Bangalore to Goa Road Trip: Travel Date - Friday, Sep 24, 2010 Bangalore to Goa Road Trip: Travel Date - Friday, Sep 24, 2010
Disclaimer: This entire report is based on my memory and any errors (factual or otherwise) is purely unintentional.
Rather than a report on my trip, I have posted below info which may be more useful for future travelers. Stretch 1: Bangalore City to Nelamangala: Distance & time based on where you are coming from and at what time. We left from Sarjapur Road at 4:47 AM and got to Nelamangala in less than an hour (about 30 kms)
Depending on where and when you start from you can plan this stretch. If you are starting from South Bangalore anytime in the day, take the NICE road that will get you to Nelamangala directly for Rs. 103 (if you get onto the NICE road from Hosur Road). We started at 4:47 am from Sarjapur Road and zipped through the city to Nelamangala with no issues. The elevated bridge is closed as of now – once that opens, the Yeswantpur route may also be an option during the day. Stretch 2: Nelamangala to Davangere: about 240 kms – 3 hours
Great 4 lane divided highway, especially after Tumkur. Quite a few village/town crossings upto Tumkur – so you need to watch out. Plus we noticed some unexpected small craters in the road (nothing to worry about). The road is empty (only truck traffic – very few cars and buses). So you can really zip through. Road is very scenic at Chitradurga with hills & lots of windmills.
Stops: Barista and Coffee Day attached to petrol bunks very close to Nelamangala. There is a Kamat at a place called Sira (about 100 kms from yeswantpur), but this is on the other side of the highway and getting to it will be a pain. First stop at a decent distance would be a HP petrol bunk with a restaurant “Toppers” attached (This is about 30 minutes from the time you will see the Kamat at Sira) – has OK rest rooms. You will need to get onto the service road to get to this place (watch for a small sign board on the left) and get out there. Otherwise, you will need to drive up the highway, take the next break onto the service road and come back for about a km. Stretch 3: Davangere to Haveri: 70 kms – 1 to 1.5 hours
Incomplete sections of the NH4 including the Ranibennur railway crossings. The road is generally good with a number of diversions. Watch for unmarked speed bumps and poor road interconnects (by this I mean those places where a section of the road is at a higher level than the stretch connecting it – so when driving at high speeds, your rims will take a hit if you are not careful. HINT: whenever you see a bridge, slow down and watch for these).
Stops: There is a Reliance petrol bunk with a Kamats attached just before Haveri. Clean restrooms and can be an ideal break point (we got here from Sarjapur Road in about 4.5 hours). There is also a BP with a Ghar ka Dhaba restaurant attached about 15 kms ahead of the Kamat. Could be another decent spot to stop, especially if you miss the Kamat. Stretch 4: Haveri to Hubli: 70 kms – less than 1 hour
Short stretch, but a great 4 lane divided highway all the way upto the Hubli Bypass toll plaza. Stretch 5: Hubli Bypass: 20 kms – 20 to 30 minutes
Two lane undivided road, but in good condition. If you want to take the route via Yellapur/Ankola (NH63), you will need to branch off at the first exit after the Bypass toll plaza. Ask the guy at the toll booth for specific directions. Stretch 6: Hubli to Belgaum: 90 kms – 1 hour
Excellent 4 lane divided road (road could feel a little rough, feels like a concrete road in a lot of stretches). You can get off the highway once you see Hotel Sankam on your left (next to a IOC bunk).
Stops: Hotel Sankam was pretty good – decent restaurant again with clean rest rooms. IOC here has a facility to fill air.
Comment: Our Trip ODO read exactly 500.2 kms when we reached Hotel Sankam in Belgaum at 12:10 PM (7 hours 23 minutes from Sarjapur Road). Stretch 7: Belgaum to Molem on NH4A – Route: Belgaum – Khanapur – Ramnagar - Anmod – Molem: about 115 kms – 2.5 to 3 hours
Getting to NH4A from Sankam is quite easy (ask the watchman at the hotel and he will guide you). Once on NH4A, you will go through a part of the town and then the villages will start. The NH4A stretch upto Molem is not great – the road also seems to be deteriorating fast – you will notice bad sections from around Khanapur. The road is enveloped by trees which cast their shadow hiding the potholes (as mentioned in an earlier post by itwasntme). My recommendation would be to take it easy and drive slow on this entire stretch even if the road surface appears to be great. Stretch 8: Molem to Panaji on NH4A: about 50 kms – 1 hour
This stretch is quite good (very few bad spots in between). Overall NH4A (right from Ramnagar) really curves likes a snake – so overtaking will be difficult and the drive will be a bit tiring. As soon as you enter the state of Goa, you will see a bunch of roadside tea shops you can stop at, for a quick break. No decent restroom spots on this stretch upto Ponda – just the natural ones. You can take the NH4A bypass to avoid going through Old Goa and hit NH17. Watch out for cops with radars at the bridges on the Goa side – avoid overtaking and stick to the 40 speed limit on the bridges.
Comment: We left Belgaum at 1:30 PM and got to Panaji by 5:15 PM and then it took us another 20 minutes to get to our hotel in Candolim. Additional Comments:
1) Most of the bunks on the NH4 do not have air filling facility – so would recommend having your tyres filled before leaving Bangalore – you always have the option to getting air filled at the roadside fellows (lots of them all along NH4) in an emergency.
2) If you are traveling with family (esp. women), restroom spots will be a little bit of a bother in the route. So do make a note of the spots mentioned above and plan accordingly.
3) With unhurried driving and adequate stops, you should be able to realistically do Bangalore to Goa in about 12-13 hours.
4) I was a bit skeptical prior to this trip about doing Goa by road (considered taking a Volvo or a flight even a day before the trip), but I would say that if you like driving, have a few people around and some music you like, the road trip will be fun. The bad stretches are definitely motorable and most cars should be able to handle them if you drive carefully.
Drive Safe and enjoy your Road Trip.
Last edited by JLN : 29th September 2010 at 20:05.
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