[nagvasireddy]

@CarZest - Me and some friends are "discussing" doing road trip to Goa in March last week. I know that this is not the "best" season to do Goa, but do you think it is still worth it. What activities and sight seeing would you suggest at this time of the year in Goa?

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by carZest

me and wifey just completed a hyderabad-goa trip in my i10. We followed the hyderabad-humnabad-gulbarga-bijapur-belgaum-amboli-savantwadi-calangute route. A big thanks to everyone (esp. Zappo) for the route details. Roads were excellent (except for the Amboli-Savantwadi stretch) and we did good time both ways.

Details below
TO
Started at 5 PM from Gachibowli.
-> Hyderabad-Zahirabad-Humnabad: Road good till 30 kms from Patancheru and then is bad. Good thing is you are off this road very quick.
-> Humnabad-Gulbarga-Bijapur (SH12). Great road, period.
Reached Bijapur at 11 PM. Stayed at Pearls Inn. Everything was great except for the bed-bugs! Guys, avoid this hotel.
Next day started at 8.30 AM after visting the Gol Gumbaz.
->Bijapur-Athani->Chikodi->Belgaum->Amboli->Savantwadi-Calangute
Reached Calangute by 3PM.

FRO
Same route, stayed at Hotel Kanishka International in Bijapur. No bed-bugs, but no hot water or room service before 7 am! Started at 12 from Calangute, and reached Bijapur at 7.30 PM. Next morning started at 6.30 and reached Miyapur junction at 1 PM.

Thanks once again guys!

Congrats for your trip CarZest. And thanks for the route and hotel update. I might be doing this bit in June (Goa always beckons, but adjusting our off days is tough to reckon)

I think you should have branched off at Sankeshwar towards Amboli, instead of going via Belgaum---would have saved you about 50 kms either way.
I have a few questions:-

1. How was the road near Chikkodi? Zappo said it was bad last year.
2. What was the total distance each way?
3. How about F.E. figures, and how the i10 performed on a long journey?
4. How bad was the stretch between Amboli and Sawantwadi? How long was it?
5. Your total time either way was around 14 hours, which is quite good. I might be tempted to do it on a single day.
6. Lastly, how about a travelogue?

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by nagvasireddy

@CarZest - Me and some friends are "discussing" doing road trip to Goa in March last week. I know that this is not the "best" season to do Goa, but do you think it is still worth it. What activities and sight seeing would you suggest at this time of the year in Goa?

Nag, goa is anytime a great place to unwind. However, just make a note that during March it would be terribly hot and humid and your sun-tan sessions can make you overtly tanned

I had an enjoyable nightlife at all seasons ( Dec-Best, Mar-June-Second Best, July-Oct-3rd Best) and it was awesome even during monsoon. So ditch the concern and just go for it.

At this time of the year, you can indulge in a lot of watersports. My suggestion would be as follows :-

Early Mornings- Take nice walks at beach

11am-2pm- Fun and Frolic in the hotel swimming pool along with your favorite beverage

2pm-4pm-Nap time

4pm-7pm- Water sports at the beach

7pm-9pm- Relax/Nap at the hotel

11pm-wee hours of morning- Head out to check out the nightlife of Goa at the popular clubs/eating joints that are dotted in N.Goa.

Well, i would do the above, if i am in goa right now

[himanshugoswami]

you can take Pandey out of Goa but cannot take goa out of Pandey

Seriously though, I feel any time of the year is good for Goa- wach season has its own unique experiences, and there is always one common theme all year round in Goa

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

you can take Pandey out of Goa but cannot take goa out of Pandey

You have said it considering i have been to Goa for a holiday 7 times in last 3 years.

Last time around i promised myself i wont go back for at least 2 years and now we have Nag here talking about Goa and that crazy urge is slowly seeping back into my mind which i am trying to throttle due to various reasons

[nagvasireddy]

Originally Posted by mobike008

You have said it considering i have been to Goa for a holiday 7 times in last 3 years.

