[bigwheelz]

Travelled to South Goa via Chorla ghat this wek.
Updates. The road extension on khambatki ghat while going towards Satara is almost complete. I did the entire ghat section in 15 mins.
Between Belgaum and peeranwadi cross, the road is being widened which is welcome. This saved time again. After Peernwadi, its a breeze to Goa.
A point to note: Be careful on the new bridge built near Baner (Opposite Crystal Honda). The two sections are not joined properly which causes the vehicle to jump if not slowed down. Please slow down.

[manonsong]

I just returned from Goa yesterday. I took the Belgavi-Chorla Ghat route to enter Goa in Ponda. Fantastic road surface but narrow and very winding. Have to be careful. Where you leave Belgavi is a nice Biryani place, take a parcel and have a picnonc enroute. You will also pass Wildernest, please see it before you move on to Goa.

If you are staying overnight in Kolhapur then please try the road via Radhanagri which will bring you before Kankavli. A very nice road surface, no traffic and a long drive through virgin forest which we do not see so often in Maharashtra.

[kabir3551]

Manonsong how was the temperature at Chorla Ghat. Did you spot any wild animal. I had seen a deer. Did you face any traffic in Belgavi??

[F150]

Hi All,

Came back from GOA yesterday. It was a pretty good trip.

Onward:
Left Pune [Kharadi] at 620 AM. Reached Chandini chowk at 645 AM.
Reached Sai International - Kolhapur at 940 AM.
Stop time : 40 mins.
Took the Amboli ghat route
Lost time after Amboli ghat, as I took a wrong turn and went thru a village kaccha road instead of Sawantwadi, to reach Kochi Panvel highway.
Reached Panjim at 230 PM.

Fuel Efficiency: 18.1 Kmpl over all trip as per the trip meter.

Return:
Left Panjim at 6:00 AM.
Took Chorla Ghat route.
Stopped at some hotel called Delta for breakfast on Chorla Ghat. Stop time 40 mins.
Didnt get face any traffic in belgaum.
Stopped at Satara for a quick tea break - Stop time - 20 mins.
Reached Pune [Chandini Chowk ] at 220 PM.

Chorla was definitely more scenic, but roads were narrow, had 2 close calls.
The road is so good, we inherently want to drive fast, but turns are sharp.Please watch out.
Also got less fuel efficiency on this route due to frequent turns on the chorla ghat and the car was running mostly in third gear and rarely went beyond 4 till the end of the ghat.
Fuel Efficiency: 16.5 Kmpl over all trip as per the trip meter.

Thank you all for the guidance.

[kabir3551]

Great F150. Inspite of two halts of 40 and 20mins you did quite well by reaching Pune @2.20pm. You just have to enjoy Chorla Ghat, its mesmerising and scenic.
What speed you maintained from Belgavi till Kolhapur, as the road is awesome??

[F150]

Originally Posted by kabir3551

Great F150. Inspite of two halts of 40 and 20mins you did quite well by reaching Pune @2.20pm. You just have to enjoy Chorla Ghat, its mesmerising and scenic.
What speed you maintained from Belgavi till Kolhapur, as the road is awesome??

Thanks kabir3551 !
From Belgaum till Kolhapur, cruise control was set at 120 kmph.
After that 100kmph till Pune, as the left lane was occupied by two wheelers. Couldn't maintain good speeds or use cruise control in Maharashtra due to traffic.

[manish84]

I am planning to drive top Goa from Mumbai on 14 April. However, since I want to take a 4-5 hours break at Belgavai to visit my relatives, I am planning to do Mumbai (Worli) - Satara on 13-April evening after office and then Satara-Belagavi-Goa on 14-April.

As I read on the forum, there are multiple diversions between Pune-Satara. Given that, what would be expected drive time between Worli to Satara if I start at 5 pm in the evening? The distance is 265 km. Would it be reasonably safe to drive Pune-Satara in night time? Any suggestions for a budget hotel in Satara with good parking space? I am liking Hotel Ambassador.

Any other way to break my journey? I was earlier thinking to reach Pune on 13-April evening, but now I am wondering if more can be covered on first day so that I have ample day time for Belagavi and Chorla ghat on second day. Thanks.

