[rednikhil]

Originally Posted by abirnale

Anyone here can help with good options for food in and around Panjim?

Ritz Classic in Panjim: Strongly Recommended for seafood and other non veg stuff!
Location as on google maps, bang in the heart of the city.
https://goo.gl/maps/XzaMvvaciM32
Happy hogging!

[rajivtelang]

Hi,

Traveling from Bangalore to Goa this Thursday. I have two options based on all the posts.

1. Bangalore-Bankapur-Mundgod-Yellapur-Karwar-Goa
2. Bangalore-Haveri-Sirsi-Mirjan-Karwar-Goa

Requesting for best of these two options.

Trying to avoid the crater full road from Dharwar-Ramnagar-Anmod since will be driving a Santro and want to reach/return in one piece by Monday.
Since my destination is south Goa (near Madgaon) I need to choose one of these two routes. Simply calculated the time required and distance and in both cases it is almost same.
I will be traveling with my wife and 5 year old kid. Just don't want to take any risks and time wise also not in much of a hurry. Planning to make a stay overnight at Davangere on Thursday and continue over Friday morning.

Regards,

[Klub Class]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

Requesting for best of these two options.

Updates based on my drive to Goa from Davangere with a night halt at Om Beach, Gokarna during the last week of December. I heard that Yellapur - Ankola is bad. Lots of potholes. Driveable though. So, opted the Sirsi route

Road Conditions : The roads were good throughout. Listing down the sections that require a mention

- Chalageri - Halageri : Few rough patches near the bridges and few speedbreakers
- Halageri - Kod : Few sections have undulating surfaces. The edges of the road are not smooth
- Kod - Haunshbhavi : Narrow road (roughly 1.5 lane wide)
- Haunshbhavi - Tilavalli : After around 10 kms, the road becomes rough
- Tilavalli - Sirsi : Road have few undulations and the potholes are patched

NH17 is in good shape barring few diversions and road widening works

Timings :

Davangere - Gokarna (including few breaks ~ 20 minutes) :

1410 - Davangere | 1445 - Exit NH4 before Chalageri Toll Booth |1500 - Halageri |1520 - Kod |1535 - Haunshbhavi |1600 - Tilavalli | 1650 - Ekkambi | 1720 - Sirsi | 1850 - Mirjan | 1940 - Gokarna

Gokarna - Goa

0700 Gokarna | 0750 Karwar | 0820 Pollem Entry Gate

In case you're staying overnight in Davangere City, take the Hadadi Road Entry. (Don't take the PB Road - Bada Cross Exit - the first one while driving away from Bangalore. It's in bad shape)

For exit, you can take the same or Shamanur Road Exit (half the lane is blocked for road repair works though)

Please refer my previous post for more details (I've marked the exits on the maps) - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3859535

(and while you're in Davangere, have the yummy Benne Dosas )

Sharing the drive statistics from MyTracks App :

[drhoneycake]

Originally Posted by Klub Class

Updates based on my drive to Goa from Davangere with a night halt at Om Beach, Gokarna during the last week of December. I heard that Yellapur - Ankola is bad. Lots of potholes. Driveable though. So, opted the Sirsi route

Road Conditions : The roads were good throughout. Listing down the sections that require a mention

- Chalageri - Halageri : Few rough patches near the bridges and few speedbreakers
- Halageri - Kod : Few sections have undulating surfaces. The edges of the road are not smooth
- Kod - Haunshbhavi : Narrow road (roughly 1.5 lane wide)
- Haunshbhavi - Tilavalli : After around 10 kms, the road becomes rough
- Tilavalli - Sirsi : Road have few undulations and the potholes are patched

NH17 is in good shape barring few diversions and road widening works

Timings :

Davangere - Gokarna (including few breaks ~ 20 minutes) :

1410 - Davangere | 1445 - Exit NH4 before Chalageri Toll Booth |1500 - Halageri |1520 - Kod |1535 - Haunshbhavi |1600 - Tilavalli | 1650 - Ekkambi | 1720 - Sirsi | 1850 - Mirjan | 1940 - Gokarna

Gokarna - Goa

0700 Gokarna | 0750 Karwar | 0820 Pollem Entry Gate

In case you're staying overnight in Davangere City, take the Hadadi Road Entry. (Don't take the PB Road - Bada Cross Exit - the first one while driving away from Bangalore. It's in bad shape)

For exit, you can take the same or Shamanur Road Exit (half the lane is blocked for road repair works though)

Please refer my previous post for more details (I've marked the exits on the maps) - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post3859535

(and while you're in Davangere, have the yummy Benne Dosas )

Sharing the drive statistics from MyTracks App :

Attachment 1459799

Attachment 1459800

Attachment 1459801

I have driven on every possible route to Sirsi and believe me Haveri-Sirsi especially after the newly laid roads makes it the fastest route. I do Gokarna to Haveri in 3 hrs flat not exceeding speeds of 110 km/hr anywhere.

