[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

LOL... my thoughts exactly - except that I like Pushkar, but avoid going to Ajmer...

@ranjitp1: As to the Karni Mata Temple, how queasy are you about RATS?

Dunes at Sam will be hot during the day in September.


It's a terrific road, smooth and straight, a pleasure to drive on - but I don't have updates on the road condition there after the rains. @HVK: Any recent info?

Thanx SS for the Sam update.I think we will give the Karni Mata temple a miss (with all due respect to the followers),however rats running over legs isnt exactly an exciting idea..gulp.Add to it,I read some place that mythology states(or man states whichever)that in case one steps on a rat and it dies,one has to present the temple with a golden rat,so thanx for the heads up SS,we will give the place a miss.

In this case,how would you suggest we do Sam?Staying out in the dunes is definitely ruled out,what would be an ideal time to set out for Sam so that we get to see the sunset and be back before its not too late.

Originally Posted by arindamray

Why no body is suggesting mount Abu?

And I suggested this route, forgot to post the link in the earlier post: Mumbai, Maharashtra to Mumbai, Maharashtra - Google Maps

D1: Bombay-Mt Abu (long run)
D2: Mt Abu -Jodhpur
D3: Jodhpur - Jaisalmer
D4: Jaisalmer
D5: Jaisalmer-Bikaner
D6: Bikaner-Jaipur
D7: Jaipur
D8: Jaipur-Ajmer/Pushkar(Optional)-Chittaur - Udaipur
D9: Udaipur
D10: Udaipur-Ahmedabad-Bombay

HVK: From your suggested itinerary, omitted Nathadwara, and included Mt Abu. Only the first day and last day drives are long, rest are small. Please comment.
On D8, depending on the timing you may stay back at Chittaur or proceed to Udaipur.

EDIT: Oops, I started the reply and then away from desk, and when I posted after coming back, already some more has been posted. So this post may not have value :(

Thanx Arindam for persisting with Mt.Abu,I am now being tempted to bring that back into the itinerary,maybe a one night stay at Abu.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

SS, I have no recent info on the Ahmedabad-Jaisalmer road, but that normally does not get affected during the rainy season, should be good enough to do 100 kms an hour, especially after Tharad!

Thanx HVK,100kph is definitely an excellent road,thanx for the confidence booster.

[arindamray]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Thanx Arindam for persisting with Mt.Abu,I am now being tempted to bring that back into the itinerary,maybe a one night stay at Abu.

now with bikaner and ajmer/pushkar out, you can surely put it in

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Thanx SS for the Sam update.I think we will give the Karni Mata temple a miss (with all due respect to the followers),however rats running over legs isnt exactly an exciting idea..gulp.

In this case,how would you suggest we do Sam?Staying out in the dunes is definitely ruled out,what would be an ideal time to set out for Sam so that we get to see the sunset and be back before its not too late.

LOL... your reaction to the rats even before seeing them is much along the lines of what I've seen actually happen there! (I've been inside though, but not partaken of the prasad - which the rats are supposed to eat and bless first!)

You can visit Sam early in the morning (before sunrise), when it is cool, esp. with the baby. You'll get enough photo-ops once the sun comes out and it's not too hot. The sunset viewing is best done in December-January, and it's a perpetual zoo out there at sunset, with vendors, song-and-dance artistes and camelwallahs making it quite difficult to enjoy the ambience.

Can also suggest that you also try to fit in a day for the Shekhawati havelis at Jhunjhunu, Nawalgarh and Mandawa, on your way from Bikaner to Jaipur, esp. if you are interested in art and paintings. The stuff there is mind-boggling, but not well-known. Check out here: http://www.rajasthantourism.gov.in/D...hekhawati.aspx - use the links on the right to explore the different towns.

EDIT: You'll enjoy Bikaner otherwise. Take a look at the camel farm, enjoy the original Bukaner bhujia, as well as the Junagadh (old fort).

