[naikameya]

I am planning a Hyderabad to Ooty & Kodai road trip in August, and I am looking for a few recommendations.

Overnight break and stay:
Should I stay somewhere on the outskirts of Bangalore towards Mysore Road, or should I drive all the way to Mysore and stay overnight in Mysore? I am not a big fan of driving for very long hours. Also, don't like to wake up at 4/5 am on vacations. But at the same time, I want to enjoy Ooty enjoy the ghats, and the scenery during daylight so want to reach as earlier as possible.

Do you have a recommendation for a hotel in Banglore/ Mysore for an overnight stop? Clean room, safe parking (I will be driving a shiny red Tucson), and Hot water supply.

Going a bit off-topic but if you have recommendations for good hotels in Ooty and Kodai please share.

[msdivy]

Originally Posted by naikameya

Should I stay somewhere on the outskirts of Bangalore towards Mysore Road, or should I drive all the way to Mysore and stay overnight in Mysore?

I would suggest staying in Mysore so that you hit Bandipur forest (which is 90 minutes drive) in the early mornings. In fact, closer to the forest would be better. You can try forest safari. This will also enable you to enjoy the Ooty ghat section drive in the mornings. But Mysore is 13~14 hour drive from Hyderabad. You will need to plan.
PS: There are plenty of hotels on the way. Any hotel charging Rs 1,500 per night will have good amenities. This being off-season, rooms will be available.

[jaaz]

Speed Radars are installed on the Expressway and Cops have started penalizing over speeding vehicles.

Expressway is supposed to have higher speed limits or equal to NHAI speed limit. But here it is other way. Owners of small cars and with worn out tires should be more careful and even hitting 100 is dangerous. Even the braking distance of small cars will be more compared to a Sedan or SUV.

[duckhunter]

Originally Posted by naikameya

Should I stay somewhere on the outskirts of Bangalore towards Mysore Road, or should I drive all the way to Mysore and stay overnight in Mysore? I am not a big fan of driving for very long hours. Also, don't like to wake up at 4/5 am on vacations. But at the same time, I want to enjoy Ooty enjoy the ghats, and the scenery during daylight so want to reach as earlier as possible.

If you're willing to push the driving time on Day 1 a little bit, I recommend you stay inside Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (less commercial and more beautiful than Bandipur). It will be totally worth it and you'll have an amazing Day 2. There is a small resort village called Masinagudi in the Mudumalai forest. It is right on the route to Ooty (no detour whatsoever). A beautiful place to stay, nestled in the heart of the forest. There are some really nice villa resorts in Masinagudi which you can get for surprisingly cheap rates. They will have safe parking, hot water, buffet breakfast, and air conditioning (not that you'll need AC). I'm a regular on this route towards Ooty. I stayed at a place called Safari Land Villa Resort in Masinagudi last time and it was spectacular. They have a breathtaking view of the Nilgiri Hills. Btw, this is also the same area where India's recent Oscar-winning documentary was filmed. If you have the time, you can visit the nearby Thappakdu Elephant Camp. It is very close to Masinagudi.

Another reason I recommend Masinagudi is that it is located in the buffer zone of the forest. You'll see lots of animals if you pass through Masinagudi in the morning. On the route from Masinagudi to Ooty (via the ghat road), keep your eyes peeled on the section between Masinagudi and Sigur Bridge, just before the ghat road starts. If you're traveling that road in the morning, you will see hundreds (sometimes thousands) of spotted deer, langur, and maybe even wild elephants (don't stop your car too close to wild elephants, they may charge at you - we saw this happen to a biker).

Staying at Masinagudi will also allow you to wake up at a comfortable time on Day 2 and enjoy the beautiful ghats in the morning. If you spend the night in Mysore, as others have recommended as well, you'll need to wake up really early morning to reach Bandipur entrance early in the morning. That could make Day 2 very unpleasant. Does not seem practical.

All the best!

[deepak_misra]

Originally Posted by naikameya

I am planning a Hyderabad to Ooty & Kodai road trip in August, and I am looking for a few recommendations.

Overnight break and stay:
Should I stay somewhere on the outskirts of Bangalore towards Mysore Road, or should I drive all the way to Mysore and stay overnight in Mysore? .

Bangalore might not be a good option as a transit halt in case you dont plan to break journey. Mysore might be better or as @duckhunter has pointed out, Masinagudi is a far better option. It is around 6 hours from Bangalore but if you are driving from Hyderabad you might save time by bypassing the town.
Ooty is just 30 odd kms if you take the old ghat road which is really steep.
YOu can leave leisurely from Masinagudi and enjoy the wildlife as @duckhunter has pointed out. YOu could take a drive on the MOyar road or Singara road in the morining after waking up and chances of seeing wild life is very high. Even if you dont see any wildlife just enjoy the forest.
I personally reccomend Runnell view house which is before the ghat road starts. Some of the rooms have a good mountain view and the others look onto the forest which adjoins the hotel. Food is excellent
Enjoy

[binand]

Originally Posted by naikameya

I am planning a Hyderabad to Ooty & Kodai road trip in August... Should I stay somewhere on the outskirts of Bangalore towards Mysore Road?

Originally Posted by duckhunter

If you're willing to push the driving time on Day 1 a little bit... there is a small resort village called Masinagudi in the Mudumalai forest.

Originally Posted by deepak_misra

Mysore might be better or as @duckhunter has pointed out, Masinagudi is a far better option.

