed in reaching Purnea on Day 1, then Phuntsoling is possible on Day 2. Be sure to dock into Bhutan before the border gates close at 10 pm (visas the next day though, no need for visas to get into Phuntsoling). Problem with going via Patna is having to go through Allahabad (remember Kumbh) & traffic congestion in Patna region and not so-great roads via Begusarai to Purnea. Current condition of Varanasi-Mohania-Patna is good

Dear HVK,

Did not start as planned for the Bangalore-Bhutan trip today as was not keeping too well. Am raring to drive off on 23 Feb. Route-Bangalore-Vijaywada-Cuttack (Home town)-Bardhaman-Bhagalpur-Putnia-Sevoke-Jaigaon-P"ling and back via Gangtok, Darjeeling ("Back" permitting) -22 days on the road/hotels.
Any advice-got all your previous instructions on a word doucument-will be my "Bible" for the journey.

Regards,

Col Jude

[RaghavKuthiala]

Dear HvKumar,

I'm new to this forum and have read the excel the sheet that you have shared regarding the travel from Delhi to Bhutan. The car that we are taking is my VW Polo TDI.
A friend and I are planning to drive from Noida to Bhutan on the 17th of this month. There are a few things that I need a clarity on, it would be great if you could share your valuable insights on it.

1.) We are planning to take the following routee:

a.) Leave noida on 17th evening. Stay the night at Agra (I don't know how safe it will be to travel at night after reaching Agra, specially as it is U.P.)

b.) On 18th leave Agra and reach Bihar (We plan to stay at this city called Motihari) (The distance is 842 Kms, you reckon we will be able to do this in a day?, we plan to leave by 5am to get a good start and get some empty roads)

c.) Reach Motihari on 18th night and then on 19th leave for Siliguri. Again, just want to know if the roads and driving conditions would allow us to make this journey possible within a day.

d.) 20th is when we leave for Phuentsholing from Siliguri. We plan to get our permits from the immigartion office there and then head straight to Thimpu and get a permit to visit places other that Paro and Thimpu. (It says on various websites that to travel anywhere apart from Paro and Thimpu, you need to get a permit from Thimpu. One major doubt here, we will reach Phuentsholing on a Sunday, do you think we will be able to get the entry pass on that day? Or wil the office be shut?

Once at Thimpu, we plan to visit Gangtey and Trongsa, would appreciate if there are any places that you suggest we should visit as well.

My main concern is the route that we have decided and the date at which we would Phuentsholing to obtain our permits, hence I have asked for your expert opinion.

Apologies if this question sounds very amateurish (this is the first time I've actually posted here.)

Thank you for your time.

Raghav

[danish_c]

Hi, Since this thread is a bit old, just wanted to check what the best route is for Bhutan in March 2019


Here's what I was thinking -- Is this a good plan - any suggestions? Additional stops? Not short on days so can afford to add 2-3 days to make the drive comfortable/safer. I'm used to driving 12-13 hours a day but I have never driven in Bihar or West Bengal to estimate route conditions.


Fri Mar 15 Gurgaon - Varanasi (824 Kms)
Sat Mar 16 Varanasi - Kishanganj 686 Kms ~ 14 Hours
Sun Mar 17 Kishanganj - Pheuentsholing (250 Kms) 6-7 hours (Reach Lunch time)
Mon Mar 18 Pheuentsholing - Thimpu (160 Kms) ~ 5 hours, reach lunch
Tue Mar 19 Thimpu
Wed Mar 20 Thimpu - Paro (52 Kms, 1.5 hours)
Thu Mar 21 Paro (Tiger's next trek etc)
Fri Mar 22 Paro - Pheuentsholing (120 Kms, 4.5 hours)
Sat Mar 23 Pheuentsholing - Muzzafarpur (600 Kms, 11.5 hours)
Sun Mar 24 Muzzafarpur - Varanasi (320 Kms, 9 hours)
Mon Mar 25 Varanasi - Gurgaon (825 Kms)

I have kept enough buffer for the border crossing on the way in, is there something I need to keep in mind for the way out? Will be driving my own car (registered in my mother's name -- not traveling with me). Will be driving a sedan (Verna).

Any suggestions will be helpful!

[BlackPearl]

Originally Posted by danish_c

I have kept enough buffer for the border crossing on the way in, is there something I need to keep in mind for the way out? Will be driving my own car (registered in my mother's name -- not traveling with me). Will be driving a sedan (Verna).

Any suggestions will be helpful!

Please carry authorisation letter from your mother and do not forget to to sign at the check posts while coming back from Paro to Phuentsholing.