[bikertillidie]

Made this trip over the weekend of 12-14th June. Extremely smooth sailing all throughout, as long as one holds required passes and follows rules.

Passes were checked by the Police on the outskirts of Aurangabad, Arang and Durg in CG, at Jamshola in OD, Baharagoda in JH and Lodhashuli in WB.

Policemen were extremely polite/courteous all through.

Note: the route from Sambalpur onwards via NH6 is in pathetic shape on account of road widening measures and is best avoided. So is the route from Sambalpur to Cuttack.

It's probably best to follow the route via Jamshedpur.

[Anirban001]

I am planning to drive from Navi Mumbai to Kolkata next month. I don't want to fly at this time, and prefer to drive as I feel it is the safer option. Also, its been a year since I have been on a long road trip.
I want to do this trip over two days if I can, with a night halt. If you think I should do it over 3 days, then I will take it slow.
I have been on similar long road trips on my bike earlier, and hopefully this one in my car would be more comfortable.
Please help me out with suggestions on the route and stay options, as I have never done a road trip across central India. Kindly throw some light on stretches to absolutely avoid.
I am comfortable driving 14-15 hours and maybe stretch to 16-17 hours if necessary.
As I wait for your inputs on the route and best practices, let me get the packaged food and luggage in order.

Thanks in advance!

[Anirban001]

Originally Posted by Anirban001

I am planning to drive from Navi Mumbai to Kolkata next month. I don't want to fly at this time, and prefer to drive as I feel it is the safer option. Also, its been a year since I have been on a long road trip.
I want to do this trip over two days if I can, with a night halt. If you think I should do it over 3 days, then I will take it slow.
I have been on similar long road trips on my bike earlier, and hopefully this one in my car would be more comfortable.
Please help me out with suggestions on the route and stay options, as I have never done a road trip across central India. Kindly throw some light on stretches to absolutely avoid.
I am comfortable driving 14-15 hours and maybe stretch to 16-17 hours if necessary.
As I wait for your inputs on the route and best practices, let me get the packaged food and luggage in order.

Thanks in advance!

Community members, I need your inputs urgently as I need to plan my travel. This group does not seem to be very active. Can I post my message in another group for better engagement? Please advise.

[Majumdarda]

Originally Posted by Anirban001

Community members, I need your inputs urgently as I need to plan my travel. This group does not seem to be very active. Can I post my message in another group for better engagement? Please advise.

Guess I have seen your query at the HVK. You can take the help of their RoutO app, its excellent for advance hotel booking while you are on the go.
And with regards to the route, I think you have already done the Vijaywada Asansol stretch sometime (years) back. (if I am not mistaken with the wrong Anirban). From Mumbai, Vijaywada would be a good stop over, followed by Gopalpur and then Asansol / Kolkata. But none is much sure on the Hotel and the availability these days. So If you are travelling with family then probably the RoutO can help with hotel accomodation.

[Anirban001]

Originally Posted by Majumdarda

Guess I have seen your query at the HVK. You can take the help of their RoutO app, its excellent for advance hotel booking while you are on the go.
And with regards to the route, I think you have already done the Vijaywada Asansol stretch sometime (years) back. (if I am not mistaken with the wrong Anirban). From Mumbai, Vijaywada would be a good stop over, followed by Gopalpur and then Asansol / Kolkata. But none is much sure on the Hotel and the availability these days. So If you are travelling with family then probably the RoutO can help with hotel accomodation.

Yes, indeed, I had done the Bangalore-Asansol ride. But I have no idea of Central India. Need to decide between Nagpur-Bhubaneshwar and Vijaywada-Bhubaneshwar.

[Majumdarda]

Originally Posted by Anirban001

Yes, indeed, I had done the Bangalore-Asansol ride. But I have no idea of Central India. Need to decide between Nagpur-Bhubaneshwar and Vijaywada-Bhubaneshwar.

Hi Anirban,
Did you perform this trip? How were the overall experience and the hotels en route? Please share a detailed overview if possible.

[Anirban001]

Originally Posted by Majumdarda

Hi Anirban,
Did you perform this trip? How were the overall experience and the hotels en route? Please share a detailed overview if possible.

Yes, I did complete the trip. Apologies for being brief here.
I took the Hyd-Vijayawada-Bhubaneswar route. We started on a Friday morning at 6 AM from Navi Mumbai. The roads were good throughout Maharashtra, the small strip of Karnataka, and then through Telangana. We reached Hyderabad at 5 PM. We met a friend and then left for Vijayawada which we had planned as our first night halt. A 30 min stretch after exiting the ORR was potholed and dark. However, the road after that was good. We were briefly stopped at a checkpoint between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh - the police just asked if we were carrying liquor - nothing much. Reached Vijaywada at 11 PM and tucked in at the Red Fox hotel.