Last time around i promised myself i wont go back for at least 2 years and now we have Nag here talking about Goa and that crazy urge is slowly seeping back into my mind which i am trying to throttle due to various reasons

Avi - what are those reasons

Count me in when you plan your next trip to Goa (even if I go to Goa this month)- I know a Goa expert when I see one

[pulsar56]

Originally Posted by mobike008

You have said it considering i have been to Goa for a holiday 7 times in last 3 years.

Last time around i promised myself i wont go back for at least 2 years and now we have Nag here talking about Goa and that crazy urge is slowly seeping back into my mind which i am trying to throttle due to various reasons

So, Goa, it is! Let's plan for a trip to Goa during the monsoons! Nag, expecting a travelogue from you once you are back (if you go(a)

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by nagvasireddy

Avi - what are those reasons

Count me in when you plan your next trip to Goa (even if I go to Goa this month)- I know a Goa expert when I see one

If i outline the reasons, you may decide to settle down there

Originally Posted by pulsar56

So, Goa, it is! Let's plan for a trip to Goa during the monsoons! Nag, expecting a travelogue from you once you are back (if you go(a)

Terrific idea, i always plan on the aug 15 weekend. This time around it is coming on a saturday

[nagvasireddy]

Originally Posted by mobike008

If i outline the reasons, you may decide to settle down there

I am all ears

Originally Posted by mobike008

Terrific idea, i always plan on the aug 15 weekend. This time around it is coming on a saturday

If there is nothing sancrosact about Aug 15 weekend, let's do it during any weekend in Monsoons when there are lot of holidays.

[carZest]

Sorry guys for the late reply. Came back and work caught up with me. Goa seems a long time ago!

@nagvasireddy - I think for Goa, any time is good! Sure, it was already quite hot 11 am onwards, so I guess April-May should be even hotter. But then does it really matter?

@vnabhi - Hmm, actually we wanted to go to Belgaum for lunch. And on the way back we wanted to stop by at a temple there. We have been to a lots of places in Karnataka, but we hadn't visited Bijapur/Belgaum.

Distance was ~800 kms both ways. Plus another ~100 kms of going around Goa. I got a mileage of ~18 for the trip. I was the only driver on the trip, so wanted to sleep the night(s).

14 hours thanks to:
1) The road, esp. Karnataka SH12
Road is clear with very few cars. Compared to my Bangalore runs, this drive was a breeze. And the Amboli ghat, well I think it pales in comparison to my Udupi-Agumbe, Chikamagalur-Shimoga ghat runs. The only part of the route I didn't like was the Humnabad-Hyderabad stretch on the return. People have no consideration for oncoming vehicles, and attempt to overtake a vehicle that is already overtaking another vehicle! Bad.

2) Road manners
The other reason why it was easy was because of the trucks (Karnataka and Maharashtra registrations only, not AP registrations!) and the KSRTC buses. They watch their driver side rear view mirrors all the time. So when you are behind them and face a slope or a blind, they will signal a 'no' until they can see it is clear. Then a simple wave of the hand and you can pass blind. I make it a point to wave to them after passing. The other nice thing - when the road is bad and narrow and a KSRTC bus happens to be coming at you, a simple hand out with fingers clenched is enough for them to climb down so that you stay on the road. After all the government pays for their chasis .

3) Night driving while going to Bijapur
We passed Humnabad at ~7, and reached Gulbarga around 8.30-9. Had dinner, and then a straight run to Bijapur. Road is excellent to drive in the night.

i10 on the highway, well a very good car. High points - overtaking a NHC on SH12 @120. Boom, never saw it again! Or the stability on the Amboli-Sawantwadi ghat curves. Sobering point - right after the NHC overtake, a Indigo overtook me. He was going >140!

The Sawantwadi part is quite bad. Kept going at 40-50 kmph on the stretch. Only good thing is it gets over quickly. We asked someone in Goa about NH4A but were dissuaded from choosing this for our return.

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Congrats for your trip CarZest. And thanks for the route and hotel update. I might be doing this bit in June (Goa always beckons, but adjusting our off days is tough to reckon)

I think you should have branched off at Sankeshwar towards Amboli, instead of going via Belgaum---would have saved you about 50 kms either way.
I have a few questions:-

1. How was the road near Chikkodi? Zappo said it was bad last year.
2. What was the total distance each way?
3. How about F.E. figures, and how the i10 performed on a long journey?
4. How bad was the stretch between Amboli and Sawantwadi? How long was it?
5. Your total time either way was around 14 hours, which is quite good. I might be tempted to do it on a single day.
6. Lastly, how about a travelogue?

