[ramki067]

Hey Guys,
Want to cover these places in October this year(depends on Covid): Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jaipur, Agra and New Delhi. Please suggest me an iternery for covering the mentioned places in an Tavera/Innova like vehicle with 2 adults and a 7 yr kid in 10-15 days. Also is Ahmedabad a good starting point as i plan to fly till Ahmedabad and then take up the tour.
Thanks in advance.

Ramki

[gourav88]

Hello BHPians,

I am planning to travel from Bangalore to Bikaner in Rajasthan this October in my Altroz i-Turbo. I have never done such a long road trip and I will be accompanied by my wife (can drive if needed) and my 4 year old son.

Can you please guide if

Option 1 - Bangalore --> Pune (night stay 1) --> Ahmedabad (night stay 2) --> Jodhpur (no stop) --> Bikaner (destination) will be the best route to follow

or option 2- Bangalore --> Solapur --> Aurangabad --> Ratlam --> Bhilwara --> Ajmer --> Bikaner

OR option 3 - Bangalore --> Hyderabad --> Nagpur --> Bhopal --> Kota --> Jaipur --> Bikaner?

So far, I am leaning towards option 1 (since my cousin traveled from Pune to home last year and has given extremely positive feedback about the road and route, in general). But I am open to suggestions and will plan according to responses I get here.

Also, I plan to leave Bangalore by 4-5 am on day 1 and at least 5:30 am on next 2 days and take 15-20 minute break every 300 km or so. Any other tips in general, especially while traveling a young kid?

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by gourav88

Bangalore to Bikaner

Although am tempted to suggest route 2. Kannad is extremely unpredictable. Both times I've taken, I've lost about 1-2 hours negotiating the ghat. Also Chalisgaon-Dhule is just bad.

So I would suggest Bangalore-Pune-Nasik-Malegaon-Dhule-Ratlam-Chittor-Bhilwara-Bikaner.

The only thing you have to plan is on exiting Pune before traffic picks up. You don't have any other major towns to negotiate after Pune

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by narayans80

Although am tempted to suggest route 2. Kannad is extremely unpredictable. Both times I've taken, I've lost about 1-2 hours negotiating the ghat. Also Chalisgaon-Dhule is just bad.

Last Friday, someone who is driving to the Himalayas had to avoid Kannad only because of the recent landslides that has resulted in closing of this ghat till at least Sept 15th when authorities plan to open it up for light vehicles only. Hence, he ended up doing Aurangabad - Vaijapur - Yeola option to reach Dhule.

Closure of Kannad that sees extremely heavy truck traffic (major corridor as you mentioned elsewhere) also means alternate routes will be choked too.

I still feel it should be Option 1 for the destination mentioned with proper planning in terms of departure and crossing of major cities.

[VT-RNS]

Originally Posted by gourav88

Hello BHPians,

Option 1 - Bangalore --> Pune (night stay 1) --> Ahmedabad (night stay 2) --> Jodhpur (no stop) --> Bikaner (destination) will be the best route to follow

Also, I plan to leave Bangalore by 4-5 am on day 1 and at least 5:30 am on next 2 days and take 15-20 minute break every 300 km or so. Any other tips in general, especially while traveling a young kid?

Sounds like a great trip to drive!
Given you are travelling with a young kid, I would only recommend Option 1. Few pointers:

1) The facilities (food, rest-stops, motels) are available in plenty throughout the route, and also you have a wide variety of quality to choose from (budget-wise). Don't think the other route options offer the same quality or quantity.
I say this from own experience of driving through Nasik, Dhule, Indore, Aurangabad stretches in the last 2 years + some family members did the RJ-MP stretches like Jaipur - Kota - Indore recently and their views were not impressive w.r.t overall facilities on offer, road quality or even time saved.

2) This will be a busy route (be it BLR- Pune or Mumbai-Baroda), but we know the road quality is good. My parents did Mumbai --> Jodhpur as part of a longer drive last month, and good roads throughout.
Traffic after you cross Ahmedabad is considerably lighter, so gets much easier to drive too (and less stressful, which isn't the case for Pune --> Mumbai --> Ahmedabad section, despite wide roads)

3) I would suggest, given you are travelling with a young kid, don't stretch too much to meet your target. Take an earlier break if needed--you have plenty of options to choose from. For example, my parents reached Ahmedabad earlier than expected, so they drove on till Abu Road and got a good hotel easily (thanks to BHPian's reco that I had kept as option).

4) Strongly suggest you leave Pune by 5 am, use Belapur-Thane road after you have left Expressway on Mumbai side, and then take Godhbunder road (via Airoli Mulund Bridge or Airoli-Thane bridge, my preference would be Airoli-Mulund) to join Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway at Hotel Fountain junction by 9 am. This will help avoid Mumbai outskirts traffic.
If you are delayed than this to cross Mumbai, then reaching Ahmedabad on same day is a stretch (see next point for a suggestion).

