[Freebird82]

Did the return trip on 22nd Aug from South Goa. Quick notes on the drive :

1. Return route was same (South Goa - Karwar - Ankola - Yellapur - Bankapur - Haveri - Chitradurga - Bangalore) except took the Yellapur - Mundgod - Bankapur fork. While the distance maybe less compared to Yellapur - Kalghatgi - Tadas, the narrow roads and overall moderate driving conditions (broken road surface, sudden speedbreakers, broken road shoulders etc) diminish the joy of the landscape. Yellapur - Kalghatgi-Tadas continues to be my pick, the stretch between Yellapur and Kalghatgi is just a breeze

2. No RT-PCR done at K'taka border. Even for liqour the cop just formally asked if I was carrying. Guess thats the difference of driving with a small kid.

3. Stopped for lunch at Kamat Upachar (Ankola) and then coffee at Kamat Upachar (post Bankapur toll). Clean spaces, fresh and tasty food.

Originally Posted by Freebird82

Route update : Did the Blr - Chitradurga - Haveri - Tadas - Kalghatgi - Yellapur - Karwar - South Goa drive on 14th Aug.


Distance covered : 650 kms, Drive time ~ 10.5 hours.

Key highlights :

1. Diversions post Chitradurga have reduced significantly, I can remember 5 or 6. Out of these 2 have poor service roads, progress was smooth on others.
2. Roads overall ok to good, Tadas - Kalghatgi is broken/potholed ridden in parts, overall bit slow progress compared to before but nothing major.
3. Arabail Ghat is in not so good condition, broken roads on curves, in some places road work being done. Again impacts progress but not by much
4. RTPCR mandatorily checked at Goa Border, process was quick.

Uneventful drive otherwise. Noticed that there were no barriers on few of the tolls but my Fastag did get debited. Seems drive thru Toll collection is being implemented.

Recently read that KA is making RTPCR test mandatory for returning travelers from MH/Kerala. Does anyone know if its required for Goa returnees as well ?

[am1m]

Originally Posted by Freebird82

Even for liqour the cop just formally asked if I was carrying. Guess thats the difference of driving with a small kid.

On a lighter note, after what we've seen/experienced over multiple Goa-KA drives last and this year, the check-post 'protocol' seems to be:

1. Car with family and small kids - can't do wrong, wave through all checks. (This was us a couple of times when we traveled with friends who had a small child.)
2. Couple in car - cops will put their heads in the car and visually check the back seat. (Us most of the time.)
3. Group of middle-aged men - pull over, open the boot, look at the bags, perhaps prod one or two bags to find bottles. (When I travelled with a couple of college friends (college was 20 years ago!))
4. Group of youngsters - complete and thorough check, open all bags! We know you are carrying bottles! (Several cars we saw while stopped at/passing the checkpost.)

Moral of the story: get married have kids, this is India!

[Bibendum90949]

Couple of friends want to do a Bangalore-Goa round trip drive in the next few days. They're contemplating whether to use a Fortuner or a Merc E class for the trip. Have guided them to this thread. Suggestions are welcome. Thanks in anticipation.

[Freebird82]

I fully concur. The treatment @ border is dependent on the gender and age diversity in the vehicle.

On a side note, have always been curious to breakdown the drive time across sectors. During this trip, was able to jot down the time stamps and distance covered. The chart of Average speed vs Distance covered has come out as below. For clarity, the Line chart depicts avg speed (Primary y-axis) and Bar chart represents Sector distance (Secondary y-axis).

P.S : Yellapur to Bankapura was through Mundgod. I would presume Yellapur - Kalghatgi - Tadas - Bankapura would have a better average speed, probably similar to Ankola - Yellapur sector.

Originally Posted by am1m

On a lighter note, after what we've seen/experienced over multiple Goa-KA drives last and this year, the check-post 'protocol' seems to be:

1. Car with family and small kids - can't do wrong, wave through all checks. (This was us a couple of times when we traveled with friends who had a small child.)
2. Couple in car - cops will put their heads in the car and visually check the back seat. (Us most of the time.)
3. Group of middle-aged men - pull over, open the boot, look at the bags, perhaps prod one or two bags to find bottles. (When I travelled with a couple of college friends (college was 20 years ago!))
4. Group of youngsters - complete and thorough check, open all bags! We know you are carrying bottles! (Several cars we saw while stopped at/passing the checkpost.)

Moral of the story: get married have kids, this is India!

[ashokbh]

Hi,

I am planning to drive to Bangalore, and then onto Chennai, from South Goa (Colva-Benaulim) on September 4. Was seeking help on the route to be taken.
Google is throwing up a couple of options. The first is Colva-Madgaon-Chandor-Mollem-Anmod-Dharwad, while the second is through the NH66/NH52 combo - Karwar-Ankola-Yellapur-Bankapura-Bangalore.

1. Would appreciate any pointers on which of the above two routes to choose. The Anmod route, on the map, seems shorter, but it seems the ghat section after the Goa/KA checkpost to Tinai is not in shape.
2. Would I need any RT-PCR while entering KA? I am double vaccinated, a Goa resident and will be driving a GA passing vehicle.

Would sincerely appreciate your help as haven't driven out of Goa through the pandemic!

[Freebird82]

My suggestion would be to take Colva-Cuncolim-Ankola-Yellapur-Kalghatgi-Tadas-NH48. This seems to be slighty shorter on Google Maps and also avoids the Tinai ghat section completely.

From Bankapur toll the route is fairly straight forward.