[ranjitp1]

Just a quick update for Hyd people heading out to Goa.

Just got back from Goa

Went via Belgaum from Mumbai.At Belgaum went under the Belgaum Bypass flyover and entered the town and drove past KLE Medical College and at Rani Chennamma Circle took a right and entered NH-4A.We stopped at a shop to refuel for samosas & cold drinks and the shop keeper told us that its an excellent road except for a stretch of 20-25kms.We did not bother much about the 20-25km and continued.The road is a beauty till you reach Londa.At Londa when one takes the right,one immediately senses something is not going to be right.On both sides of the road you see mining and mining trucks parked.After 3 kms,one is in for the biggest shock of their life.

Holes as big as wells and there is no road.We just did not know what to do and to compound things we were in our Maruti 8 Class(800) and with a little one on board.On one craeter we almost thought we lost our our axle or something,but luckily we came out and continued.The depressing factor is that you expect the bad stretch to end and it never ends,you just dont see any semblance of a road for kilometers,just pure slush and dirt and huge holes.We had a Tata Marina family,driving along,but after sometime we saw them stopping for tea,not sure if they turned and went back or they came later.

The road improves only after Molem.Until Molem words would do injustice to the condition of the road,thats how bad it is.The only vehicles that you see on the road are the iron ore trucks driving like mad and scorpios carryng the mine owners and yes you would get to see a Kadamba bus once in a while.This was the scariest drive of my driving life.

So folks I would really recommend people not to be fool-hardy.Please dont consider this route until the entire stretch has been relaid.It tooks us 5hours to cover 140kms from Belgaum to Panjim.

Pune-Kolhapur:292kms:3hrs 45mins
Kolhapu-Belgaum NH4A:115kms:1hr 30mins
Rani Chennamma Circle:Panjim:160kms:5hours

Coming back we came back via Nipani,yes absolutely agree roads are not exactly great,but once you see the Londa-Molem stretch anything would impress you.For people coming in from Belgaum side,the sensible thing would be to take the Belgaum-Amboli road and reach Goa via Sawantwadi.Belgaum-Amboli is around 80kms.Amboli-Sawantwadi:35kms.Sawantwadi-Panjim:60kms.For a difference of a few kilometers more,I defi would say take the Amboli route.

Sawantwadi-Amboli:Excellent Condition:Arnd 80-100kmph
Amboli-Ajra:Chipped tarmac,couldnt go beyond 40-50 with my 155/70R12 size tyres
Ajra-Uttur:Tarmac is again excellent,80-100kmph
Uttur-Nipani:Good in patches.60-80kmph

Distance from Leela,Mobor(South Goa) to Nipani is 200kms and we covered that in 3hrs 20mins. (including a stop for a photoshoot & kekada(onion) bhajiyas at Amboli).Yes the waterfalls are in full flow now & much like the Bushy Dam.

Mobor-Nipani:200kms:3hrs 20mins
Nipani-Kolhapur:40kms:45mins

From Kolhapur,we had to come back to Hyd so took the Miraj-Go on Pandharpur Road till Sangole Circle(32kms before P'pur)-Right Turn-Mangalwedha-Solapur-NH9-HYD route.

Just for interest sakes:
Kolhapur-Miraj:Excellent roads.Upto 80kmph.Dense traffic though
Miraj-Sangole:Excellent to Good.No bad patches,but some areas with rough tarmac,80kmph
Sangole-Solapur:Excellent:100-110KMph

Kolhapur-Solapur:220kms:4hrs.Break @ Solapur.
Solapur-Hyd:NH9:300KMS:4hrs 20mins

Stayed at a very good place for Solapur standards.A place called City Park.Apparently its the best in the town from what the locals told us.We reached Solapur around 8pm and asked a few young college guys which is the best hotel is town and they told us about City Park.It right next to the Pune Chowk.