5) Ahmedabad to Bikaner in one day is doable, though longer. If you are not in a rush, take a break as it would be your 3rd day of 10+ hours of driving. And 4 y.o. kid might also be cranky of sitting in a car for such long stretches. Thus, if you reach Baroda from Pune on second day, then Baroda - Jodhpur on the next day makes your day 2 and day 3 relatively less burdensome, while allowing you to reach Bikaner by lunch on day 4 with even a post-breakfast start by 8 am.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you need more info.

I love Jodhpur & Bikaner and have had the luck to visit it 2-3 times and always had good memories. The Gajner palace near Bikaner is a favorite, such a gem

Cheers!

[mikepapa]

[quote=gourav88;5148118] OR option 3 - Bangalore --> Hyderabad --> Nagpur --> Bhopal --> Kota --> Jaipur --> Bikaner?

I did this route December 2020 except for the fact that we skipped the Bhopal route and went through Jhansi.

Day 1: Started from Bangalore on a Friday 2 PM and reached Medchal at 10 PM at night. Stayed at Medchal as it was closer to the highway and avoided the Hyderabad morning traffic rush.

Day 2: Started from Medchal at 9 AM and reached Jhansi at midnight Saturday (00:30 hours)

Day 3: Started from Jhansi at 10 AM to reach Jaipur by 8 PM on Sunday.

Stayed in Jaipur for 4 days (inlaws place)

When you go from Jaipur to Bikaner, I would strongly recommend you to swing by Nawalgarh & Mandawa. The havelis are awesome and also called Asia's largest open air art gallery. Must include in itinerary.

Day 9: Started from Jaipur at 6 AM. Reached Nawalgarh by 9 AM. Hiked around photographing the town parking the car at a safe spot.

Left Nawalgarh at 1 PM for 30 km drive to Mandawa. Reached by 2 PM. Explored the havelis for 2 hours.

Started from Mandawa at 4 PM to reach Bikaner by 8:30 PM.

Stayed at Bikaner for 2 nights and then pushed off for Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Ranakpur, Udaipur, Kumbhalgarh, Chittorgarh to end the circuit. Overall 22 days trip.

Return journey was Chittorgarh-Surat-Mumbai-Pune-Bangalore.

All the best for your trip! Rajasthan roads 90 percent awesome! You would love the drive.

[acquillew]

Originally Posted by gourav88

Hello BHPians,

I am planning to travel from Bangalore to Bikaner in Rajasthan this October in my Altroz i-Turbo. I have never done such a long road trip and I will be accompanied by my wife (can drive if needed) and my 4 year old son.

Can you please guide if

Option 1 - Bangalore --> Pune (night stay 1) --> Ahmedabad (night stay 2) --> Jodhpur (no stop) --> Bikaner (destination) will be the best route to follow

So far, I am leaning towards option 1 (since my cousin traveled from Pune to home last year and has given extremely positive feedback about the road and route, in general). But I am open to suggestions and will plan according to responses I get here.

Goo choice on option 1. Ahmedabad to Jodhpur is mostly a breeze if you start early and cross Palanpur before the city wakes up. Like suggested above, this route has plenty of eateries and is almost a no-risk route.

[Subrat Seet]

Hello Everyone,
I am planning a road trip from Mumbai (Tardeo) to Sena, Pali, Rajasthan.
Any idea about road conditions?
Places to take break for Breakfast, Lunch and evening tea/coffee?
Roads to avoid and any does and don't.
Thanks and regards
Subrat

[VT-RNS]

Hi Subrat,

My parents drove from Mumbai to Delhi via Baroda, Ahmedabad (bypass), Abu Road, Pali, Jodhpur, Jaipur route two months back (August). All good roads, no major issues anywhere. There is usually a heavy presence of truck movement, in addition to busy Surat - Bharuch - Baroda stretch thanks to passenger cars, which makes the route busy, but no traffic jams encountered. After Ahmedabad, the busy-ness on the road reduces considerably.

On day 1, they drove from Mumbai to Abu Road, and next day, reached Jodhpur via Pali.

Food options are plenty on this route, esp till Ahmedabad. A good chain is "Honest" (they have a good Pav Bhaji here!) that you see in GJ, but you will find McDs (near cities) as well as tons of options throughout. I wouldn't be too worried about food options.
We usually take a break at Honest just before Baroda for lunch, then avoid stopping till Ahmedabad (or its bypass) and usually take a tea break at the small cafe on the highway at Shanku's water park (its on Ahmedabad - Mehsana highway).

You could potentially reach Pali in one day, though it will be a long drive.

Strongly recommend a 5 am start as that helps with managing traffic since it gets busy from Mumbai towards Vapi in the mornings if you start a bit late.
If you have already planned to reach Pali in 2 days, then you can take it easy.

Hope this helps!

Cheers!

