[Sawyer]

I usually leave at 4 15 am, and reach Sai by 7 15. After a thirty minute halt, I am at the foothills after descending from Amboli by 10 45 and at Candolim at 12 30.

That is 8 hours and a bit drive, without ever exceeding 100 except for a brief run post Kagal to Goa Ves, where I touch 110/115 on the excellent road. This during the recent visits where the Ajra Amboli added about 15 minutes time to the usual run.

Otherwise 8 hours is the norm without any hairy moments.
PS: For reference, Pune to Sai is 205 kms of the total 440 km distance, that is done in 3 hours. The second 235 is a lot slower.

[MartinVirage]

Well from I'm from Pune - Aundh.
I normally join the Mumbai Bangalore Highway at Balewadi.
Balewadi to Kolhapur takes about 3 1/2 - 4 hrs
After Khambatki - Karad - Roads have got a lot of diversions. Traffic sometimes slow moving.
Karad - Kolhapur - People drive unsafe, interference of tractors, 3 wheelers and trucks
Kolhapur after Karnataka border is like a Motorway of Heaven, very disciplined and smooth roads.

Then theres 3 options -
Either turn at
1) Nipani
2) Nipani Gadinlaj Road (After the ghat incline)
3) Sankeshwar

All these go through Amboli, but the road conditions depend on the luck. Being mainly state highways, you really can't predict. But, yes I prefer the Nipani Gadinlaj (2nd turn) as it is the fastest and Sankeshwar being the best quality, though this leads to Gadinlaj as well.

After this, comes Ajara Phata then Sawantwadi and then directly Goa.

The second half takes about 3 1/2 - 4hours

If you go by taxi and don't have a Karnataka State permit, Taxi drivers normally take the Gaganbawda Route. It is extremely scenic, but there are more potholes then roads, when i last went a few years back.

I have heard that road conditionwise Chorla is the best. Infact, Chorla is said to be the rider's heaven.

A few places to Eat on the way:
1) Ram Wadawala Shirwal - Good Maharashtrian Snacks
2) Opal, Kolhapur - A little inside the city, but worth it for non-veg lovers
3) Mcdonalds, Kolhapur - On the way, good for a quick snack

[pickdj]

So I am going to do my first long drive with family from Pune to Goa on the 2nd Dec morning. Have booked the hotel as well. Kids are not really accustomed to long rides so might have to take frequent breaks. Excited to stretch the legs of the new Octy!
I have got varying recommendations from people about the route to follow and frankly am confused. Lots of people suggested the Belgaum>Nipani route but also mentioned that the roads might be bad because of heavy rains in the rainy season.
Any suggestions will be highly appreciated.
Incidentally, if anyone is driving down that day I will be happy to make it a mini-meetup
DJ

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by pickdj

I have got varying recommendations from people about the route to follow and frankly am confused.
DJ

So your challenge is to make up your mind about who to listen to. It also comes down to your destination. North Goa is better served via Amboli.

But if you treat the journey as something that is as much fun as the destination, you can't go wrong. Lots of picnic spots by the side of the roads on both routes if you aren't bothered about speed records. With kids in the car, that is a non starter anyway, so may as well enjoy the drive fully. Carry food and beverages in the car. And toilet paper. And good music.

[hershlulla]

Doing Mumbai-Goa-Mumbai towards the end of the month.

I'll be staying at Candolim on the first day (Monday), so taking the standard Mumbai-Pune-Kolhapur and then turning off Nipani seems to be the better option. Will move to Varca the next day and then return after 4 nights through Chorla via the Belgavi-Kolhapur-Pune-Mumbai route (on Saturday, to avoid Sunday traffic).

A milestone 25K km beckons on the Jazz, a good way to bring up the second year anniversary for the car.

Will update once done and keep my eyes peeled for advice from fellow BHP-ians who make the trip over the next fortnight!

[Hvt77]

Hi all,

Planning to drive from Mumbai to Ponda, Goa, in my BRV this sunday.

Since that is more mid-east-goa, google is suggesting the belgaum-shiroli-mollem route...

Google Route URL



Has anyone been on this route in last few days, especially after Vikram's trip? Any specific feedback? Read a lot of horror stories of passing through Belgaum traffic, including some detailed post about how to by-pass it! (Vikram's message is giving me some relief!)

Plan to start at 6 am...so any suggestions for tea/snacks and lunch breaks?

And yeah, any BHPian riding in same direction same time?! Please feel free to PM me! :-)

PS: How useful is FASTag on the toll booths on the way? Recently bought one!

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

Well, as they say, the best laid plans of mice & men...

At the last moment, I had to reduce the duration of my stay to 3 days and started on Saturday instead of Friday. That meant taking the 1st stop at our family deity near Sanquelim, which necessitated going via Chorla rather than Amboli. Road condition is still pretty good all through, and surprisingly, crossing Belgaum wasn't too much of a pain. Return journey was also via Chorla.

Cheers,
Vikram

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by Hvt77

Hi all, Planning to drive from Mumbai to Ponda, Goa, in my BRV this sunday.