I would not recommend Tilvalli Sirsi at night. Plenty of unmarked speed breakers and pitch darkness - recipe for incidents of highway robbery too. Had two close experiences.

Yellapur Ankola is bad only in the ghat sections. My pick to touch Honnavar/Gokarna/Karwar from Bengaluru would be via Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta. Sparse traffic and excellent roads make it a less tiring and stress free drive.





Sent from my iPhone 6 using Team-BHP

[goandude]

Originally Posted by drhoneycake

I have driven on every possible route to Sirsi and believe me Haveri-Sirsi especially after the newly laid roads makes it the fastest route. I do Gokarna to Haveri in 3 hrs flat not exceeding speeds of 110 km/hr anywhere.

Yellapur Ankola is bad only in the ghat sections. My pick to touch Honnavar/Gokarna/Karwar from Bengaluru would be via Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta. Sparse traffic and excellent roads make it a less tiring and stress free drive.

P

For a destination in South Goa would you really recommend this Haveri - Sirsi- Kumta route vs the Bankapur - Yellapur - Karwar route? It reduces the distance on the 4/6 laned NH4 and increases the distance on the 2 laned ones where the average speed has to be less

[drhoneycake]

Originally Posted by goandude

For a destination in South Goa would you really recommend this Haveri - Sirsi- Kumta route vs the Bankapur - Yellapur - Karwar route? It reduces the distance on the 4/6 laned NH4 and increases the distance on the 2 laned ones where the average speed has to be less

Yes I would if you want to "touch Sirsi" while going towards South Goa like the member above did on his return. That is the route I always do when I'm travelling from Karwar/Gokarna to Bengaluru. If its North Goa, Chorla anyday for me (MK Hubli turnoff)

The distance b/w Haveri (Turn-off to Sirsi) to the Bankapur toll (Turn-off to Mundgod-Yellapur) is barely 20 kms. So you hardly lose any of the 4 lane.

Also NH63 is heavier on traffic, crazy eicher drivers and high speeding morons and roads after Idgundi just before the ghat begins and the ghat section itself is in quite bad. You should drive on NH63 at night, quite a blinding experience.

Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta is far more relaxing - smooth roads throughout (especially the new Akki Alur - Haveri is fantastic) and sparse traffic. Also I quoted this route if you wanted to touch Sirsi which the other member was referring to. Crossing Sirsi Town is no biggie.

If you really want to touch Sirsi to goto Goa, I'd say stick to Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta instead of Harihar-Kod-Haunsbhavi-Tilvalli-Bisalkoppa-Sirsi.

If your comfortable/familiar with NH63, take that one. I have done both plenty of times and I prefer Sirsi route for the above advantages as well as being my native, I can take an extended break here.

Regards,
Aniketh

[rajivtelang]

Currently in goa. Yes the Sirsi route suggested is really awesome. Thanks to Aniketh for this recommendation. Only one issue with this route. There is no easy way to take rhe sirsi road from NH4 without entering Haveri town since the service road is very narrow and bad around bypass.
Will update with details once back on Monday.

[drhoneycake]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

Currently in goa. Yes the Sirsi route suggested is really awesome. Thanks to Aniketh for this recommendation. Only one issue with this route. There is no easy way to take rhe sirsi road from NH4 without entering Haveri town since the service road is very narrow and bad around bypass.

Will update with details once back on Monday.

Yes quite true, although what you can do is enter the service lane of the incoming traffic side and you'll reach the Sirsi Haveri road right under the bridge. Here's the location to get in to that road bypassing Haveri town.

https://goo.gl/maps/GhYCSZrBxuD2

I always get in here, hope that helps.

Thanks,
Aniketh


Sent from my iPhone 6 using Team-BHP

[raghavan]

Just the information I was looking for. Driving to Gokarna from Bangalore coming weekend and was contemplating between drive through Yellapur or Sirsi and you made my decision quite easy.

What are better places for fuel refill along the route ?

[rajivtelang]

Hi Guys,

Back from short trip to Goa. As mentioned by Aniketh I took Bangalore-Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta-Karwar-Goa route. My destination was in south Goa and hence wanted to take any route but north Goa.

