[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by rohanjt96

Are there any special considerations we should be taking into account for the journey?

Do carry some liquid hand wash, old newspapers, disposable plates, cups etc. as well. We had carried tap water for washing hands instead of using the drinking water.

Originally Posted by rohanjt96

Also, are petrol bunks our best bet for restrooms on the road?

Yes.

Originally Posted by rohanjt96

If so, are there any recommended bunks on our route that we could use?

They are in plenty along the highways and due to the govt's cleanliness drive and initiatives, the pumps have to keep the restrooms clean and they maintain a roster and a complaint book for it. During our drive, we stuck to the restrooms attached to the fuel pumps and they were all reasonably clean ; even the ladies vouched for it.

There are also these restrooms adjacent to the toll booths set up by the NHAI but they were all shut. I am not sure if they will be open from today.

[ike]

Originally Posted by rohanjt96

Hey guys!

I am planning to drive down to Kochi from Hyderabad. We are a group of 4, 3 in a car and 1 person on a bike.
We have gotten the permits from Kerala and Telengana. We have chosen the slot at Walayar on 21st May (Thursday).

Wouldn't you require a TN pass as well to cross over to TN from Bangalore en-route to Walayar? Or you could choose Thalappady/Muthanga as the point of entry and carry on via KA without entering TN but that would take more time and the roads are infinitely better on the other route via Krishnagiri.

[Repsol]

Does anyone know what is the current situation at Walayar for people travelling to Kerala from Bangalore? I mean do we still have to go for a mandatory 14-day institutional quarantine?

Also, what about returning to Karnataka? Heard that, someone entering Karnataka from Attibelle, would have to go for mandatory 14-day institutional quarantine.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Repsol

Also, what about returning to Karnataka? Heard that, someone entering Karnataka from Attibelle, would have to go for mandatory 14-day institutional quarantine.

I think the 14 day quarantine is the norm at most state borders now. It's the same for those traveling by the special trains as well.

[rohanjt96]

They are in plenty along the highways and due to the govt's cleanliness drive and initiatives, the pumps have to keep the restrooms clean and they maintain a roster and a complaint book for it. During our drive, we stuck to the restrooms attached to the fuel pumps and they were all reasonably clean ; even the ladies vouched for it.

Thank you, this was our biggest concern on the journey.

Wouldn't you require a TN pass as well to cross over to TN from Bangalore en-route to Walayar? Or you could choose Thalappady/Muthanga as the point of entry and carry on via KA without entering TN but that would take more time and the roads are infinitely better on the other route via Krishnagiri.

We have chosen the Walayar checkpost as our point of entry into Kerala due to reasons that you have mentioned.

I think there is some amount of confusion on this point (TN pass requirement). When we were applying for the passes, we'd got information that we only need the origin and destination passes, which was corroborated by people who had done the journey, that they were only asked for the Kerala pass and the Telengana pass.

But, on checking the Tamil Nadu website, there is indeed an option for a Transit pass for travelers moving through the state. We have applied for the same now for a smoother journey. Hopefully it comes through in the next 2 days.

Thank you for pointing it out, else we would have overlooked this part.

I wasn't able to find anywhere to apply for transit passes on the KA or the AP website. They only seem to take applications for residents of the respective states. I'm assuming in those states, we only need to show the origin and destination passes.

[Repsol]

Originally Posted by NPV

I think the 14 day quarantine is the norm at most state borders now. It's the same for those traveling by the special trains as well.

Looks like there is an official announcement now.



Source: https://www.thenewsminute.com/articl...il-nadu-124784

[DudeWithaFiat]

Originally Posted by Repsol

I mean do we still have to go for a mandatory 14-day institutional quarantine?
.

For people returning to Kerala, you can opt for home-quarantine, provided there is enough space for you to quarantine, like a separate room with attached bathroom. I am currently home-quarantined now since I returned with my wife and daughter from Pune on Sunday. Parents had to move out to our ancestral home, since the local health center did not allow parents to be at home since they said with a 4-years old grandchild, the grandparents will definitely interact closely.