[anainar]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

In this case,how would you suggest we do Sam?Staying out in the dunes is definitely ruled out,what would be an ideal time to set out for Sam so that we get to see the sunset and be back before its not too late.

Sam is not very far, may be 45 mins drive from Jaisalmer Fort. If you intend to go further deep in the desert by hiring a camel, you might want to be there early. Else they take you on a camel ride for 10-15 minutes and drop you at a place of your choice. And will pick you up after you spend some time in the sands.

Why are you giving Bikaner a miss? Karni mata temple is not the only place. It has a nice fort, Junagarh fort. I am not fond of rats either but still stayed in Bikaner for 1 night to see the fort and visit local market. They sell nice bangles there and my wife went crazy in the local market.

Nainar

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by arindamray

now with bikaner and ajmer/pushkar out, you can surely put it in

Yes Arindam,intend on doing 1 night at Abu.Thanx.Bikaner is still in,just that I am not going to the Karni Mata temple,Bikaner is still definitely in the itinerary.

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

LOL... your reaction to the rats even before seeing them is much along the lines of what I've seen actually happen there! (I've been inside though, but not partaken of the prasad - which the rats are supposed to eat and bless first!)

Yes people have been telling me enough of it,infact so much of it that we have decided to be one blessing short in this lifetime!lol

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

You can visit Sam early in the morning (before sunrise), when it is cool, esp. with the baby. You'll get enough photo-ops once the sun comes out and it's not too hot. The sunset viewing is best done in December-January, and it's a perpetual zoo out there at sunset, with vendors, song-and-dance artistes and camelwallahs making it quite difficult to enjoy the ambience.

Can also suggest that you also try to fit in a day for the Shekhawati havelis at Jhunjhunu, Nawalgarh and Mandawa, on your way from Bikaner to Jaipur, esp. if you are interested in art and paintings. The stuff there is mind-boggling, but not well-known. Check out here: http://www.rajasthantourism.gov.in/D...hekhawati.aspx - use the links on the right to explore the different towns.

EDIT: You'll enjoy Bikaner otherwise. Take a look at the camel farm, enjoy the original Bukaner bhujia, as well as the Junagadh (old fort).

Ok,this is a whole lot of new info,will definitely take a dekko at these places.Not sure how much the early morning Sam would work out,maybe we might brave the heat and go there in the evening.Whats your view on using the services of guides and if yes,whats the best way to do it with minimum fuss?

Originally Posted by anainar

Sam is not very far, may be 45 mins drive from Jaisalmer Fort. If you intend to go further deep in the desert by hiring a camel, you might want to be there early. Else they take you on a camel ride for 10-15 minutes and drop you at a place of your choice. And will pick you up after you spend some time in the sands.

Why are you giving Bikaner a miss? Karni mata temple is not the only place. It has a nice fort, Junagarh fort. I am not fond of rats either but still stayed in Bikaner for 1 night to see the fort and visit local market. They sell nice bangles there and my wife went crazy in the local market.

Nainar

Nopes Nainar,definitely going to Bikaner,just giving the temple a miss.I am using your TL as a reference for the places to see.

Did you go to Ranakpur/Chittor/Eklingi/Srinathji temples?

[anainar]

Good. Dont miss Bikaner. I drove from Jaisalmer to Bikaner and the roads are awesome. Arrow straight roads, though two laned has sparse traffic and you can really test your drive.

Am not much of a temple man, but I did visit Ranakpur on the way to Jodhpur, from Udaipur, presuming I will be able to go to Kumbalghar as well before heading to Jodhpur in a day but was grossly mistaken. We reached Ranakpur spent some time but to go to Kumbalghar from there it requires another 50-60 kms of ghat section driving and it became dark. I drove to some distance in the direction of Kumbharghar only to find later that it futile as it became 4:00 PM and no point driving further in darkness in ghats. Adding to my misery some dude sent me via Desuri to Pali and Jodhpur when I inquired at Sadri about going to Jodhpur. I drove in one lane road till Pali, totally deserted road in dusk. It was a bit scary and I was stepping on the gas so as to hit NH14 before darkness fell in and I just made it in time.