The route updates:
Started on 15th Jan at 6AM from my residence near Marathahalli and made first halt at Kamat Dobbaspet for breakfast. Next halt at Ranebennur for another short food break since my 5 year kid was with me. From here when I hit Haveri bypass was unsure on how to take the Haveri Sirsi route from the bypass. The service route does not have any proper entrance (@Aniketh: Thanks for the clarification on this point). So entered Haveri town to take this road. The whole route is excellent except there is a river bridge work going on after around 10km from Haveri towards Sirsi. This is the only bad patch on whole route. Also you can indeed make insane speeds on this road but you have to face insane number of speed breakers too. Not sure what is in mind of the road development authority here since they have put series of 6-7 speed breakers instead of one at all the places. Further the Devimane ghat is made of concrete and nice to drive on. Once again we made a halt at Kamat Ankola and finally reached at my destination by 6PM.
For return journey on 18th Jan also I took same road and started by 6AM from Quepem Goa. Once again 3 halts , at Kamat Ankola, Apporva Davangere and Kamat Sira. But while entering Bangalore it was not so quick. Reached home by 7PM due to massive week day traffic all around.
Once again thanks to Aniketh for recommending this route.

Regards

[raghavan]

Hello all,

Just got back from a 4 day trip to Gokarna. With Aniketh's and rajivtelang latest route info, took the Tumkur - Haveri - Sirsi - Kumta - Gokarna route and enjoyed every bit of it.

Bangalore (JP Nagar) - NICE Road - Tumkur - Chitradurga :

Started 6:30AM from JP Nagar and the first stop was at 9:10AM at VRL just before Chitradurga. The food was decent, but no service (self service) and sometimes long waiting time.

Left VRL at 9:45AM and reached Haveri at 11:20AM, followed Google / Here (Nokia) maps which took us through the town. Crossing the town is not at all a problem, but as we crossed the NH on the Haveri - Sirsi road, I saw a motorable ramp to get onto Sirsi road from the NH without entering Haveri town.

Haveri - Hangal - Sirsi : The first 30KM is quite wide and smooth (except for a rough patch near a bridge construction) and though there are many speed breakers, they are not bad. After this 30KM stretch, the road goes through the forest and I am pretty impressed with the smooth surface, enjoyed every bit of this drive.

Sirsi - Kumta (outer) is little patchy at few places, but the ghat road is very well maintained and less traffic makes it an easy and pleasure drive. Took a small break for tender coconut in this stretch.

Kumta (outer) - Gokarna Cross : Turn right towards Ankola on the Edapally - Panvel highway, again a smooth tarmac road. 4 laning happening in this stretch and in 20 minutes we were at Gokarna cross.

Gokarna cross - next intersection (Don't know the name) : Road is very patchy, but this is a very small stretch (900 metres) after that the road is narrow, but smooth and reached Bavikodla (6KM north of Gokarna town - where we plan to stay) by 2:45PM. The last stretch to the resort was a kacha / rocky road, but motarable with caution (especially if you are driving Honda city and likes with lesser ground clearance).

Took the same route on the way back, stopped for lunch in Haveri at Nisarga (seems to be a new place - decent food) just after the NH4 bridge on Sirsi - Haveri road). We could get on to the NH using the narrow road right next to the bridge towards Chitradurga without going through the Haveri town. Started at 10AM from Bavikodla and reached Bangalore (JP Nagar) by 7:30PM with 3 stops.

Thanks to Aniketh and rajivtelang

[pariwar]

Just sharing my experience of a recent drive to Club Mahindra Varca Beach from Rajarajeshwari Nagar. Could have tried other routes as detailed in earlier posts, however chose to follow this path just like that.

Going - Route & Key Points:
NICE Mysore Road to Tumkur Road - Bankapur - Yellapur - Karwar - Club Mahindra Varca

1. Departure at 4.00 a.m., breakfast halt at 7.15 a.m. at Kamat Upachar Ranebennur.
2. Bankapur - Yellapur Road is motorable with a bit more careful driving in some patches but once I hit SH63 towards intersection of Ankola-Karwar-Panaji-Mumbai highway, the roads were very nice. Not much of traffic on either of the two sections. The earlier section through dense forests is a wonderful change from the drab highway till then.
3. The pitiful road called Edapally-Panvel Highway from this point onwards right in to North Goa is mostly 2 lanes only. Passing through Karwar on the winding roads along the coast is however a feast for the eyes and I was happy to drive sedately waiting for the right opportunity to overtake the vehicle ahead of mine.
4. The minute you enter Goa the roads are pristine, well marked, seem to have got a fresh coating of the blackest of tar and our faces lit up. The entry tax of Rs. 200 paid became worthwhile within a few kilometres itself. We were now in reasonable and well behaved traffic and it took us just over an hour to reach Club Mahindra Varca. Arrived exactly at 1.00 p.m.