Started next day at 6:30 AM hoping to cover ground quickly. But, the NH was a nightmare for about 250 kms which took us more than 5 hours. The highway has been built in patches, with diversions aplenty. The stretches that have been completed gave me hopes of a very smooth ride in a few months - the only reason I was calm throughout. We made it to Vizag at 3 PM. Crossing the city took another 45 mins. It was a smooth drive through Odisha, though the roads were completely dark with diversions in some places. We reached Bhubaneswar at 11:30 PM. We had booked a room at Ginger hotels. We saw cars from almost all the Central and Southern states in the parking lot. Lot of folks were travelling long distances by road it seemed.

Next morning we started at 7 AM. The route was full of diversions till Balasore. Once we hit the concrete stretch it was a smooth and steady ride till Kharagpur. Moving on, the drive till Howrah was also superb. We reached Kolkata at 3:30 PM.

It was a total of 2300 kms as per the Nexon tripmeter. The Nexon had been extremely comfortable to drive as always. 2 consective 17 hour drives didn't tire me out. For our stay, I had armed myself with the Asian Paints Sanitizer sprays which I used all over the rooms - Viroprotect advanced was the name if I recall correctly. Both the hotels were absolutely clean with very careful and diligent staff. We did not have any outside food - we carried enough supplies with us.

Anyways, it was a successful journey home, im time for the pujas.

I couldn't put out a detailed travelogue due to time constraints. I will try doing that sometime later.

[Majumdarda]

Originally Posted by Anirban001

Yes, I did complete the trip.
>>Reached Vijaywada at 11 PM and tucked in at the Red Fox hotel.
>>We reached Bhubaneswar at 11:30 PM. We had booked a room at Ginger hotels.

Thank you, Anirban for sharing the inputs. So overall a pleasant drive I guess.
Can you please share with me more details about the two hotels and their processes?

> Do I need to book in advance or can I directly inquire?
> How are the tariff for these two hotels?
> How were the charges at these two hotels and is card payment accepted?
> Any peculiarity with aspect to check-in / out time?
> etc. etc.

I am asking you more about the hotel aspects since this is something which has given me a considerable amount of anxiety during my trips! On one of the instances I had stayed at Shakthi Grand at Vijaywada and the experience is better not described.

Are you still at WB? When are you returning back?

Best regards

[profcalculux]

Am planning in Dec 1st week. Thane to Kolkata and then further into Assam for around 1300 kms. In all 3300 kms. Was Planning a night halt at Nagpur & Kolkata but via Hyd seems to be another option already ventured. It will be a solo drive but while coming back will get my mother along. Lets see how it goes through. Any thoughts are welcome.

[Majumdarda]

Came down to Kharagpur from Pune a few days back and below is the summary.

<First Day>

Pune to Nagpur via Aurangabad, Mehkar, Karanja. The patchy sections are not meant for small hatchbacks like Kwid and the impact is on the overall tiredness. Unfortunately, wife and kid were not feeling well and we had to call it a day post reaching Nagpur. We had started from Pune around 3:15 AM but because of the patchy section etc, we could manage to reach Nagpur by 6:30 PM.

<Second Day>

Nagpur to Kharagpur via Raipur, Sambalpur. And post this I did the Blunder, and I do not blame Google for that. So what happened? Well after Sambalpur, there is one chowk called Ainthapali chowk. It's a small roundabout, from where there are two roads leading. One via the Jharsuguda and the other via the AH46. Since the google map was just given the endpoints (blunder) it chose the shortest distance and guided me accordingly. Below is the route I had taken



This route after the Sason toll gate, is basically not meant for hatchbacks. Still, till the Rourkela, though one can manage but post this the condition deteriorates and the road via the Manoharpur, Chakradharpur touchpoints etc is not meant for rainy night travels. Somehow this was managed and the condition improved only after one reaches the NH18 (22.65548, 86.40595). At some points on this stretch, there is basically no roads or whatever was present in past, which has somehow taken the shape of asteroid hit points. Also, there were signboards of wild elephants, hyenas and tigers but apart from a few snakes, we could not see anyone (Thankfully). The road was completely deserted post 7PM with just a few people visible within the small settlements. Post the NH18, the condition was excellent and I reached my destination around 4:30ish.

Below is an extract of the timeline view



Now that I have reached and post introspection,

• I think the issue started once I crossed the Ainthapali chowk.
  
• The fact that I am deviating from the NH53 / AH was not realized then and there.
  
• I realized the mistake once I crossed the Sason Toll Gate. If only I would have taken the U-turn , I guess the ordeal could have been avoided. Unfortunately "thy pulls" pulled me off track and I landed up with an excellent experience.
  
• I do not blame Google Map for this since I had not done the homework properly.

I am guessing below is what I should have followed post-Sambalpur. Can someone please advise if the below section is good and is the correct path to be traversed? Also I hope no issues in traveling at night or road conditions.

