[ampere]

Originally Posted by smrtdvl

Thanks for the quick reply Ampere. If I take this route and start by 8.30 in the morn from Coimbatore can I reach karwar by 22.00? Does it involve ghat section drives as well?

Yes that should be possible. Its about 700km of 2-lane roads all the way with ghat sections at: Dimbam and Honnavar. So even if you assume 50km/h as a average, it translates to about 14 hours of drive (You also need to account for breaks).

[Landkruzer]

Originally Posted by smrtdvl

Thanks for the quick reply Ampere. If I take this route and start by 8.30 in the morn from Coimbatore can I reach karwar by 22.00? Does it involve ghat section drives as well?

If you start at 8.30, you will reach Jog falls around 8 pm. (with breaks). Considering this is a rainy season, it may be tricky(visibility, road block due to tree fall) to take the ghat section at that time. I would suggest you to stay at Sagar and start early in the morning and reach Goa by noon. You can also visit Jog falls on the way.

Originally Posted by ampere

Coimbatore-Sathy-Chamarajanagar-T Narasipur-Srirangapatna-KR Peter - CR Patna-Arsikere - Shimoga-Honnavar-Karwar-Goa.

A green and scenic route but with much less traffic.

Google Maps suggests to take the Sagar-Sirsi-Kumta route instead of the usual Sagar-Honnavar-Kumta route. I remember reading in the Bangalore-Goa thread that the Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta route in very good condition. Also it looks like the Sirsi kumta road is less winding compared to the Jog falls-Honnavar road. Any thoughts on this route?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by Landkruzer

Google Maps suggests to take the Sagar-Sirsi-Kumta route instead of the usual Sagar-Honnavar-Kumta route. I remember reading in the Bangalore-Goa thread that the Haveri-Sirsi-Kumta route in very good condition. Also it looks like the Sirsi kumta road is less winding compared to the Jog falls-Honnavar road. Any thoughts on this route?

I dont have a quantifiable impact. But yes in general traffic is lower. If he plans to break his journey at Sagar then this makes sense to explore. If not I would still vote for the conventional NH206/NH17.

[hybridpetrol]

I am planning a Goa trip next month. Starting point is Coimbatore.
Google Maps show two directions:
a) Coimbatore - Salem - Dharmapuri - Bangalore - Tumkur - Davanagere - Hubli - Dharwad - Margoa
b) Coimbatore - Palakkad - Kozhikode - Kannur - Kasargod - Mangalore - Udupi - Murdeshwar - Karwar - Margoa

Many say route a) is best if we need to drive fast. However it is 930 km. Route b) is 160 km lesser, but would take more time.

I am not sure how the situation is recently. Any improvements? Is there any advantage in doing the coastal route?

I am actually interested in doing both routes, if possible stopping on the way in some places. I have no issues, if I have to break the journey on the way to stay at night, and also for sight seeing.
One more thing: I want do drive only during the day time. I am the sole driver.

Suggestions and inputs on route, places to stay, any places to visit on the way etc., please!

Thanks!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

b) Coimbatore - Palakkad - Kozhikode - Kannur - Kasargod - Mangalore - Udupi - Murdeshwar - Karwar - Margoa

Definitely not the the quoted one! High on traffic and fatigue.

You can try:
Coimbattore-Dimbam-Chamarajanagar- T Narasipura - Srirangapatna - Pandavpura - KR Pete - CR Patna - Arsikere - Honnavar - Ankola - Karwar - Goa.

Its a full 2-lane end to end. But definitely better than taking the Calicut/Mangalore option.

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

a) Coimbatore - Salem - Dharmapuri - Bangalore - Tumkur - Davanagere - Hubli - Dharwad - Margoa

This is the route if you want to do point A to point B and the fastest.

Originally Posted by ampere

Coimbattore-Dimbam-Chamarajanagar- T Narasipura - Srirangapatna - Pandavpura - KR Pete - CR Patna - Arsikere - Honnavar - Ankola - Karwar - Goa.