I did not do Eklingi/Srinathji temples but if you two days in Udaipur you can do them in one morning.

I stopped at Chittor on my way back from Jaipur as I had to skip Agra since on Monday's Tajmahal is closed. I started from Jaipur by 10:15 AM, and was in Chittorgarh by 1:45 PM. Roads are fantastic with not much traffic, drove in NH8 till Kishangarh and from there NH79 which had almost nil traffic. We visited the Chittorgarh fort and that night stayed at Fort Bassi. Pretty nice place to stay if you intend to spend a night there. Do not miss Chittorgarh. Has so much history and valor that you will relish knowing what Mewar warriors stood for.

Nainar

[ranjitp1]

The plan has been modified thus to go in an anti-clockwise direction and Mt.Abu has been voted out sadly:(

D1:BOM-Baroda (visiting friends)
D2:Baroda-Udaipur(To reach UDP for lunch)
D3:Udaipur
D4:Udaipur-Jaipur(enroute stop at Ajmer & Pushkar)
D5:Jaipur
D6:Jaipur-Bikaner(Reach B'ner for early lunch)
D7:Bikaner-Jaisalmer
D8:Jaisalmer-Jodhpur
D9:Jodhpur-Baroda
D10:Mumbai

My queries:

1.Can Ghodbunder-Baroda be done in 8hours?Reccomended rest places on this stretch?

2.Can Vadodara-Udaipur be done in 5 hours?Any must not miss places to stop on this route?

3.Udaipur-Jaipur via Ajmer:Which is the reccomended route?NH8 or NH76(till Chittor)-NH79 combo?Any reccomended rest places on this route?

4.Can the following be done as day trips from Udaipur?

• Udaipur-Chittor(or is it better to see it enroute to Jaipur)
• Udaipur-Ranakpur-Kumbhalgarh-Eklingji-Haldighati-Shreenathji Temple-Udaipur

5.Also any police checkpost hotspots on any of the route?Is the yellow stripe still insisted by GJ police?Any mandatory stops at check posts?

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

1.Can Ghodbunder-Baroda be done in 8hours?Reccomended rest places on this stretch?

Yes, shorter time also if you are lucky with less truck traffic. Places in Manor, Charoti, Navsari.

2.Can Vadodara-Udaipur be done in 5 hours?Any must not miss places to stop on this route?

1 hour on the Vadodara-Ahmedabad expressway, 30 minutes on SP Ring Road, 4 on NH8 to Udaipur.

3.Udaipur-Jaipur via Ajmer:Which is the reccomended route?NH8 or NH76(till Chittor)-NH79 combo?Any reccomended rest places on this route?

Ideally, go on NH8, Udaipur-Eklinji-Nathdwara-Bhim-Beawar-Ajmer-Pushkar-Kishangarh-Jaipur.

Sounds quite a handful for a day, since you will stop at 3 temples and 1 dargah on the way. Depending on time taken, you may also end up staying at Ajmer or Pushkar. NH8 has poor facilities. But distances are not much. You can do Udaipur-Nathdwara in 1 hour, Nathdwara-Ajmer in 3 hours. 2-laned road all the way.

In case you want to cover Chittorgarh, you will have to go on NH76/NH79 combo. Day trip to Chittorgarh is not worth it.

4.Can the following be done as day trips from Udaipur?

• Udaipur-Chittor(or is it better to see it enroute to Jaipur)
• Udaipur-Ranakpur-Kumbhalgarh-Eklingji-Haldighati-Shreenathji Temple-Udaipur

• As stated above.
  
  

5.Also any police checkpost hotspots on any of the route?Is the yellow stripe still insisted by GJ police?Any mandatory stops at check posts?

No check posts. GJ police will not harass you on the highway, can be a problem only if you enter Ahmedabad city.