We chose the Manjeshwaram checkpost instead of Walayar for two reasons:

1) No need to cross TN. Was apprehensive since the TN rules kept changing regarding passes.
2) Less crowded checkposts. There are a good number of counters set up at the border and we had to spent only about 10 minutes at the border to get our passes verified and temperatures checked. At any given time a few of the counters are vacant.

The roads were very good too, except an 8-10km stretch after we take the diversion from Hubli.

It was unforgettable 1200 km drive. After crossing the KL border, I had stopped at what looked like a safe place to take a 1 hour nap since I was driving from early morning, but it turned out to be a full 5 hours sleep inside the car. . Reached home at Thrissur fine around 10:30am.

We had carried lots of snacks, chappathies, bread, jam etc. 17 liters of drinking water (one case and a 5-litre can) and 5 liters of tap water for things like washing hands.

We also carried a good number of disposable handgloves and wore it whenever I had to get out of the car at checkpoints and threw it away and sanitized the hands before getting back in the car.

[padmrajravi]

Originally Posted by DudeWithaFiat

It was unforgettable 1200 km drive. After crossing the KL border, I had stopped at what looked like a safe place to take a 1 hour nap since I was driving from early morning, but it turned out to be a full 5 hours sleep inside the car. . Reached home at Thrissur fine around 10:30am.

Attachment 2007689

That must have been a great drive. Couldn't help notice that the picture is of a W124. Did you do the 1200 km drive in a W124? That deserves a travelogue

[balenoed_]

Originally Posted by rohanjt96

Hey guys!

I am planning to drive down to Kochi from Hyderabad. We are a group of 4, 3 in a car and 1 person on a bike.
We have gotten the permits from Kerala and Telengana. We have chosen the slot at Walayar on 21st May (Thursday).

Did you happen to do this trip, any updates? Mainly looking for whether a TN transit pass is needed.

[rohanjt96]

Did you happen to do this trip, any updates? Mainly looking for whether a TN transit pass is needed.

Yes, we did make the trip and made it home yesterday. I'll put up a detailed post during the weekend.

Regarding the TN pass, I would suggest you get it for making the trip smoother, if you are passing through TN.
We'd applied for the passes and it got approved within 2 hours of submitting the application. Applied through
this link .

We were asked for it at the Zuzuwadi (near Hosur) border. They scanned the QR code, stamped the pass and let us through. Whole thing took less than 5 minutes.

Attaching the TN pass with the stamp.


We had a friend who made the trip, before us, on 13th May, without the TN pass and he was let through after showing his Telengana and Kerala passes. Don't know if the transit pass came in after that.

[rejeen]

Looks like there is no Karnataka pass required to travel outside of state to TN and Kerala. There is a notification on the top of the SevaSindhu application and athe two states have been removed from the field where you have to choose the destination state.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Any 7pm to 7am time restrictions on the highways or while crossing the border?

[swageo]

TN epass allow only 2 + driver on car, and 3+driver on SUV and 7+driver for van. I want pass for 5, but got a car only. All 5 are family members.. like husband, wife, kids. Any trouble if I opt van and go in car ?

Planning to enter TN via Hosur checkpost, and have a valid Kerala epass

[rohanjt96]

Any 7pm to 7am time restrictions on the highways or while crossing the border?

We did not face any such restrictions on our trip. We crossed the KA border around 9PM and the TN border around 12:30AM. Both places they let us through without any hassle.

TN epass allow only 2 + driver on car, and 3+driver on SUV and 7+driver for van. I want pass for 5, but got a car only. All 5 are family members.. like husband, wife, kids. Any trouble if I opt van and go in car ?

Planning to enter TN via Hosur checkpost, and have a valid Kerala epass

As far as I know, there should not be any problem provided you have the Kerala e-pass for all the mentioned people.

We were in a similar situation to yours wherein, we had 3 people in the car and had to opt for the Innova/SUV option on the TN pass even though we were travelling in our sedan (Linea). We didn't have any issue with this.

My friend on his bike also applied for a pass with the car option enabled. (since the bike option is not there for the transit pass)

While applying for the TN pass, there is a section for additional comments where you can mention your situation.

[swageo]

I am hearing that vehicles get sanitised at border, including inside Is this true ?