[jesrani]

Hello, I am planning a trip to North (with family including kids and parents) in May end / June and would like some advice.

I have made a plan as under :
Day 1 : Mumbai to Delhi by morning flight, take taxi to Haridwar.
Day 2 : Haridwar, Rishikesh.
Day 3 : To Corbett.
Day 4 : Corbett.
Day 5 : To Almora. Suggest places to see.
Day 6 : Almora. Suggest places to see.
Day 7 : Almora. Suggest places to see. Or go to Nainital.
Day 8 : To Nainital. Suggest places to see.
Day 9 : Nainital. Suggest places to see.
Day 10 : To Delhi. Either stay or take night train to Mumbai.

Now the questions :
1) Is the above route doable? Is it practical?
2) How are the road conditions?
3) I am planning to take taxi for full trip from Delhi to Delhi. Who are the reputed and reliable taxi operators in Delhi for long distance trips?
4) Are there any other places I should cover?

Hope to get some good advice.

MODS : I tried to search for similar threads but did not find for this route. Request to merge with existing thread if it exists.

[Tapish]

Hi,

I can help you out with the route mapping and other details, but I would need to understand some key points here:

1. Corbett closes in mid June and is unbearably hot at that time. You can skip it and instead plan for Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary- about 20 from Almora in the hills. Beautiful place, and has a Club Mahindra resort, a KMVN Guest House and a heritage hotel.

2. Why Almora: Is there a specific reason for going there? There are other options in the hills that are far more beautiful.

3. Nainital: in june is Jam Packed. Im from Nainital and can say this with full confidence. You won't find a place to stay (unless you book in advance), to eat, and to roam around in general. Instead, look at naukuchiyatal- much more serene with lesser crowds. Also, its just 20 from Nainital, you can always do a day trip.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Tapish

[jesrani]

Originally Posted by Tapish

Hi,

I can help you out with the route mapping and other details, but I would need to understand some key points here:

1. Corbett closes in mid June and is unbearably hot at that time. You can skip it and instead plan for Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary- about 20 from Almora in the hills. Beautiful place, and has a Club Mahindra resort, a KMVN Guest House and a heritage hotel.

2. Why Almora: Is there a specific reason for going there? There are other options in the hills that are far more beautiful.

3. Nainital: in june is Jam Packed. Im from Nainital and can say this with full confidence. You won't find a place to stay (unless you book in advance), to eat, and to roam around in general. Instead, look at naukuchiyatal- much more serene with lesser crowds. Also, its just 20 from Nainital, you can always do a day trip.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Tapish

Tapish thanks so much for the reply. Yes, I would definitely like to have more suggestions. Actually I have been wanting to go to Khali estate since long time and was just checking it out, so thought of Almora/Nainital. Also Binsar and Ranikhet seem to be nice. Want to take my kids to the mountain region but thought that winters may be too cold and not really enjoyable.

What places would you suggest? So Corbett would not be worth at all? Even if we go May end? Would Haridwar-Mussorie and surrounding be better option? I am open for any suggestion. Also, it is not necessary for me to stay in Nainital or any crowded place, surrounding areas are okay since we plan to keep taxi.

I would want to book in advance for sure and am first planning to book train tickets this month if I can finalize number of days and tentative route.

How would it be in Haridwar-Rishikesh? Hot I suppose.

[Tapish]

You can head to Haridwar (if that's necessary) and then move to Binsar for two days, followed by two days in Naukuchiyatal.

Khali estate is in Binsar, so that's covered.

For Naukuchiyatal, you can either look at Lake Resort, or Parichay.

In case you decide to skip Haridwar (will be hot) altogether, I would suggest Chaukori and Patal Bhuvneshwar. Amazing places. Patal Bhuvneshwar will give you a surreal experience in the form of an ancient network of caves believed to be the "Patal". Its about 250 from Nainital.

Cheers,
Tapish

[jesrani]

Originally Posted by Tapish

You can head to Haridwar (if that's necessary) and then move to Binsar for two days, followed by two days in Naukuchiyatal.

Khali estate is in Binsar, so that's covered.

For Naukuchiyatal, you can either look at Lake Resort, or Parichay.

In case you decide to skip Haridwar (will be hot) altogether, I would suggest Chaukori and Patal Bhuvneshwar. Amazing places. Patal Bhuvneshwar will give you a surreal experience in the form of an ancient network of caves believed to be the "Patal". Its about 250 from Nainital.