[Subrat Seet]

Originally Posted by VT-RNS

Hi Subrat,

My parents drove from Mumbai to Delhi via Baroda, Ahmedabad (bypass), Abu Road, Pali, Jodhpur, Jaipur route two months back (August). All good roads, no major issues anywhere. There is usually a heavy presence of truck movement, in addition to busy Surat - Bharuch - Baroda stretch thanks to passenger cars, which makes the route busy, but no traffic jams encountered. After Ahmedabad, the busy-ness on the road reduces considerably.

On day 1, they drove from Mumbai to Abu Road, and next day, reached Jodhpur via Pali.

Food options are plenty on this route, esp till Ahmedabad. A good chain is "Honest" (they have a good Pav Bhaji here!) that you see in GJ, but you will find McDs (near cities) as well as tons of options throughout. I wouldn't be too worried about food options.
We usually take a break at Honest just before Baroda for lunch, then avoid stopping till Ahmedabad (or its bypass) and usually take a tea break at the small cafe on the highway at Shanku's water park (its on Ahmedabad - Mehsana highway).

You could potentially reach Pali in one day, though it will be a long drive.

Strongly recommend a 5 am start as that helps with managing traffic since it gets busy from Mumbai towards Vapi in the mornings if you start a bit late.
If you have already planned to reach Pali in 2 days, then you can take it easy.

Hope this helps!

Cheers!

Thank you so very much for your reply. Actually, i will be driving in the route almost after a decade. I had done a round trip in 2011 from Mumbai-Udaipur-Jodhpur-Jaisalmer-Ahmedabad-Mumbai.

Mumbai to Udaipur- started at 4 am and reached by 6 pm.

To Pali, it is showing about 834 km. I generally start early to avoid traffic. One day drive to pali would be bit long but got a bit of confidence after driving upto Bhopal which took about 15 hours. So, lets see.
Just one query - The yellow sticker on the headlight - is it still required in Ahmedabad cause last time traffic police caught in Sardar Patel Ring road and i had to manage him.
Thanks and regards
Subrat

[VT-RNS]

Originally Posted by Subrat Seet

To Pali, it is showing about 834 km. I generally start early to avoid traffic. One day drive to pali would be bit long but got a bit of confidence after driving upto Bhopal which took about 15 hours. So, lets see.

Just one query - The yellow sticker on the headlight - is it still required in Ahmedabad cause last time traffic police caught in Sardar Patel Ring road and i had to manage him.
Thanks and regards
Subrat

Hey,
So I did the Bhopal drive too recently, and although distance is near about same to Udaipur (750 kms), it just takes longer for Bhopal thanks to some bad roads in MH and slight traffic near Indore. Took me 15 hours as well.
For same distance, I did Udaipur in 12 hours with stops.

If you want to stretch yourself a bit, sure, go for the 1 day drive. I would do it, to be honest. But if you have elderly or want to enjoy, then make it 2 days [i have planned to halt at Statue of Unity whenever I drive that side, and might be a good mid-break for such distance ]

As for the yellow sticker, I drove to Ahmedabad twice in last 2 years with our MH car. Never questioned about it (though both times they checked for alcohol)

Cheers!

[Subrat Seet]

Originally Posted by VT-RNS

Hey,
So I did the Bhopal drive too recently, and although distance is near about same to Udaipur (750 kms), it just takes longer for Bhopal thanks to some bad roads in MH and slight traffic near Indore. Took me 15 hours as well.
For same distance, I did Udaipur in 12 hours with stops.

If you want to stretch yourself a bit, sure, go for the 1 day drive. I would do it, to be honest. But if you have elderly or want to enjoy, then make it 2 days [i have planned to halt at Statue of Unity whenever I drive that side, and might be a good mid-break for such distance ]

As for the yellow sticker, I drove to Ahmedabad twice in last 2 years with our MH car. Never questioned about it (though both times they checked for alcohol)

Cheers!

I did the Bhopal trip in January this year. You are right about the road conditions and traffic.
I would mostly do it on the same day (Mumbai to Pali) as no elderly people traveling.
Thank you once again.
Regards
Subrat

[ruzbehxyz]

Has anyone lately been to Munabao ?

As per last information, the permits to be taken from Barmer or Gadra. Is it the BSF office or any other place ?

Please advice.

[aadi2700]

Hi guys I'll be undertaking a trip to Jodhpur later this month as I had to collect my stuff from the college hostel.(After almost a year and half and with reopening still quite some time away )

The final stretch from Bar to Jodhpur was under an advanced stage of construction when I had gone there previously. So I would really appreciate if someone could update me with the current status of the road.

Thank you.

[amit_purohit20]

Hello I plan to do Pune - Ahmedabad- Palanpur- Barmer- Jaisalmer- Longevala- Jaislamer- Bikaner- Jodhpur- Ahmedabad-Pune trip in max 9 days.

Please give suggestions on routes.
Please give places to visit, especially temples and famous religious places.

I have a senior citizen with me so let me know places to avoid where it requires lot of walking.
Thanks