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Coimbatore - Cochin through NH47 is the shortest and best route. All other options take longer in time and come with other trade offs. @rajeevraj has already mentioned about the Pollachi - Valparai - Chalakkudi option. Some other considerations are:
1) Coimbatore - Palakkad (highway) - Ottappalam - Shoranur - Wadakkanchery - Thrissur - Cochin (highway). Not exactly scenic but may provide more scenic relief than the Palakkad - Thrissur highway. The roads are good. This shouldn't compromise on time too much.
2) Coimbatore - Palakkad (highway) - Ottappalam - Pattambi - Guruvayoor - Vypin (NH17) - Cochin. I am just putting it out there and depends on how much scenic quotient you are going for. There are scenic patches between Ottappalam and Guruvayoor and NH17 from Guruvayoor to Vypin is quite scenic. However, NH 17 is yet another busy highway (2-lane at that) and the route is much longer but doable without much hardship.
3) Option 1 until Thrissur and then go from Thrissur - Irinjalakuda - Kodungallur - Vypin - Cochin. The route takes interior Kerala roads, surface is good, higher on scenic quotient but at times roads are narrow. Depending on time traffic could be a factor too.

Any alternate routes will also have challenges such as restroom/ food stops. But you'll be going through many towns so you can figure out based on look & feel, instinct etc.

we did the route last month and is good:thumbs up. This is the best route if you have the time. Worth it.

You can also try Coimbatore-Anaikatty-Kottathara-Agali-Goolikkadavu-Thavalom-Chemmannoor-Mukkali-Mannarkad-Sreekrishnapuram-Thiruvazhiyode-Mangalamkunnu-Ottapalam-Kulappully-Kalamandalam Cheruthuruthy-Wadakancheri-Thrissur-NH47-Kochi. This route takes you along the fringes of the famous Silent Valley in Kerala and via one of the most pristine routes between Mannarkadu and Ottapalam (via the Pariyanampetta Temple-of Devasuram,Kerala Kalamandalam-home to the world's kathakali).

You can read this Tlogue for details on the route http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...kkad-trip.html

https://goo.gl/maps/3yhfTvcdXGx

Looking for some info on the road condition between Mysore and Palakkad. Has anyone been through that area recently?

Direct experience is a few months old. But based on what I have read here and heard, conditions should be pretty good throughout. You can either do Gundlepet-Gudalur-Nilambur-Pandikkad-Mannarkad-Palakkad

or

Chamrajnagar-Dimbam-Annur-CBE Bypass- Palakkad.

For the first one, heard the road is a little patchy between gudalur and Kerala border. Expect good amount of traffic post Nilambur.

2nd should be good throughout apart from the work in progress madukkarai-walayar stretch.

Mysore-Theppekadu-Gudalur-Nadugani-Vazhikadavu-Nilambur-Wandoor-Pandikkad-Pattikad-Perinthalmana-Thootha-Cherplassery Bypass-Thiruvazhiyode-Mundur-Olavakkode-Palakkad.

Roads are good,there was some World Bank sponsored culvert work in progress between Wandoor and Pandikkad-but that must have all been done and dusted by now.Should take you about 8hours via this route.

A friend drives every weekend from Mysore to Palakkad. He uses Mysore-Sathyamangalam-Avinashi-Coimbatore-Palakkad route. He says the road is good. I drive to Coimbatore from Palakkad once every two weeks. Except for a 20km stretch between Madukkarai and Walayar, where 4 lane construction is ongoing, the road is excellent. Even the Madukkarai-Walayar stretch is manageable, except for a few diversions.

The first route via Nilambur will certainly take at least an hour longer even though the distances may be comparable. Also there was some road re-laying work going on in several stretches in the Gundlupet-Bandipur section when I passed that way a couple of weeks ago - not sure if it is complete or not.

As others mentioned also, roads on the second route are excellent all through but for the Madukkarai-Walayar section of NH47 which has some diversions. Shouldn't take you more than 5 to 5.5 hours to Palghat through that route.

We would be crossing Ernakulam around noon tomorrow on the way back to Bangalore.
Can someone suggest some good restaurants (Non Veg) between Alappuzha and Thrissur which are easily accessible from NH47?

Thakkaram at Vyttila opposite Gold Souk is good.The buffet at Holiday Inn is good.Else Paragon at Lulu,buffet at Lulu Marriott.Between Edappally and Thrissur no non veg restaurants of any great mention.

Drove from Chennai to Palakkad yesterday night starting from Iyyappanthangal around 10 PM. Had a real hard time! :eek: The roads were packed, the tolls had long queues and we had a late start - couldn't get any worse! For the Thoppur toll, we had to do a Toll-free Suresh and take a detour as advised by Google Maps to avoid a 40 minute wait in the queue (which started about 2 km away from the toll booth!). We managed the rest of them. Had to take a power nap after one of the tolls (around 4:45 AM). Reached Palakkad around 7:30 AM. Man, I swear I am not going to drive during a Christmas or Onam weekend! Best to book a tatkal ticket.

At the Coimbatore L&T bypass road, a driver of a private Volvo bus had gotten down and was having an altercation with a Verito driver (nearly manhandled him!) since he squeezed into the toll queue. This caused an even bigger pileup! Serves that guy right.

Will be heading back tomorrow departing around 12:30 PM. *fingers crossed*

Has anyone been in the Munnar-Madurai route recently? I am planning a drive on that route this week. Any input regarding the road and traffic conditions would be helpful.

Some of our extended family members traveled from Bangalore to Palakkad today (oh it's yesterday now!) - 24 Dec. Started sharp 5am from Bangalore and crossed Salem around 10am due to long wait times at every toll plaza :Shockked:
By the time they reached Palakkad it was 2:45pm. Obviously, entire route had lot of traffic.

Heard similar facts from those who left late. I left at 4 am, reached Salem at 7.30am and Mundur,Palakkad by 11.15 am. That included 1/2 hour for breakfast and 20 mins at a fuel station. Fast tag provided some relief in exiting Bangalore and at some tolls after Salem. Thoppur toll was the was the worst of the lot.

A friend of mine who started at 4.30 pm on Friday reached thrissur around 2.30AM. Thats 2 hour extra over the normal 8 hrs drive.

By brother in law who started at 3.30 PM from north Coimbatore reached muvatttupuzha at 10 Pm including 1 dinner break.