[watashi75]

So NH4A is back to its original shape! Lucky you could manage in a 800. We did the Londa stretch in Feb last year and that too at night. Great tracks for off-roading I must say. Somebody had mentioned in another thread that NH4A had been repaired but I guess the trucks and the monsoon have managed to undo everything.

[mobike008]

Ranjit, wow you did it in a M800. That's great. Thanks for the update, i am itching to go to goa on the Oct 2nd weekend. Knowing myself, i may at the last moment.

Where did you stay in Goa? Tarriff details please? Also City Park is the hotel which is on a steep? isnt it? with a roundabout IN and OUT gate. That one is pretty expensive, about 3K per night, if i am not wrong.

[vnabhi]

Rajit---that looks like an exciting trip you'd had. Thanks for the update on roads.

BTW is it raining in Goa----I am planning a trip to Mahabaleshwar this month end and might be tempted to reach out to Goa also.

[ranjitp1]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Rajit---that looks like an exciting trip you'd had. Thanks for the update on roads.

BTW is it raining in Goa----I am planning a trip to Mahabaleshwar this month end and might be tempted to reach out to Goa also.

Hi Nabhi,it isnt raining in Goa at the moment.It was till about the 8th of Sep,its fantastic weather at the moment.Rains were bad this year round,there was flooding in some of the villages and Panjim was waterlogged.But its all fine now.Go ahead and plan your trip.Just incase u havent made up u r mind,take the NH17 dont bother cutting back to NH4.You could even stop by the Riverside Resort by the Koyna river for some excellent views.This is at Chiplun.It was the Taj resort earlier.Also be sure to be stopped by the Maharashtra check post.they have a fascination for AP vehicles and their regular question is to show them the originals of the documents,which apparently most people do not carry.its the same q posed to most at solapur as well.but solapur cops have disappeared now.have been driving thru solapur for close to a year now and theyhave disappeared now.solapur police refused to accept that the smart card rc that AP RTO issues is original.I showed it to them the only one time i was stopped and they told me its something that i had got laminated myself.luckily since my wife spoke marathi we were able to convince them that it indeed was the original.

Originally Posted by mobike008

Ranjit, wow you did it in a M800. That's great. Thanks for the update, i am itching to go to goa on the Oct 2nd weekend. Knowing myself, i may at the last moment.

Where did you stay in Goa? Tarriff details please? Also City Park is the hotel which is on a steep? isnt it? with a roundabout IN and OUT gate. That one is pretty expensive, about 3K per night, if i am not wrong.

M800 is family now.Its clocked close to 45k in less than 2years,shes taken us around almost half the country.Just got the tyres changed to broader ones to 155/70 and its been super smooth sailing till now with FEs close to 20 when without AC and close to 17 with AC.Perfect for the 3 of us until now.Might need to upgrade once the little lady grows up.

At Goa we stayed at the Taj Aguada as well as at the Leela.A mix of north & south.The whole stay for 6nights cost us around 20KINR inclusive of all meals.They had this monsoon offer available.

At Solapur,when we asked people around they said City Park is the equivalent of a 3* in Pune.After check in when we saw the room,we quite agree with that statement.It was 1700 for a double ac with brkfast.When going from HYD you need to take a left into the town from Pune Chowk.Pune Chowk is the second junction on the bypass where the 2nd set of cops used to stand.The 1st one being at the turning into the bypass.Just follow the road and after the bus stand and the railway underpass you would find this on your right.Its at a place called Park Chowk or Hutatma chowk.Go further around 500meters and take a right you are on the Mangalwedha state higway.so it was easy for us.Let me know in case you need details.

Originally Posted by watashi75

So NH4A is back to its original shape! Lucky you could manage in a 800. We did the Londa stretch in Feb last year and that too at night. Great tracks for off-roading I must say. Somebody had mentioned in another thread that NH4A had been repaired but I guess the trucks and the monsoon have managed to undo everything.

Yes the stretch was in excellent shape till about June 1st week.After the rains its back to its old self.People were telling us that initially the hairpin bends on the ghat the roads had tar on them,but now even that has disappeared.even the bends are craeterholed.no semblance of roads on the turns as well.very very dangerous towards dusk as the eyes havent yet adjusted to the light.