[F150]

Originally Posted by manish84

I am planning to drive top Goa from Mumbai on 14 April. However, since I want to take a 4-5 hours break at Belgavai to visit my relatives, I am planning to do Mumbai (Worli) - Satara on 13-April evening after office and then Satara-Belagavi-Goa on 14-April.

As I read on the forum, there are multiple diversions between Pune-Satara. Given that, what would be expected drive time between Worli to Satara if I start at 5 pm in the evening? The distance is 265 km. Would it be reasonably safe to drive Pune-Satara in night time? Any suggestions for a budget hotel in Satara with good parking space? I am liking Hotel Ambassador.

Any other way to break my journey? I was earlier thinking to reach Pune on 13-April evening, but now I am wondering if more can be covered on first day so that I have ample day time for Belagavi and Chorla ghat on second day. Thanks.

I would avoid travelling in the night from Pune to Satara, due to many diversions.
I suggest to start early morning from Mumbai and directly reach Belgaum. From Belgaum - Goa is just 3 hrs away.

[manish84]

Originally Posted by F150

I would avoid travelling in the night from Pune to Satara, due to many diversions.
I suggest to start early morning from Mumbai and directly reach Belgaum. From Belgaum - Goa is just 3 hrs away.

Would avoid Chorla ghat in night time too. So I guess will reach Pune the previous day and start early from Pune.

[sukiwa]

Originally Posted by manish84

As I read on the forum, there are multiple diversions between Pune-Satara. Given that, what would be expected drive time between Worli to Satara if I start at 5 pm in the evening? The distance is 265 km. Would it be reasonably safe to drive Pune-Satara in night time? Any suggestions for a budget hotel in Satara with good parking space? I am liking Hotel Ambassador.

6 to 6.5 hours to reach Satara considering one 20-minute break at e-way foodmall. If you are watchful about diversions & slow down at diversions, you can safely reach Satara. I have done Satara-Pune in night time on many occasions.
About hotels, check out Mahendra Executive on NH4 just after Satara.

So I guess will reach Pune the previous day and start early from Pune.

If e-way traffic slows you down & you reach Pune after 8:30pm, you can opt to stay in Pune else halt at Satara.

Pune to Satara generally eats up 2 hours. NH4 after Satara is in much better shape & one can easily cover 70-75kms distance in an hour. Satara to Belagavi shouldn't take more than 3.5 hours.

[F150]

Originally Posted by manish84

Would avoid Chorla ghat in night time too. So I guess will reach Pune the previous day and start early from Pune.

With 6 AM start from Pune, you should reach belguam by 1030 AM -11 AM, including a breakfast stop.
Have lunch at your relatives place, chit chat and leave by 4 pm , you will reach Goa by 730 pm.

[adriansarita]

I did the Nipani Ajra Amboli Sawantwadi via Mumbai Kolhapur to Goa route yesterday. The roads have been newly laid up and cut my travel time by almost an hour.. so for those travelling to North Goa shud preferably chose this route IMO.
Cheers

[navlur]

I will be driving from Mumbai to Roha to pick my parents and then proceed to Belgavi. I cannot travel the entire distance in one go as I am the only driver and my parents will need a break. I selected the Tamhini route to reach Pune as I do not want to use the Mahabaleshwar route due to below reasons:
1. road has lot of ghat sections
2. the route will be heavily crowded due to the vacations.

The distance between Roha and Belgavi is 460 kms and the mid-point is Satara. So, Mumbai to Roha in the morning, take a break for couple of hours, then start for Satara and aim to reach by late evening. I have shortlisted Hotel Preeti Exceutive for the night stay based on some tripadvisor reviews. Does anyone have any experience of this place? Or suggest a better place?

[manonsong]

Originally Posted by kabir3551

Manonsong how was the temperature at Chorla Ghat. Did you spot any wild animal. I had seen a deer. Did you face any traffic in Belgavi??

Temperature was cooler than at the base. Since it was afternoon we did not stop. No, I did not see any wildlife but I am sure if one was to go early morning or late evening there would be wildlife to see.
I will certainly revisit this place in the rains and again in winter. It is a treat on the way to Goa and back.

[navlur]

Originally Posted by adriansarita

I did the Nipani Ajra Amboli Sawantwadi via Mumbai Kolhapur to Goa route yesterday. The roads have been newly laid up and cut my travel time by almost an hour.. so for those travelling to North Goa shud preferably chose this route IMO.
Cheers

Newly laid roads from? till?