[gadadhar]

Dear fellow BHPIans, looking for your valuable suggestions for finalizing the destination and itinerary for a 15 day road trip starting from Bangalore. A broad outline of what we have in mind is below

• Drive : 2021 Toyota Fortuner 4X4 AT
  
  
• Team : 2 families - 4 People in the mid-forties age group, 3 are experienced drivers
  
  
• Location: Ghats, Himalayas, Snow, Wildlife etc. where a 4X4 Fortuner can go comfortably, not planning for hard core off-roading.
  
  
• Accommodation - Comfortable stay is a must to have. We may not need luxury, but will avoid a dormitory or tent
  
  
• Food – All are nonvegetarian foodies ready to experiment any food, good local food can be an influencer in choosing the location
  
  
• Itinerary can be Driving continuously for 3 to 4 days with only night breaks to reach a longer destination, spend the next 4 to 5 days there and drive back OR plan for a shorter destination, break and spend time at places on the way
  
  
• Preference is to drive around 500 to 600 Kms per day with no major night driving
  
  
• Personal safety is important, we would prefer to keep away from high risk areas while traveling with family
  
  
• Group has driven across South India, but never done a self drive trip to other parts India
  
  
• We would need a pit stop for the Fortuner’s first 10K service. We should be starting with around 5K on the odometer, so would need to time a Toyota dealership after driving around 5K (unable to think of an alternate plan)
  
  
• Planned start is around 10th of April’22.
  

Thanks in advance.

[ccnarayanan]

I can think of Manali, Jim Corbett etc. A sample onward journey could be as follows, with representative places of stay: Bangalore - Hyderabad (Sheraton/ Marriott/ Hyatt/ Taj) - Nagpur (Le Meridien/ Radisson) - Gwalior (Radisson/ Taj/ Royal Orchid) - Agra (Taj/ Marriott/ ITC/ Radisson) - Chandigarh (Radisson/ Taj/ Royal Orchid) - Jim Corbett (Taj/ Lemon Tree) - Manali (Royal Orchid). Beyond Manali, places of interest could be Rohtang Pass, Atal Tunnel, Dharamshala, Dalhousie etc.

For Toyota servicing, you should be having choices in NCR or Chandigarh area (which you can probably get done with before reaching Manali).

Note: I have not undertaken a trip like above but had planned in detail for one which looks like what I described.

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Dear fellow BHPIans, looking for your valuable suggestions for finalizing the destination and itinerary for a 15 day road trip starting from Bangalore. A broad outline of what we have in mind is below...

[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by ccnarayanan

I can think of Manali, Jim Corbett etc..

Thanks for the details, Jim Corbett sounds interesting, wondering if this can made a wildlife trail adding more wildlife destinations on the way.

[ninjatalli]

Option 1: Break up the travel and stay in one direction (while the return journey can be a 2-3 day back to back travel) and plan your halts across the national parks in central India. Given the April heat, several of the forest reserves in central region (MP, etc.) would be a nice place to head to. Gives you roughly 10+ days to do your sightseeing and activities before you need to head back home. Figure out a Toyota service center mid-way at one of the nearby cities.

Option 2: Head directly to the Himalayas (Uttrakhand makes sense) but that's a ~2500 km ride each side so that's 4 days each side, giving you ~8 days to do your sight seeing & activities. Toyota service center is an easy fix on the route you pick.

[ccnarayanan]

Pench National Park could be an easy target and is on the way between Nagpur and Gwalior.

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Thanks for the details, Jim Corbett sounds interesting, wondering if this can made a wildlife trail adding more wildlife destinations on the way.

[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Option 1: Break up the travel and stay in one direction (while the return journey can be a 2-3 day back to back travel) and plan your halts across the national parks in central India.

Option 2: Head directly to the Himalayas (Uttrakhand makes sense)

Originally Posted by ccnarayanan

Pench National Park could be an easy target and is on the way between Nagpur and Gwalior.

Thanks, that helps.

If we decide on Option 1, Pench will be a definite choice, others I could find in Central India are Tadoba, Bandhavgarh, Kanha, Panna etc. I will have to work on connecting these dots on map...

[JoshMachine]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Dear fellow BHPIans, looking for your valuable suggestions for finalizing the destination and itinerary for a 15 day road trip starting from Bangalore. A broad outline of what we have in mind is below[*]Planned start is around 10th of April’22.

Long distance road trip + Fortuner 4*4 + summer temp + 3 drivers = Sikkim/North East, as a very good option.

Bangalore - Sikkim distance-wise, should be doable in 3-4 days comfortably. Same for return travel. That leaves more than a week approx. for local sight-seeing, the way I see it.

[Ironhide]

Travelling to Kumaon to witness snows and unspoiled, pristine mountains shrouded in white would be a good idea. The mountains are breathtaking at this time of the year and there is more than a fair possibility of you getting to witness some snow in the higher reaches. There have been others who've done it from Bangalore earlier and with a posse of three qualified drivers in your group, and a capable vehicle like the Fortuner, distances oughtn't pose any real challenge.

