[abhikb]

Hello,
Would suggest you to plan your stay at Ahmedabad or Mehsana. These places are good 8-10 hours drive from Mumbai. In case you are willing to stay in Rajasthan, then would suggest you to drive till abu road which is 750 Kms from Mumbai and 3 hours from Ahmedabad.

[prad]

Hi all,

Am planning a Mumbai-Ahmedabad-Jodhpur trip in December to meet some friends. I will certainly post my experiences once I get back (assuming the plan works out).

To plan better for the trip, would request some suggestions / advice on the Ahmedabad-Jodhpur leg, please -

- Am planning to meet some friends in Ahmedabad and leave around 2pm on a Saturday - how long does the journey really take - Google Maps says 7:45 hrs (i.e. I reach around 10pm) - is that a fair estimate?

- I am very comfortable driving on highways in the night - mainly in and around Mumbai-Pune-Bangalore-Chennai-Madurai-Hyderabad. This would be my first road trip to Rajasthan. Looks like I will will end up driving after it is dark - it would be unfamiliar roads for me. What is your recommendation - is this fine, or should I replan my day to start right after breakfast (say 10am) so that I can reach before it gets dark...

Thanks,
Pradeep

[ts75]

Originally Posted by prad

how long does the journey really take - Google Maps says 7:45 hrs (i.e. I reach around 10pm) - is that a fair estimate?

I would guess it's a fair estimate. In any case, will not take more than 9 hours even with a very sedate driving.

Originally Posted by prad

What is your recommendation - is this fine, or should I replan my day to start right after breakfast (say 10am) so that I can reach before it gets dark...

I have left Ahmedabad at 5 pm and reached Jodhpur at night. But to each his own. Cannot generalise. Just watch out for the cows on the road.

[VT-RNS]

Originally Posted by prad

- is that a fair estimate?

- What is your recommendation - is this fine, or should I replan my day to start right after breakfast (say 10am) so that I can reach before it gets dark...

Hi Pradeep,

The estimate sounds right. During my drive to North India in Jan 22, I crossed Ahmedabad around the same time and had crossed Abu Road just around sunset (5.30 pm iirc)! While roads are busy till Palanpur (with some work happening on Mehsana bypass), the traffic reduces considerably once in RJ.
Specifically, I remember the roads till Pali (I went towards Beawar/Jaipur thereafter) were a bliss and driving in the night felt quite safe too as its an imp NH with minimal zip-zap-zooming private cars and truckers minding their own business with fairly good lane driving.

I haven't done the Pali-Jodhpur recently but have driven at night in RJ between Jodhpur-Jaipur a year back and as long as you stick to NH, I don't think you have anything to worry about.

However, if you want peace of mind, its always better to leave early and minimize night-driving... which you'll read is a best practice recommended on the thread regarding long distance driving as well.

Restaurants & rest-stops do thin out once in RJ, so keep that in mind (vs. the plentiful that you see in GJ).

Enjoy and have fun in Jodhpur (its a city I love a lot and visit often!) Cheers!

[acquillew]

Originally Posted by prad

Hi all,

Am planning a Mumbai-Ahmedabad-Jodhpur trip in December to meet some friends. I will certainly post my experiences once I get back (assuming the plan works out).

To plan better for the trip, would request some suggestions / advice on the Ahmedabad-Jodhpur leg, please -

- Am planning to meet some friends in Ahmedabad and leave around 2pm on a Saturday - how long does the journey really take - Google Maps says 7:45 hrs (i.e. I reach around 10pm) - is that a fair estimate?

- I am very comfortable driving on highways in the night - mainly in and around Mumbai-Pune-Bangalore-Chennai-Madurai-Hyderabad. This would be my first road trip to Rajasthan. Looks like I will will end up driving after it is dark - it would be unfamiliar roads for me. What is your recommendation - is this fine, or should I replan my day to start right after breakfast (say 10am) so that I can reach before it gets dark...

Thanks,
Pradeep

Hi Pradeep,

I do this stretch often and you should be able to do this stretch is about 6:00 - 6:30 hours from Ahmedabad (Adalaj) to Jodhpur city entry. Mehsana to Palanpur is 6 lanes and there onwards, traffic is scarce. You will be near Pali around 6:30 and it should be an hour or so from there. With traffic snarls in Ahmedabad or Mehsana, you should still be in Jodhpur by maximum 9 PM. Be careful once you enter Rajasthan though - there are interceptors anywhere. Specially around Pali. Sticking to 90 kmph is safe - both with cops and animals on the road.