[am1m]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Anyone Bangaloreans planning a 'workation' in Goa please in the next month or so?

I'd love to! But I'm going to wait for another month or so to see how receptive Goa is to people coming in from outside the state. I know the Goa government is already allowing visitors with covid negative certificates, but not sure about the situation on the ground. Locals may not appreciate people from cities and states that have many more 'confirmed' covid cases moving in.

Another unknown is internet speeds. Not keen on going to Goa for a month and staying in a city! Would want to find a place near a beach, preferably in the south and not sure how good internet speeds there will be. What I'm thinking is that in about a month or so, if people all over the country seem more receptive about the idea of people traveling inter-state on 'non-essential' things, might go for a week to check things out in terms of connectivity and if that works out, will extend my stay for a month or two.

[jkrishnakj]

Originally Posted by NPV

I was about to ask the same question

However, did you need to explain (valid reason to travel) anywhere at tolls/checkpoints while going to Karwar ?

Hi NPV -Not at all. No one asked anything and I wasn't stopped or for that matter , I don't even recall seeing any checkpost inside Karnataka.

The Tolls were smooth , thanks to Fastag. None whatsoever , absolutely felt like the normal highway days.

[Throtttle]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Anyone Bangaloreans planning a 'workation' in Goa please in the next month or so? Exploring possibilities.

I had been contemplating about it for a while. I have a 14 nights booking in a resort in Arpora in 2nd half of October, in which one/first week will be working, while I will be assessing the aspects of adequate work-ablity from Goa in terms of connectivity, covid safe longer term daily/light meals options, state of mind, etc.

Will be interested to get to know about good propositions of longer stay either in South Goa or in Parnem taluka of north goa. Serviced apartment fits the bill i guess. Will share if I come across a viable proposition.

[gautamal]

I came to my home in Goa last weekend. For anyone looking up for the road update, they are fairly good. I used my regular route via Hubli- Yellapur-Ankola-Karwar-Margao. There is a non-existent road, starting from Hubli-Karwar toll, upto around 2-3km towards Kalghatgi. Apart from that roads are decent , at some places the tarmac has worn off. In Arbail ghat section there are a few potholes but that is expected in this monsoon. But comparatively the roads are much better than last year around this time.

On entry at Pollem checkpost, every one has to do some paperwork. We would be at home, so opted for home quarantine option for 14 days. Even though i am native of Goa, they still made a big fuss to give the exact ward number of our panchayat. Had to make some calls to figure it out, since its not mentioned on any document. Goans especially ensure that you have copies of aadhar card of all the passengers and other details like your ward number. Overall it took around 45min to clear the paper work. They skipped temperature check for us, but i could see they did for others. We were stamped and then allowed to enter Goa. Quite heavy rains since last fews days here.So be careful and drive safe !!

[Chinmayd]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Anyone Bangaloreans planning a 'workation' in Goa please in the next month or so? Exploring possibilities. Also a road condition update would be great!

I am planning one for a couple of weeks, early September.

[Throtttle]

Dear fellow BHPians,

Will appreciate inputs on this URGENT Query, I have only time to think within today:

(1) Those who entered Goa border from karnataka by road recently, are they checking covid test report manually and letting you go or making entries in the system, or looking up the report for its date in KA govt's records or some central records or reports monitoring system? In diagnostic reports there are multiple dates e.g. in Apollo diagnostics report there are 4 distinct dates - Collected On, Received On, Reported On and Printed On. Not sure what date-time they consider for the offset of 48 hours, for validity. Appreciate some first hand experience and advice on this.

(2) If one don't have report, what Goa authorities are doing is a Covid Rapid Antigen Test, whose report comes in 30 mins or so. But if somebody carries a report from source state, is SOP for carried report is a Covid RT-PCR test report or they are accepting Rapid Antigent Test report also?

(3) Has anybody done Dharwad-Bypass --> Alnavar --> Ramnagar --> Anmod --> Mollem route recently, is it opened or motorable now without need of significance tolerance/endurance?

(4) Is Chorla route fine currently, I remember last year or so it was reported to be broken? For Mandrem destination in Parnem Taluk of Goa, what is the advisable route ?

TIA

[motorpsycho]

Recent Circular from Goa Admin dated 25th Aug, SOP for travelers

[Chinmayd]

Originally Posted by Throtttle

Dear fellow BHPians,

Will appreciate inputs on this URGENT Query, I have only time to think within today:
=====
For Mandrem destination in Parnem Taluk of Goa, what is the advisable route ?

TIA

I did Bangalore-Goa on 28th; checking messages only today so apologies if it's already late for you.

Took a longer route up NH48 to Belgaum and via Chorla to Panjim. There was little traffic throughout and even less on the ghat route. Only a few broken sections on the Chorla route which required slowing down but overall it was an easy and fuss-free drive. Actually one will enjoy the driving experience at this time especially with less traffic and not so heavy rains. Left Bangalore at 5.30am and was in Panjim at 3.30pm with only a 15 mins break.

I registered the travel on the Goa Govt website and carried a RT-PCR report but had exactly the same apprehensions. On registration, a form is generated which you have to carry along. It mentions 'test done 48 hours before' and a few rows below 'report issued 48 hours before'. Luckily i did my test at 4pm, got the results the next day by 8pm and was at the checkpost by 1pm the next day.