[anainar]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

My queries:

1.Can Ghodbunder-Baroda be done in 8hours?Reccomended rest places on this stretch?

I would say so. I hit Ghodbunder by 4:00 PM and was able to check into a hotel in Vadodra by 11:00, this despite a huge traffic jam in Surat.

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

2.Can Vadodara-Udaipur be done in 5 hours?Any must not miss places to stop on this route?

This may require some spirited driving but definitely doable. You need to exit at the right place from the expressway. You miss one exit and you are into the Ahmedabad city and will lose time. Look for Sardar Patel Ring road exit or the board that says Himat nagar.

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

3.Udaipur-Jaipur via Ajmer:Which is the reccomended route?NH8 or NH76(till Chittor)-NH79 combo?Any reccomended rest places on this route?

You will find very sparse traffic in NH79 and it is a four laned road. Jaipur-Chittor took less than 4 hours. I did not stop at Ajmer though.

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

4.Can the following be done as day trips from Udaipur?

• Udaipur-Chittor(or is it better to see it enroute to Jaipur
• Udaipur-Ranakpur-Kumbhalgarh-Eklingji-Haldighati-Shreenathji Temple-Udaipur

Chittor can be seen in a day with Udaipur as base. You can do it enroute Jaipur also in which case you save a day at Udaipur. But start early in the morning and Chittor is not very far from Udaipur an hour max and the roads are fantastic.

Your other option is tedious to be done in a day, primarily because of the ghat sections. Eklingji/Haldighati and Shreenathji can be done in one morning session. I did not visit them, but RTDC operates tour to those places and it takes only one morning session to complete them. If you add Kumbhalkar and Ranakpur it becomes difficult.

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

5.Also any police checkpost hotspots on any of the route?Is the yellow stripe still insisted by GJ police?Any mandatory stops at check posts?

If you stick to the expressway and bypasses I dont think you will be harassed. Atleast I was not though I did not have the yellow sticker. I did not encounter any mandatory checkposts thought passed through places where they were checking trucks.

Nainar

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

1 hour on the Vadodara-Ahmedabad expressway, 30 minutes on SP Ring Road, 4 on NH8 to Udaipur.

is the SP Ring Road a continuation of the expressway or do I need to deviate someplace to get onto the ring road?

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Ideally, go on NH8, Udaipur-Eklinji-Nathdwara-Bhim-Beawar-Ajmer-Pushkar-Kishangarh-Jaipur.

Sounds quite a handful for a day, since you will stop at 3 temples and 1 dargah on the way. Depending on time taken, you may also end up staying at Ajmer or Pushkar. NH8 has poor facilities. But distances are not much. You can do Udaipur-Nathdwara in 1 hour, Nathdwara-Ajmer in 3 hours. 2-laned road all the way.

Yes indeed,agree with you on this,it is quite a handful to do on an enroute way.I think we will do Ranakpur-Kumbhalgarh-Eklingji-Shreenathji-Udaipur as a day trip from UDP.

Is the 76-79 combo 4 laned with better facilities?or is the same as NH8?

Originally Posted by hvkumar

In case you want to cover Chittorgarh, you will have to go on NH76/NH79 combo. Day trip to Chittorgarh is not worth it.

Dont think we would go to Chittor,too much of a hassle to get off the highway and then get back onto it and then continue,might as well drop the place.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Ok,this is a whole lot of new info,will definitely take a dekko at these places.Not sure how much the early morning Sam would work out,maybe we might brave the heat and go there in the evening.Whats your view on using the services of guides and if yes,whats the best way to do it with minimum fuss?

Guide for Sam? No way... You could certainly use guides at the individual havelis in the Shekhawati region - their narration is quite interesting.

D6:Jaipur-Bikaner(Reach B'ner for early lunch)...

Stop over at Jhunjhunu for lunch and a dekko at a couple of havelis on way to Bikaner, reach Bikaner @4PM - just in time to visit the camel farm.