Cheers,
Tapish

At first I read "Patel"

Appreciate the help. Should we stay at Choukori or Patal? Are there good 3-4 * hotels available? Maybe we can cover one of the place even if we start from Haridwar. What route would you suggest, starting from Delhi

We can probably just checkout Nainital on that way back to Delhi.

[Tapish]

Stay at Chaukori. It has decent resorts. PB is a one hour drive and can be done as a day trip.

Start from Del, head to Haridwar, then to Chaukori, return to Binsar, return to Delhi via Nainital/ Naukuchiatal.

Tapish

[lordofgondor]

Originally Posted by jesrani

How would it be in Haridwar-Rishikesh? Hot I suppose.

IMHO, if you indeed need to spend time in Haridwar-Rishikesh, I'd recommend exploring the Garhwal region instead of Kumaon. You can roam around Mussorie, Dhanolti, Chakrata, Barkot all the way to Uttarkashi & Harsil. If leaning towards catching wildlife, you can check out Purola which is close to a WLS having Leopards (snow ones also), Himalayan Bears & Deer species among other animals. No vehicular safaris though but in many parks, private vehicles are allowed. Staying at GMVNs would be the best option when in Garhwal.

If headed to Kumaon, do skip Haridwar-Rishikesh if possible as it'd lead to almost a whole day being spent, getting from latter to former. Rest there's a plethora of options in Kumaon including those discussed and others like Kausani, Ranikhet, Mukteshwar. As mentioned by Tapish, Patal Bhuvneshwar is a must visit. It's pretty interesting geologically as well as spiritually.

[jesrani]

Originally Posted by lordofgondor

IMHO, if you indeed need to spend time in Haridwar-Rishikesh, I'd recommend exploring the Garhwal region instead of Kumaon. You can roam around Mussorie, Dhanolti, Chakrata, Barkot all the way to Uttarkashi & Harsil. If leaning towards catching wildlife, you can check out Purola which is close to a WLS having Leopards (snow ones also), Himalayan Bears & Deer species among other animals. No vehicular safaris though but in many parks, private vehicles are allowed. Staying at GMVNs would be the best option when in Garhwal.

If headed to Kumaon, do skip Haridwar-Rishikesh if possible as it'd lead to almost a whole day being spent, getting from latter to former. Rest there's a plethora of options in Kumaon including those discussed and others like Kausani, Ranikhet, Mukteshwar. As mentioned by Tapish, Patal Bhuvneshwar is a must visit. It's pretty interesting geologically as well as spiritually.

So I need to first decide on Rishikesh. Leaving that aside, which is better between Gharwal and Kumaon?

What is the route from Rishikesh to Binsar? Do we have to go via Nainital?

From where can i get reference of some reputed taxi rental in Delhi? Would a taxi be the best way to go around?

[lordofgondor]

Originally Posted by jesrani

... which is better between Gharwal and Kumaon?...

IMO, both are equally good. Though in Kumaon, you have better facilities for tourists. Garhwal is more spiritual & rustic, has higher mountains and big rivers (Ganga/Jamna). But it's more prone to landslides as the mountains are more of sand than rock. It's more of a personal choice I guess.

From Rishikesh, you don't need to go to Nainital for getting to Binsar. Take the route Rishikesh-Gumkhal-Marchulla-Ranikhet-Binsar. I recently did Gumkhal - Srinagar drive during my Garhwal trip and the roads were good.

[jesrani]

Originally Posted by lordofgondor

IMO, both are equally good. Though in Kumaon, you have better facilities for tourists. Garhwal is more spiritual & rustic, has higher mountains and big rivers (Ganga/Jamna). But it's more prone to landslides as the mountains are more of sand than rock. It's more of a personal choice I guess.

From Rishikesh, you don't need to go to Nainital for getting to Binsar. Take the route Rishikesh-Gumkhal-Marchulla-Ranikhet-Binsar. I recently did Gumkhal - Srinagar drive during my Garhwal trip and the roads were good.

Now I have something to think about for next few days and then decide.

I still have an unanswered question. I am planning taxi from Delhi as getting to Delhi is quick. But I am always wary of Delhi so can you guide me to some reputed taxi rentals. Is it better to take taxi for full trip or point to point?

[lordofgondor]

Better take a taxi for the full trip. I guess that'd be better economically and more comfortable. Another option would be to hire a taxi for traveling in the hills when you get to Haridwar. So Delhi - Haridwar - Delhi by train and rest of UK by taxi.

Never used a rented taxi for outstation trip, so can't really recommend a rental agency mate.