Agreed! There are slight detours that can be done from this route. exiting NH206 at Talaguppa and taking Talaguppa-Sirsi-Yellapura gives an opportunity to see Unchali and Magod falls. Yana is also doable from Sirsi. Talaguppa-Sirsi was in pristine condition in 2012. One of the loveliest roads I've driven on, near nil traffic was a bonus. We did Panjim-Gokarna-Kumta-Sirsi-Talaguppa-Tumkur on our Goa trip in 2012.

[hybridpetrol]

Originally Posted by ampere

Definitely not the the quoted one! High on traffic and fatigue.

You can try:
Coimbattore-Dimbam-Chamarajanagar- T Narasipura - Srirangapatna - Pandavpura - KR Pete - CR Patna - Arsikere - Honnavar - Ankola - Karwar - Goa.

Its a full 2-lane end to end. But definitely better than taking the Calicut/Mangalore option.

Thanks! Anything to visit en route? Jog falls is open to visitors?
Anything to be remembered for such a travel?

Thanks in advance!

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

Jog falls is open to visitors?

Not worth visiting Jog outside the period when they open the (Lingamakki?) dam gates, which is usually mid-late August. Outside this period even in monsoon its not so spectacular to look at. By January, it would be no more than a trickle.

Anything to be remembered for such a travel?

If you are going via Bangalore. Plan your start timings (rather Bangalore crossing timings) well.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

Thanks! Anything to visit en route? Jog falls is open to visitors?

I doubt. Though there are many places, but if you want to reach the same day and if you are with family, it would be better to drive straight to Goa.

[hybridpetrol]

Originally Posted by ampere

Definitely not the the quoted one! High on traffic and fatigue.

Any advantage on taking this heavy traffic route? Like scenic and good curvy roads etc?
Or completely pointless driving this route?

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

Any advantage on taking this heavy traffic route? Like scenic and good curvy roads etc?
Or completely pointless driving this route?

Scenic-yes.Curvy-no.Reaching Goa same day would leave you exhausted.My suggestion would be to do a stopover en route and reach Goa on Day 2 for a late lunch,that way you would get to spend more time in Goa as opposed to reaching Goa in the middle of the night!

[hybridpetrol]

Thanks for the inputs from you all!
We completed a week-long trip as follows:

a) Day 1 - Started from Coimbatore around 6 AM. Took the Dhimbam, Srirangapatna, KR Pete, Channarayapatna, NH75 to reach Dharmasthala around 5:30 PM. After Dharshan, stayed overnight at the temple guest house.
Route Update: Most of the route is single carriageway, and we can maintain 70 kmph. Some parts of NH75 is terrible due to road work, and takes a long time to cross.


b) Day 2 - Started from Dharmasthala after breakfast. Reached Udupi, and visited Krishna temple. Later after lunch, started from Udupi towards NH66. Stopped at Murdeshwar around 4 PM. Started from Murdeshwar around 5:30 and reached hotel in Goa (Ashvem Beach) at 11:30 after some route mess up thanks to Google Maps.
Route Update: Road work in progress in many parts of NH66 (Highway along Coastal Karnataka), so there are several diversions. I was driving mostly in the dark and it was a nightmare. The blinding high beams of oncoming vehicles together with no markings on a road that is under construction really is a deadly cocktail.
When entering Goa, there is a "Fees Gate" which charges Rs.250, which can be redeemed if we exit Goa within 4 hours of entering. No need to pay while exiting after any number of days.


c) Day 3 - Relaxed around the beaches near my hotel, and some famous beaches in North Goa.


d) Day 4 - Took a South Goa trip for more beaches


e) Day 5 - Thought enough of beaches, and visited a fort, went on a boat cruise and sighted dolphins. Later, again went to two more beaches to end the Goa trip. Night stay at same hotel.
Route update on Goa roads: Most of them good, but just a few places it was 4-way. Here you really need to watch out for the road markings, as the speed breakers can come suddenly after the turns.


f) Day 6 - Checked out from hotel after breakfast, reached Kollur Mookambika temple for Darshan around 3 PM. Reached Udupi at 7 PM and checked in to a hotel.