D7:Bikaner-Jaisalmer

Sightsee at Bikaner in the morning, leave for Jaisalmer after lunch - it's a 3-3.5-hour drive at most. Sightsee in Jaisalmer in the afternoon/evening.

D8:Jaisalmer-Jodhpur

Go to Sam in the morning, leave for Jodhpur from there.

Sunrise at Sam would be after 6:25AM in September - which means you can start from Jaisalmer @5:45AM, go to Sam and settle in to watch the sunrise. (Sunrise and Sunset for India – Rajasthan – Jaisalmer – September 2010)

EDIT:

Is the 76-79 combo 4 laned with better facilities?or is the same as NH8?

NH8 is the same single-carriageway highway it used to be 20 years ago (no toll there - lots of truck and extra-long trailer traffic, esp. north of Bhim, carrying marble from the local quarries). NH76-NH79 is dual carriageway toll road.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Stop over at Jhunjhunu for lunch and a dekko at a couple of havelis on way to Bikaner, reach Bikaner @4PM - just in time to visit the camel farm.

Thanx for this SS.Any suggestions on where to stop for lunch?any recco?Is the camel farm before we enter Bikaner?

Also any pointers on where the Sita temple in Rajasthan is?does it fall near any of the places in this proposed circuit?

Another q I have is,is the visit to Chokhi Dhani in Jaipur a must do thing?or is it something that can be given a pass?I read about it in almost anything and everything that see about Jaipur,so was just wondering.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by ranjitp1

Any suggestions on where to stop for lunch?any recco?

We'd stopped at a nondescript place on the highway itself - I'm afraid I can't recommend any place in particular. Maybe deky can help?

Is the camel farm before we enter Bikaner?

This is the place - just north of the city. :::: National Research Center on Camel : Bikaner ::::

Also any pointers on where the Sita temple in Rajasthan is?does it fall near any of the places in this proposed circuit?

Sita? or Sati? Not heard of any Sita temple in RJ, nor does Google point to any famous one.

Another q I have is,is the visit to Chokhi Dhani in Jaipur a must do thing?or is it something that can be given a pass?I read about it in almost anything and everything that see about Jaipur,so was just wondering.

Spend the evening there, have dinner (it's included in the entrance fee - 400 INR the last I knew - traditional RJ cuisine - though it's too hot/spicy for my personal taste), and experience Chokhi Dhani once. It's worth it IMO.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Sita? or Sati? Not heard of any Sita temple in RJ, nor does Google point to any famous one.

Spend the evening there, have dinner (it's included in the entrance fee - 400 INR the last I knew - traditional RJ cuisine - though it's too hot/spicy for my personal taste), and experience Chokhi Dhani once. It's worth it IMO.

Ok,we shall definitely go to Chokhi Dhani then.Sorry it was a typo(I meant the Sati temple),google shows it to be in Jhunjhunu,maybe will check it out once we reach there.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Sita? or Sati? Not heard of any Sita temple in RJ, nor does Google point to any famous one.

Spend the evening there, have dinner (it's included in the entrance fee - 400 INR the last I knew - traditional RJ cuisine - though it's too hot/spicy for my personal taste), and experience Chokhi Dhani once. It's worth it IMO.

Ok,we shall definitely go to Chokhi Dhani then.Sorry it was a typo(I meant the Sati temple),google shows it to be in Jhunjhunu,maybe will check it out once we reach there.

If someone on the forum could confirm these routes for my benefit would be grateful

• BOM-Udaipur (Ghodbunder-NH8/NE1/SP Ring Road/NH8)
• Udaipur-Jaipur(NH8 or NH-76/79 to Ajmer)
• Ajmer-Jaipur(NH8 via Kishengarh)
• Jaipur-Jhunjhunu(route?)
• Jhunjhunu-Bikaner(via NH11-Sikar-Fatehpur)
• Bikaner-J'mer(NH15)
• J'mer-Jodhpur:Route?
• Jodhpur-Ahmedabad:Route?