Be aware that the Bandipur forest route is closed during nights (with forest officials dissuading entry long before closure time). If you are confident you can cross into the forest before say, 8PM (planning for a 9PM-ish arrival at Masinagudi) only then consider this suggestion. A back-of-envelope calculation suggests about 13 hours driving time for Hyderabad-Bandipur via BMEW (8h to Bangalore/Hebbal, 1h to hit NICE road/Nelamangala, 2h till Mysore, 2h to Bandipur entry + breaks that you need).

[theabstractmind]

https://www.deccanherald.com/city/to...n-1236980.html

Now the police will supposedly be deployed to curb the wrong side driving menace. Phew! Could save some lives!

[shankar.balan]

Day trip to a friend’s function in Madikeri.
Took my Thar.
Left Bangalore at 0630 and reached Madikeri 1130.
Left Madikeri at 230pm after the function and reached home at 1930.
It takes 45min in the morning from my house to the beginning of the Expressway when driving through the city. The Expressway itself takes 80-90 minutes. There is road widening going on on the Mysore Ring Road Towards Yelwal. Otherwise the roads are absolutely peaceful and in excellent shape. All the traffic too, behaved very well indeed. Except for a brace of Fools, one in a Hyundai Creta and one in a Venue. Kept crowding me and wouldn’t let me drive peacefully in the middle lane because they kept overtaking then losing speed and cross crossing and overtaking again, often using only the left lane for overtaking, which really wasn’t necessary at all!
Else it was a very peaceful drive.mostly at 70-90kmph. Went to 100 once or twice but Never crossed 100.
Lots of cops on the way back on the opposite side catching the multitudes of Speed Demons proceeding towards Mysuru.
I came back via the NICE Road and barring one stretch where road works is going on, the rest of the road is operational. Traffic on NICE Road is as bad as always with zero lane discipline and lots of mad zig zagging.

The Expressway is expensive. I paid 165 Rs as Toll at the entrance in sheshagirihalli at the Bangalore side of the Expressway while going onward and then 155 at the Mysore end of the Expressway at Gananguru. And on the way back they have further deducted Rs 85 and Rs 80.
Plus the NICE Road toll Rs 145. So if one uses NICE Road both ways then one pays 290/-. And the up and down on the Expressway even if done on the same day costs 485/-. So we are talking of Rs 775/- worth of Tolls for a day trip from Bangalore to Mysore and back! By any standards this is quite expensive.

But going by todays observations, I think over time people will learn to drive properly on the Exoressway and learn to appreciate the amount of time and headache it saves even when driving at 80-90kmph. The main thing is being able to maintain a constant speed and no unnecessary frequent braking and acceleration.

[Oppanna]

Are they still allowing two wheeler in Mysore expressway? Last i heard was they are going to stop two and three wheelers!

Also are multiple entry and exit still open for public? With such a heavy toll charges arent these multiple entry and exit points making this whole expressway experience a bitter one?

[tharian]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

So we are talking of Rs 775/- worth of Tolls for a day trip from Bangalore to Mysore and back! By any standards this is quite expensive.
.

Just for comparison. A seat on the Shatabdi Exec chair car costs 315/- each way. There is the added cost of transport at either ends to the station as well.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by tharian

Just for comparison. A seat on the Shatabdi Exec chair car costs 315/- each way. There is the added cost of transport at either ends to the station as well.

This is really a very important and necessary perspective that you have brought in. Thanks!

[PreludeSH]

Originally Posted by tharian

Just for comparison. A seat on the Shatabdi Exec chair car costs 315/- each way. There is the added cost of transport at either ends to the station as well.

What about fuel expenses for self drive ?

Still a drive is a drive and more than just commuting.

[tharian]

Originally Posted by PreludeSH

What about fuel expenses for self drive ?

Still a drive is a drive and more than just commuting.

Fuel expense plus in a vehicle you end up paying the same amount in toll regardless of number of pax.

True regarding the drive part. But it also depends on how much you will enjoy that drive.
I used to prefer driving to Chennai which I do twice a year, but with road works and parking issues, I prefer going by train now.

[shantanumishra]

Originally Posted by tharian

Just for comparison. A seat on the Shatabdi Exec chair car costs 315/- each way. There is the added cost of transport at either ends to the station as well.

Even if you add transport cost to the Railway Station, Shatabdi would be far more efficient and less costlier than driving, plus you will arrive fresh and relaxed

NHAI should look at IR ticket prices as well while deciding on the Toll.

[Jessierider]

I took the expressway today in my MS Ciaz for the second time in less than 3 days. In my onward journey I noticed that my car which has run 58k km on its stock MRF tyres was not stable on the highway at speed around 110kmph. The car was relatively stable between the 80-100 kmpm mark whereas between 70-80 kmph the car behaved perfectly. In a straightline at speeds around 110kmph the vehicle tends to loose it's composure frequently necessitating some steering correction. The experience becomes frequent in bends which require far more steering inputs to maintain the line.

I initially suspected a puncture as the tyre still has considerable tread depth above the indicator and is around 4 years old as per the manufacturing date. Wheel alignment, balancing and rotation was done just 2500 km back. This car is our highway car and thus rarely goes through a bad stretch of road.

A visual inspection showed no signs of puncture which was confirmed when I filled air at an IOCL pump.

Today on my return journey also I had the same issue repeating. Thus, my next suspect was a worn out bearing but compared to my past experience, I couldn't notice any sound beyond the 80 kmph mark which my other car produced when the bearing was defective.

I wanted to know if anyone else also experienced something similar as this is the first time I am facing this issue in my car in any of the highways. The only reason I can think of is perhaps the uneven nature of this highway and my MRF zvtv OEM tyre which perhaps has hardened over the years.