g) Day 7 - Checked out from Udupi and reached Kukke Subramanya for Darshan around 11:30 AM. We had to wait here for around 45 minutes. After dharshan, finished lunch here and started towards Coimbatore at around 2:30 PM. Reached Coimbatore at around 12 PM.
Route taken: NH275, Madikeri, Mysore Ring Road, Chamarajnagara, Dhimbam, Sathyamangalam, Coimbatore.
Route update: Most of the roads were average. Mysore ring road is a pleasure to drive, but the speed limit of 40 kmph is ridiculous for a 6 way road with no traffic. The hairpin bends at dhimbam have proper road markings, and the cat eyes are really helpful for following the road. No need to say, but do not accelerate and do sudden brakes at the hairpin bends, and absolutely no overtaking at such turnings. We saw one car lying upside down in this road.

Overall a very good trip. Total kms: 2231. Toll paid: Rs.100 (for the entire trip) + Rs.250 fees at Goa.

Some learnings:
a) Follow a good driver at a reasonable distance when oncoming vehicles do not let you see the road. Used this tactic at NH66, when I could not see anything ahead, and the roads on the sides were dug up. In such cases, we should use low beams, so the driver in front is not affected by our headlights through his RVMs.
b) When driving on a highway, if there are some needs such as petrol for car, or eateries or nature's calls, stop at the next available spot.
Filling at half tank is ideal for our own peace of mind. Petrol bunks are also ideal spots for rest rooms. If we skip one petrol bunk or a good hotel, the next one you find may be after an hour, which may be too late.
c) Make payments wherever possible with Card. This is especially important these days due to the cash issues. Nobody want to ruin the holidays waiting in an ATM queue. Also carry multiple cards with cash / credit limit in all. For hotels, it is best to make online payments before checking in.
d) Goa restaurants can be very expensive, and we should allocate Rs.2000 per day just for food for a family of 3.
d) If you are not sure about where you are going, it useless to book hotels in unknown locations! We wanted to visit Mookambika & Subrmanya in last two days. We could have made some research and stayed in Subramanya itself the last day. Instead, we had a hotel booked in Udupi (in advance), so there was some amount of time wasted on Day 6. This mistake made me drive for about 14 hours on Day 7.

Thanks for reading. Have a good day!

[kanwal]

We are planning a family trip from HYD to Coimbatore (Isha Yoga Center (IYC) to be precise), via Goa!

I did read through of posts on the route and I think, I am sorted on HYD- GOA route but I am not sure about the best route from (South) Goa to Coimbatore (or IYC) and looking for advice and suggestions! Google maps is showing two routes - almost similar- go to Tumakuru and one route suggests going via BLR and other via Mysuru. Which should be the best route? is there any better suggestion than that of Google maps?

I am planning to drive over two days so there will be a break - I think, I have to either stay @ BLR or Mysuru . No particular preference but I would like to avoid bad roads and traffic. If I take BLR route, I am concerned I have to go through city traffic because I will be staying there overnight.

I also need suggestions for break (freshen up, lunch etc.).

Many thanks in advance! Help Please!!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by kanwal

I am planning to drive over two days so there will be a break - I think, I have to either stay @ BLR or Mysuru . No particular preference but I would like to avoid bad roads and traffic. If I take BLR route, I am concerned I have to go through city traffic because I will be staying there overnight.

A good place to stay would Apoorva resorts Davanagere. But I suppose its too early and you should have time to push further as well.

If you chose the four-lane (which I think you should), best would be to stay close to Bangalore so that you can start early the next day. If you can make it to Bangalore, Keys on Hosur road is a decent place and convenient to get out from the city as well.

[kanwal]

Originally Posted by ampere

A good place to stay would Apoorva resorts Davanagere. But I suppose its too early and you should have time to push further as well.

If you chose the four-lane (which I think you should), best would be to stay close to Bangalore so that you can start early the next day. If you can make it to Bangalore, Keys on Hosur road is a decent place and convenient to get out from the city as well.

Many Thanks ampere - highly appreciated, as always! So, I should be taking the BLR route and stay near Hosur Road , preferably @ Keys ( just checked, hotel looks nice). Looks like that solves it and I am all set.