[nix1976in]

Guys, This is my first post here...you could call me an amatuer roadie...have done a few roadtrips from Mumbai to Karwar, Mahabaleshwar, Goa, and some of Konkan's beaches. Am planning for a trip down to Jaisalmer from Mumbai. Have looked up the route in this forum, however wanted some tips on the same as well how do I break the journey down. I was thinking of driving through the day on Day 1 and stopping at Barmer which is approx. 850 kms from Mumbai...is this possible? The max I have driven is 400-450 kms at at stretch. How much time do you think the drive to Barmer would take? Any suggestions and advise would be valuable.Thanks.

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

[Akadian]

Hi,

Actually, you have to get on to the Surat road. The route would be Mumbai - Vapi - Surat - Ahmedabad (NH8 till here) - Palanpur - Barmer - Jaisalmer. Few days back, I had stored senior member Ramkya's trip log and am attaching that for you here. Hope that helps and if you need more, do get in touch with Ramkya or HV Kumar, who can help you in reaching any part of India

[hvkumar]

You can drive direct to Jaisalmer in a day from Bombay if you leave early - say, 4 am.
Barmer is a very small town with inadequate facilities. Although it is 150 kms from Barmer to Jaislamer, I have done it in just under 2 hours, so fast the road is.
I would suggest you stop over in Palanpur or proceed directly to Jaisalmer.

Route profile direct to Jaisalmer:

RAJASTHAN 2000 - hvkumar | Google Groups

LADAKH 2004 - hvkumar | Google Groups

[nix1976in]

Thanks a ton guys, the logs would be extremely helpful to plan my whole trip but I cant help but wonder how you manage to drive 1000+ kms in an day, given an average of 60kmph, it would take me 16 hrs+ to cover that distance non stop. I love to drive but this would require some effort.Prelimnary plan is Mumbai - Palanapur/Barmer -Jaisalmaer - Jodhpur - Ajmer - Udaipur - Mount Abu - Vadodara - Mumbai with night halts at Palanpur/Barmer and Vadodara and 2 night halts at all other places. Jaipur would be a day trip from Ajmer. Would you suggest any diversions or any other good places nearby?Also I would be driving down in my Xylo, does anyone know how the car would behave on sandy stretches?

[hvkumar]

Pushkar off Ajmer
Chittorgarh off Udaipuir, or on the way if you take GQ route
Nathdwara Temple, on Ajmer-Udaipur route
Ranakpur, off Ajmer-Udaipur route
Sam, near Jaisalmer

RJ roads are very fast and outstanding, you can do fast roads.

[nix1976in]

Sounds good, HV...Sam and Pushkar were on my radar already. I will lookup the others. Any tips on the performance of a Xylo on such a long trip? I have taken it on drives of over 200-250 kms and it performed admirably.

By the way, I have read your roadtrip logs and non stop drives on this forum and have great admiration for your driving abilities. Thanks for taking interest and time to reply to my queries

[hvkumar]

Great car - good AC, nice driveability, comfortable.
Just ensure that your oil and coolant levels are OK through the drive, and your windshield washer water is full.
On the Barmer-Jaisalmer stretch, watch out for occasional sand storms, which can temporarily obscure vision of the road.

[nix1976in]

Yes, I have owned it for a month now and I have only good things to say about the performance and comfort of the XYLO!!

Can you advise if Rohtang would be open during Feb and can a trip be made there in the Xylo during that time? I want to expereince snow...lots of it!!