Here are a few travelogues to the region by fellow BHPians.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...nyakumari.html (7618 kms Summer Road-Trip: Bangalore -> Kausani (Uttarakhand) -> Kanyakumari)

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...ri-bugyal.html (A Magical Afternoon: Munsiyari Bugyal)

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...va-crysta.html (Winter road-trip to Kumaon in an Innova Crysta)

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...tarakhand.html (New Year ride to Dev Bhoomi, Uttarakhand)

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...n-episode.html (TUV3OO - The Kumaon Episode)

Roads are generally in good condition and after the monsoons, Uttarakhand Govt usually repairs the areas impacted by the landslide. The Fortuner ought to take the broken portions into its stride with aplomb anyway. While in the area do make it a point to savour the local cuisine.

Happy motoring.

Cheers!

[narayans80]

First things first, given the Covid status quo, its too early to plan for April. Situation is fluid and restrictions are changing by the day. I would suggest not to have any advance booking for now, decide a week or 2 leading to the travel dates.

I wouldn't plan for NE, given they are more restrictive and April is the month when the monsoons start ramping up. Winter months are the best for NE, when there is less uncertainty on rains.

Plains are going to get hot as you head north, the choice might be between JK, UK and HP.

Since you have 3 drivers, best to do 800-1000 km on N-S corridor and slower at the destination. This is what I do even as a lone driver. This ensures maximum number of days at the destination to explore. If you are heading to Himalayas, 500-600 km/day will not cut.

[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by JoshMachine

Long distance road trip + Fortuner 4*4 + summer temp + 3 drivers = Sikkim/North East, as a very good option.

Thanks, We have done Sikkim but was not using own wheels. It is such a wonderful place and won't mind visiting again

Originally Posted by Ironhide

Travelling to Kumaon to witness snows and unspoiled, pristine mountains shrouded in white would be a good idea........

Here are a few travelogues to the region by fellow BHPians........

......Roads are generally in good condition and after the monsoons, Uttarakhand cuisine.

Thanks for sharing a treasure of info, will be a great input to our planning

Originally Posted by narayans80

First things first, given the Covid status quo, its too early to plan for April.

I wouldn't plan for NE, given they are more restrictive and April is the month when the monsoons start ramping up...... Plains are going to get hot as you head north, the choice might be between JK, UK and HP.

Since you have 3 drivers, best to do 800-1000 km on N-S corridor and slower at the destination.

I am at the early stages of planning and will not make any financial commitment now. Will have to live with the risk of things changing drastically due to Covid overnight at all stages of planning and the execution. Thanks for the valuable inputs taking in to account the April weather, wondering if it will be a good time to look at wildlife in Central India

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

wondering if it will be a good time to look at wildlife in Central India

Depends on whether the group is comfortable exploring outdoors in temperatures in high 30s and low 40s with dry heat.

[Thermodynamics]

It is spring time in the Himalayas. Don't miss it. Something like a spiti circuit via Shimla could be ideal. You will have stretches to try off roading.

Since you have experienced drivers as spare hands, try to cover as much distance as you can in the mundane highways. 800 - 1000 km a day is not unrealistic for two drivers in action.

[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by narayans80

Depends on whether the group is comfortable exploring outdoors in temperatures in high 30s and low 40s with dry heat.

That may not be the best situation to enjoy wildlife though sightings can be more around the waterholes

Originally Posted by Thermodynamics

It is spring time in the Himalayas. Don't miss it. Something like a spiti circuit via Shimla could be ideal. You will have stretches to try off roading.

Since you have experienced drivers as spare hands, try to cover as much distance as you can in the mundane highways. 800 - 1000 km a day is not unrealistic for two drivers in action.

Sounds great! Did a quick check on Google maps, it is showing road closed in couple of locations near Kulu and before Manali, but that should be temporary

[Raghu M]

Sir, that's a great plan. Look forward to reading a travelogue! I would suggest the below.

Bengaluru - Anantapur - Hyd (you can service your car here) - Vijayawada - Vizag - Odissa (Bhubaneshwar etc.) - Kolkata - onwards to Sikkim

Return can be planned through central India Bihar - UP - MP - Telangana - Karnataka (home)

You have amazing places to check out at every station. Temples, wildlife, beaches, forests literally everything!

[FordGuy]

I would suggest you do Uttarakhand and the North East unless you have Ladakh in your itenary. Bangalore to Delhi/Uttarakhand is a three day drive without too much stress given the fact that you have a capable car with multiple drivers. 700-800 is very easily doable and I have done this twice over on my Ecosports. That gives you two extra days for the journey to explore the places you visit.
Simple things, start early every day and drive till it gets dark.
Another option would be to head to the North East and come back through Uttarakhand and also then cover Delhi- Rajasthan- Gujarat-Maharashtra and then Karnataka. This route has the best roads.