[surjaonwheelz]

Originally Posted by Majumdarda

One via the Jharsuguda and the other via the AH46. Since the google map was just given the endpoints (blunder) it chose the shortest distance and guided me accordingly. Below is the route I had taken

This route after the Sason toll gate, is basically not meant for hatchbacks. Still, till the Rourkela, though one can manage but post this the condition deteriorates and the road via the Manoharpur, Chakradharpur touchpoints etc is not meant for rainy night travels.

You seem to have followed the Azad Hind Express via-points only by-passing Jamshedpur! Hat's off to you and your Kwid for doing such multiple long trips

/surjaonwheelz

[profcalculux]

I am trying to narrow down on
Thane-Nagpur-Raipur-Sambalpur-Ballam-Keojhar (Off from NH49)-Jorapokhar-Jamshedpur-Ghatshila-Kumardubi-Kharagpur-Kolkata-Bardhman-Malda-Siliguri-Alipurduar-Bongaigaon-Guwahati.

Is this good to go? Suggest pls,

Originally Posted by Majumdarda

Came down to Kharagpur from Pune a few days back and below is the summary.

<First Day>

Pune to Nagpur via Aurangabad, Mehkar, Karanja. The patchy sections are not meant for small hatchbacks like Kwid and the impact is on the overall tiredness. Unfortunately, wife and kid were not feeling well and we had to call it a day post reaching Nagpur. We had started from Pune around 3:15 AM but because of the patchy section etc, we could manage to reach Nagpur by 6:30 PM.

<Second Day>

Nagpur to Kharagpur via Raipur, Sambalpur. And post this I did the Blunder, and I do not blame Google for that. So what happened? Well after Sambalpur, there is one chowk called Ainthapali chowk. It's a small roundabout, from where there are two roads leading. One via the Jharsuguda and the other via the AH46. Since the google map was just given the endpoints (blunder) it chose the shortest distance and guided me accordingly. Below is the route I had taken

Attachment 2084201

This route after the Sason toll gate, is basically not meant for hatchbacks. Still, till the Rourkela, though one can manage but post this the condition deteriorates and the road via the Manoharpur, Chakradharpur touchpoints etc is not meant for rainy night travels. Somehow this was managed and the condition improved only after one reaches the NH18 (22.65548, 86.40595). At some points on this stretch, there is basically no roads or whatever was present in past, which has somehow taken the shape of asteroid hit points. Also, there were signboards of wild elephants, hyenas and tigers but apart from a few snakes, we could not see anyone (Thankfully). The road was completely deserted post 7PM with just a few people visible within the small settlements. Post the NH18, the condition was excellent and I reached my destination around 4:30ish.

Below is an extract of the timeline view

Attachment 2084197

Now that I have reached and post introspection,

• I think the issue started once I crossed the Ainthapali chowk.
  
• The fact that I am deviating from the NH53 / AH was not realized then and there.
  
• I realized the mistake once I crossed the Sason Toll Gate. If only I would have taken the U-turn , I guess the ordeal could have been avoided. Unfortunately "thy pulls" pulled me off track and I landed up with an excellent experience.
  
• I do not blame Google Map for this since I had not done the homework properly.

I am guessing below is what I should have followed post-Sambalpur. Can someone please advise if the below section is good and is the correct path to be traversed? Also I hope no issues in traveling at night or road conditions.

Attachment 2084200

[yogesh.janghel]

Originally Posted by profcalculux

I am trying to narrow down on
Thane-Nagpur-Raipur-Sambalpur-Ballam-Keojhar (Off from NH49)-Jorapokhar-Jamshedpur-Ghatshila-Kumardubi-Kharagpur-Kolkata-Bardhman-Malda-Siliguri-Alipurduar-Bongaigaon-Guwahati.

Is this good to go? Suggest pls,

Not sure if you have already completed this. If not, from Koenjhar take left ( just after Koenjhar Bus Stand, you will reach a circle, left from there), towards Rimuli, Jaintagarh, Chaibasa, Saraikela and then Jamshedpur. This road is single lane, but very good.
If Jamshedpur is not in your plans, keep going straight from Koenjhar towards Kharagpur, Kolkata through Jharpokharia.

[Majumdarda]

Guys I am looking for Hotel options in and around below locations for my return journey this week

• Visakhapatnam
• Hyderabad

Suggestions are most welcome. Please advise on below lines

1> Hotel location
2> Online booking feasibility?
3> Covered parking (Y/N)?

[NH6]

Originally Posted by profcalculux

Am planning in Dec 1st week. Thane to Kolkata and then further into Assam for around 1300 kms. In all 3300 km.

Please advise on the trip. I am considering Nagpur to Sambalpur, a distance of 550+kms, and 10hours, in a single day, today .

I wanted to know if the road condition is favorable, specifically Raipur to Sambalpur, for post sunset drive. I have installed Rogerab spacers to cushion the bad patches.

jfyi, I drove easy and slow from Thane to Aurangabad and Aurangabad to Nagpur.

would update more on reaching Destination