For a recent update on the Mollem route, please check this post by NPV and the ones after that:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post4289688

About crossing Belgaum, though there were traffic jams in the initial few days after closure of a railway over bridge near Congress Road, the situation is better now as traffic is quite well managed, specially at the 1st, 2nd, 3rd gate junctions. Around 11:30 AM, it took me a maximum of 20-25 minutes to travel from the exit on NH4 to the place where the road splits to Khanapur & Chorla. I'd think it'd be more or less the same in the afternoon hours (when you will touch Belgaum with a 6:00 AM start from Mumbai).

Cheers,
Vikram

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by MartinVirage

Kolhapur after Karnataka border is like a Motorway of Heaven, very disciplined and smooth roads.

All passengers in the car can actually feel the difference in road quality when you cross the border. In either direction

Originally Posted by MartinVirage

A few places to Eat on the way:
1) Ram Wadawala Shirwal - Good Maharashtrian Snacks
2) Opal, Kolhapur - A little inside the city, but worth it for non-veg lovers
3) Mcdonalds, Kolhapur - On the way, good for a quick snack

Parakh in Kolhapur offers a much better thali. So does Dehati. Opal have not been on top of their game for some time now.

[Ertigiat]

Originally Posted by Hvt77

Has anyone been on this route in last few days, especially after Vikram's trip? Any specific feedback? Read a lot of horror stories of passing through Belgaum traffic, including some detailed post about how to by-pass it! (Vikram's message is giving me some relief!)

Horror Stories, Never heard of them . Trust me, for someone from Mumbai, Belgaum traffic is cakewalk. Traffic tends to get slow at peak hours but you won't get stuck anywhere.

Plan to start at 6 am...so any suggestions for tea/snacks and lunch breaks?

Check this thread. Mr. Parag Sachania has detailed out stoppages along the way. There are not much options once you cross Belgaum. But Belgaum-Ponda can easily be done in 2.5 hours & non-availability of eateries should not be a worry.

[Ketan T]

Originally Posted by Ertigiat

There are not much options once you cross Belgaum. But Belgaum-Ponda can easily be done in 2.5 hours & non-availability of eateries should not be a worry.

True. Very few good eateries post Belgaum. Chorla ghat has Delta which is a decent place to stop for a quick snacks or tea.

[explorer09]

Need to drive down to Ponda 1st week of December from Mumbai. Would 6AM be a good start if I need to reach Ponda by early evening? Am planning to stick to the Belgaum-Ponda route - i guess thats the best route?

[harryputtar]

Originally Posted by pickdj

So I am going to do my first long drive with family from Pune to Goa on the 2nd Dec morning. Have booked the hotel as well. Kids are not really accustomed to long rides so might have to take frequent breaks. Excited to stretch the legs of the new Octy!

All the very best of luck for the trip, having come back from Goa a month back, I am still a tad envious of you .

Originally Posted by pickdj

I have got varying recommendations from people about the route to follow and frankly am confused. Lots of people suggested the Belgaum>Nipani route but also mentioned that the roads might be bad because of heavy rains in the rainy season.
DJ

I travel with 2 kids too in my Jetta, and we mostly go to North Goa so my situation closely mirrors yours. We did 3 Chorla routes earlier, but this time on the forums recommendation I tried Goa Ves -> Ajara -> Amboli -> Sawantwadi, and I was not disappointed. The drive was not too bad, and on the onwards journey I did 1 and a half hours better than my best time.

There are plenty of stops on the way, you can try Minerva hotel near Ajara, also suggested by the forum, and was a good pit stop. Loos and food are OK, but there is a lot of space for kids to unwind, which really helps on the long drive.

Here is a link to my post after the trip: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...ml#post4297185

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by explorer09

Need to drive down to Ponda 1st week of December from Mumbai. Would 6AM be a good start if I need to reach Ponda by early evening? Am planning to stick to the Belgaum-Ponda route - i guess thats the best route?

6am departure worst case scenario also,you would reach Ponda by 6pm.Yes Belgaum Ponda is the best option.After 5-6pm chances of fog/mist on the Mollem ghats,so factor that in,but then the other issue is a very early start from Mumbai might see you encountering Fog on the MPEW.Best would be to target reaching the Expressway by 530-6am rather than leaving your place by 6am which would mean running into miscellaneous daytime traffic especially on the Pune Bypass and between Pune and Kolhapur,not to forget the long qs at toll booths.

[blackwasp]

What would be a good time after midnight to depart from Vashi, Navi Mumbai on Friday evening (Saturday early morning)? I have an uncle who will be back from work post midnight (usual schedule, he is a doc) and will be coming with us. Destination is Dharwad.

Have done this trip multiple times a year, but haven't departed in the night since the last two years. I'm more concerned with the slow trucks in the climb of Khambhakti Ghat, which would cause a lot of annoyance.

I plan to halt either at SAI International near Kolhapur (approx 330 km from Vashi) or Goa phata (fork to Goa) after Nipani (around 404 km) for breakfast. Fuel stops not considered as range is sufficient for one way + will refuel only in KA due to the cheaper fuel.

[Sawyer]

I usually leave Pune at 4 30 am, and the trucks are not a problem anymore, there has been ample widening done by now, except for a very short stretch where it is in progress. Effortless climb in a car these days.