Originally Posted by ashokbh

Hi,

I am planning to drive to Bangalore, and then onto Chennai, from South Goa (Colva-Benaulim) on September 4. Was seeking help on the route to be taken.
Google is throwing up a couple of options. The first is Colva-Madgaon-Chandor-Mollem-Anmod-Dharwad, while the second is through the NH66/NH52 combo - Karwar-Ankola-Yellapur-Bankapura-Bangalore.

1. Would appreciate any pointers on which of the above two routes to choose. The Anmod route, on the map, seems shorter, but it seems the ghat section after the Goa/KA checkpost to Tinai is not in shape.
2. Would I need any RT-PCR while entering KA? I am double vaccinated, a Goa resident and will be driving a GA passing vehicle.

Would sincerely appreciate your help as haven't driven out of Goa through the pandemic!

[airbus]

This news will give some relief to tourists

Fully vaccinated people allowed to enter Goa without negative Covid-19 report

“The High Court has allowed the application by the state government where people who are fully vaccinated, post 14 days of their second dose, can enter Goa without an RT-PCR negative test or a rapid antigen test,” Advocate Nikhil Pai, who represented the South Goa Advocates Association, the original petitioners, said.

Children above two years of age will have to come with an RT PCR test report. Children below two years of age, if symptomatic, will have to carry an RT PCR report while no test report is needed if they are asymptomatic.

[cool_dube]

Originally Posted by airbus

This news will give some relief to tourists

I heard the same from one of the resorts I was planning to visit shortly. However, the problem with such orders is the dynamic nature of the situation. For all these circulars and news articles, eventually one will be left at the mercy of the authorities on duty at the checkpost on that particular day/time!

Request members traveling to Goa to update this thread with latest experiences.

[rohitrag]

We got into Margao on September 4th.

We drove through Sira, Chitradurga, davanagere, Haveri, Hubli Dharwad bypass and then through Almavar and Ramnagar.

The road past Ramnagar is open only for cars. There is a narrow bridge which is under repair.

The straight Road from Ramnagar to Anmod isn't open but the road through Tinai Ghat has been relaid and is in much better condition.

At Mollem, one needs either RTPCR or double vaccination certificate (fifteen days completed) for adults.

Kids above two need RTPCR as per the rules we read online but at the police check post asked the kids' age (5 and 8) in our case and didn't even make an entry for them.

Made entries in five mins and certificates were checked.

Drove through.

Must add that the drive from Dharwad to Goa was spectacular view wise.. Absolutely lush, Freshly planted paddy, rushing streams and Waterfalls..

[viper_711]

We managed a BLR-Goa-BLR trip from the 4th till the 12th of Sep.
Route taken: Bangalore-Tumkur-Chitradurga-Davangere-Hubli byepass- Anmod with Tinai diversion- Mollem-North Goa

Vaccination certificates were checked for the adults and though we had kids RT-PCR tests they were not checked.

We took the same route back and there was no screening (except Alcohol!) at the KA border.
Roads are fairly ok for most parts barring some small diversions around Chitradurga and Davangere.

The lush greenery once we exit the Hubli byepass is awesome. Rain and fog greeted us when we crossed the leeward side of the ghat and we experienced it again on the way back. Kept it slow and enjoyed the nature!

[loki]

Did a North Goa run during Sep 17 to 20. Took Chorla route both ways.

Google maps recommends going upto MK Hubli and taking a left towards Khanapur. But this diversion is too narrow at MK Hubli and you might be wondering if this is even a state highway at all. The Chorla route isn't what it used to be and there are several bad stretches and potholes till you reach Goa border.

While returning, we took the Khanapur - Kittur stretch and it was much better compared to Khanapur - MK Hubli. Overall it took about 8.5 hrs both ways in a Jeep Compass. Sedans might do some underbody scraping in places where the road has deteriorated but it should be manageable I guess.

Vaccine certificate was checked in both directions (upon entering both Goa and KA).

I last did the Chorla route in 2015 and it was butter smooth (I remember doing the Blore - Anjuna run in about 7.5 hrs then while riding solo in my CBR650F)

[K2K]

Most Favoured Pit Stops

Wondering which places are the best stops between Bangalore and Goa. I'm sure there would be a wide range and personal favourites, so thought it would be good to see what the common wisdom says before charting out the drive.

Typical asks from a good pitstop would be.

1. Fast service to get in and out without losing the rhythm of the drive.
2. Good food of course
3. Enough space to stretch and for kids to lose pent up energy
4. Clean toilets would be a must.
5. Great tea/coffee would be the icing on the cake.

I see that Apoorva resorts Davangere comes highly reccomended. Wondering what options we have closer to the coast?

While I am partial to the BLR - Bankapura - Yellapur - Ankola - Goa route, it would be nice to know good places in Hubli/Sirsi route as well.

Regards,
K2K

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by K2K

Wondering which places are the best stops between Bangalore and Goa.

Hi, please check the "Bangalore - Pune - Mumbai : Route updates & Eateries" thread, and the recent post given below in particular, for links to pit stops and fuel pumps:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route...ml#post5156945 (Bangalore - Pune - Mumbai : Route updates & Eateries)

[condor]

Originally Posted by K2K

I see that Apoorva resorts Davangere comes highly reccomended. Wondering what options we have closer to the coast?

Check Kamat on the north end of Ankola. Enough parking, from what I remember.

The Royal Delhi Durbar immediately after Bankapur toll plaza looks to have clean rest rooms. If you go via Yellapur, this could be your stop before you exit the highway

[Ragul]

What is the status of RT-PCR requirement for crossing into Goa from KA and back?
Both sides need to see RT-PCR or only return trip back into KA?

I am planning a long drive on Diwali week Nov 1st - its still a month away and things could change but just checking in advance.

Thanks