At the Keri checkpost i found 2-3 people in the queue. Many others were waiting some (a safe) distance away which i assumed was for the rapid antigen test. Frankly i did not bother to find out or inquire, just submitted my papers, answered a few questions and was happy to hurry back inside the car and drive off. It took less that 10 mins and since most other travelers were opting for a quarantine or rapid antigen test i preferred to curb my curiosity and get out of there as fast as possible.

In my opinion the 48 hours clock starts ticking once you do the test which is also the most conservative of the 4 options mentioned above. An unconfirmed source mentioned private labs provide the test results a lot faster than Govt labs. The best option i feel is to do an RT-PCR test before starting the journey at a trusted/safe lab than get tested at a checkpost. In case the test result comes positive one is not left stranded at an IQ facility far away from home.

Not sure on the status of Anmod route.

[Luke]

Guys I am planning for a weeks trip to South Goa (Varca) from Bangalore.
Has anyone recently travelled after September 2nd? Just want to know if there are any restrictions at the interstate border. I plan to travel without ePass and Covid Negative report.

[vijaymishra]

Originally Posted by Luke

Guys I am planning for a weeks trip to South Goa (Varca) from Bangalore.
Has anyone recently travelled after September 2nd? Just want to know if there are any restrictions at the interstate border. I plan to travel without ePass and Covid Negative report.

Hello Luke, I entered Goa on Sunday from Karwar. No checks/no questions asked. Never felt I am crossing border.
In Goa scene is dull, finding eateries is a tough task.(South Goa). Nature is at its best.

[Throtttle]

Originally Posted by vijaymishra

I entered Goa on Sunday from Karwar.

Vijay, Did you went from bangalore? Did you drove Bankapur -> Mundgod -> Yellapur route for either journey? If yes, can you please share status/condition of this route? Is the Shidlagundi Bridge restored now, which needed off-roading through a makeshift passage, as per updates uptil few months back?

All,
Between Bankapur -> Mundgod -> Yellapur Vs Bankapur -> Tadas -> Kalaghatgi -> Yellapur, with recent info/knowledge, which one is advisable to take? I have never taken Mundgod route but have taken Tadas route last year October. What I am looking for is a time-saver option, but worth the pain of a stressful short cut.

Is there an established recommendation to exit for Tadas from NH; from the two exits/accesses for Tadas illustrated in the attached pic, is any one a standard/practiced/recommended exit, or any of the two is okay?

[vijaymishra]

Originally Posted by Throtttle

Vijay, Did you went from bangalore? Did you drove Bankapur -> Mundgod -> Yellapur route for either journey? If yes, can you please share status/condition of this route? Is the Shidlagundi Bridge restored now, which needed off-roading through a makeshift passage, as per updates uptil few months back?

Goa was an after thought! My plan was to spend a week in Coastal Karnataka. Started from Jog Falls, Murudeshwar Gokarna and changed my plan to go North up to Goa after I heard unlock 4.0 news from Goa. Cant comment on the road section you asked for.
While returning I tool Tilari Ghat road to reach Belgaum, I wont suggest this route unless some one wants to enjoy nature and ready for some serious ghat roads.

[sairamboko]

Bhpians- I may planning a short trip to Goa next month. Need few suggestions. 1) if by flights - any restrictions or quarantine rules to be followed? 2) if by road - which one should I take for safety from Hosur to Goa? 3) how’s the Goa scene now ? Is it somewhat ok to pre COVID levels? 4) resorts - which one to chose for safety and hygiene? Thanks in advance !

[Crhysis]

Travelled from Bangalore to Goa yesterday.

Left from Frazer Town at 4:30am and reached Dona Paula at 3pm with 2 15 min stops along the way and one hold up on the ghats for 20 - 30 minutes.

Took NH48 towards Belgaum and turned off at Kittur going via Bidi - Kanapur towards Chorla and then on to Goa. NH48 had the usual diversions between Chitradurga and Hubli. Though it seemed better. Less traffic and no sharp speed breakers like I experienced during my drive late last year. Also some sections are completed so less diversions overall. From Kittur to Chorla had good roads except for a small stretch of about 500m which was a mud road but easily manageable and one piece of missing road about 5 feet wide. This took a little bit of route planning and scraping my bumper (Polo) to get through, but with a car with decent ground clearance it shouldn't be so bad. There was another similar broken patch further down on the Chorla ghat too.

The ghats on the way up were decent but the way down was pretty bad right up till the boarder. Though as long as you slow down the pace and watch out for the ditches, nothing to really worry about. From the Goa boarder onward the roads are good. There was also no checking or anything at the boarder. I just drove right through.

[MaNishi]

Originally Posted by Crhysis

Travelled from Bangalore to Goa yesterday.

HI Crhysis,

Need yur suggestions on eateries /washroom break on Bangalore Goa route. I am planning a trip on 2nd Oct 2020.

Also was their any kind of Covid related restrictions/checking /any issues on the way.

Kindly suggest as I have to confirm to Resort asap.

Thanks

Manish