Return - Route & Key Points:
Club Mahindra Varca - Ponda - Mollem(Border) - Alnavar - Dharwad - NICE Road Tumkur - Mysore Road

1. Departure at 7.30 a.m., took the Ponda route and stopped for breakfast just outside Ponda.
2. Road up to Goa/Karnataka border at Mollem is brilliant, some parts seem to be getting widened, however red mud flattened out only. A lot of dumpers encountered all the way and just before the Dudhsagar falls turnoff at Mollem. Nevertheless traffic is at best sparse and we actually made good speeds on this broad two lane road.
3. All hell breaks loose when you hit Karnataka with the road deteriorating increasingly as you proceed further and at its very worst closer to Anmod and then later on segments near Londa & prior to Alnavar. Lost a lot of valuable time here navigating the pot holes and started getting concerned about the next pothole as soon as I reached 4th gear. Alnavar to exit near Dharwad to join up with Pune - Bengaluru was quite motorable compared to the prior section experience.
4. Dharwad - Chatra (Kamat Upachar) where we halted at 1.00 p.m. was blissful and a good percussor to what was coming next in terms of highway driving. Reached home at 5.30 p.m. and was able to maintain consistent speeds throughout other than the toll booths wherein I was never more than third from the booth.

The trip was a total of four days and everyday we were driving around to all the important locations in Goa - getting out before breakfast and arriving after dinner (inclduing Anjuna Beach Flea Market on Wednesday). This entire trip had a wonderful average of 17.5 kmpl as recorded on the dashboard.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by pariwar

Club Mahindra Varca - Ponda - Mollem(Border) - Alnavar - Dharwad - NICE Road Tumkur - Mysore Road
[*]All hell breaks loose when you hit Karnataka with the road deteriorating increasingly as you proceed further and at its very worst closer to Anmod and then later on segments near Londa & prior to Alnavar. Lost a lot of valuable time here navigating the pot holes and started getting concerned about the next pothole as soon as I reached 4th gear.

And now you have a new route to totally avoid this bad patch between Anmod & Ramnagar. Many of my friends drove over the last few weeks including few BHPians as well.

Here is what I would like to summarize:

To avoid the bad patch between Ramnagar-Anmod on NH4A, there is a freshly relaid forest route that connects Anmod with Khanapur. With this option you will hit Khanapur from where you drive down to Alnavar and then continue on the usual SH from Alnavar to Dharwad.

Here is the route:

And here is the sample of the forest route (Courtesy: HVK Forum on Facebook):

Summary - You want to take the classic Goa Route from Hubli via Ramnagar-Mollem, this is a good option that adds only around 25-30 kms extra and helps avoid the bad patch between Ramangar-Anmod (Goa-KA Border).

Also note that this is a Forest route and there are restrictions to drive here beyond dusk till morning (Should be 6pm-6am restriction)

[shavian]

Hi All,

I am planing to go to Benaulim from Bangalore (E-city) this Saturday.
This is the first drive for me to Goa so pretty excited due to the high expectation of the road conditions.

I need some advice on the best and quickest route which I can pick to reach Goa, below are the 3 which I could shortlist. I am planning to leave around at 4 AM so that I could reach Goa by 1 PM. Vehicle would be XUV with 4 adults and one 4 year kid.


When I set "Royal Palms, Benaulim" in google maps, it is taking me via below route which is 607 kms.
1) Bangalore - Tumkur - Chitradurga - Hubali - Dharwad - Mollem - Benaulim

But one my friend was suggesting following route which is 675 kms as per google maps.
2) Bangalore - Tumkur - Chitradurga - Hubali-Dharwad bypass - Yellapur - Ankola - Karwar - Benaulim

Also saw few suggestions about below route here in the forum which is 622 kms.
3) Bangalore - Tumkur - Chitradurga - Bankapur - Yellapur - Ankola - Karwar - Benaulim

Doing simple maths route 1 seems shortest and fastest, but wanted to get an opinion from the veterans.

Thank you

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by shavian

Doing simple maths route 1 seems shortest and fastest, but wanted to get an opinion from the veterans.
Thank you

Read my post just above this. It has the answers and addresses how to avoid the bad patch between Dharwad and Mollem.

So you do - Dharwad - Alnavar - Khanapur - Anmod - Mollem - Destination (Benaulim). Clean roads all the way.

Else Bankapura - Mungod - Yellapura - Ankola - Karwar - Benaulim is also a good option.