[suneetdmello]

Hi guys. This is my first post on this forum. I own a year old Skoda Rapid 1.6 TDI, Odometer reading 21300 kms. Am planning a trip to Ooty from Goa mid May with my family and needed some advice on the best and fastest route to take.

A few points to take into consideration;

1. I am the only experienced driver. (Have driven to Pune, Mumbai, multiple times and surrounding areas of Goa,, example, Dandeli, Belgaum, Murudeshwar, etc).

2. My sister would be driving only for short distances to give me a break and so that we don't lose time. (But I plan to keep that to a minimum).

3. Total 5 people would be in the car all adults.

I have done a bit of research using Google Maps and read a few threads on this forum and I think the best route to take would be as follows;

Mapusa ---- Bicholim ------ Sanquelim --------(via Chorla) Belguam ---- Hubli ---- Sira ---- Mysore ---- Ooty

And while returning back,

Ooty ----- Mysore ------ Bangalore ------- Hubli ----- Belgaum -----Sanquelim ------ Bicholim ------ Mapusa


On the way back I intend to stay overnight at Bangalore.

Now what I need to know is

1) the road conditions. Especially from Sira to Ooty and from Ooty to Bangalore. Rest of the way I assume is NH4 and four lane and hence not a problem.

2) What would be the approximate drive time considering that for all purposes I will be the only driver. I intend to take a 30 minute break every 150 kms in such a manner to coincide the breaks with stops for meals/restrooms.

3) What time would I need to leave in order to ensure that I reach Ooty before 8pm. I would prefer reaching on the same day.

4) Is there any alternate route that I should consider. Good roads are my main priority?

5) Any other precaution I should take?

Kindly advice at the earliest. Thanks.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by suneetdmello

Mapusa ---- Bicholim ------ Sanquelim --------(via Chorla) Belguam ---- Hubli ---- Sira ---- Mysore ---- Ooty

You dont exit NH4 at Sira but a bit earlier at Hiriyur.

Hiriyur-Huliyar-Nelligere-Nagamangala-Pandavpura-Srirangapatna-Mysore.


Route Link

1) the road conditions. Especially from Sira to Ooty and from Ooty to Bangalore. Rest of the way I assume is NH4 and four lane and hence not a problem.

From Hiriyur its good 2-lane roads. You can do decent speeds but you slow down at towns. Otherwise roads are good

2) What would be the approximate drive time considering that for all purposes I will be the only driver. I intend to take a 30 minute break every 150 kms in such a manner to coincide the breaks with stops for meals/restrooms.

We are talking about 800 km. A 30 minute every 150km would definitely add to the delay. If you start by 3/3:30 AM, you should make it by late evening. Esp. give the fact that you also have ghats at the end. I would advise to start one day early. So, that you also enjoy the drive near Ooty.

3) What time would I need to leave in order to ensure that I reach Ooty before 8pm. I would prefer reaching on the same day.

If you start by 3AM

- About 200 km to Hubli 3-4 hours due to Chorla
- Another 250 km to Hiriyur (3.5 - 4 hours) Fast 4-lane driving
- Another 200 to Mysore (4-4.5 hours) Thanks to 2-lane roads and reduced speeds
- Another 150 to Ooty (via Gudalur. This is assuming you dont take hairpin bends route via Masinagudi in late hours) 3-4 hours.

This would add up to at least 14-16 hours of driving. Add to it food breaks

4) Is there any alternate route that I should consider. Good roads are my main priority?

Even if you take the 4-lane via Bangalore you dont gain much time due to increased distance.


Last but not least : Picture this : Bangalore-Pune is 800+ km and it takes good 13-14 hours at decent speeds and all this on 4-lane roads.
Hence I would suggest with family on the road, you may want to re-check your target for the day.

[filcord]

Hi Suneet welcome to the forum.
I would not try to do Mapusa-OOty in one day for the following reasons:
The last three hours before OOty is mountain roads with plenty of bends and quite a bit of traffic
you would be tired and your reflexes not at their best
Driving in these conditions in twilight and darkness would be an added risk.

I have done it before, and my route was to start Mapusa around 5 am, go via Sawantwadi, Amboli to Belgaum and then NH4 to Bangalore. Reach Bangalore by 6 pm. stay overnight, then Bangalore to Mysore to Ooty next day.
If you leave Bangalore by 5 a.m or so, plan to reach Ooty by 5 pm. You will enjoy the drive, and as an added bonus there's a famous restaurant half-way between Bangalore and Mysore which has the most heavenly dosas!

BTW is Chorla Ghat road re-surfaced and pukka?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by filcord

BTW is Chorla Ghat road re-surfaced and pukka?

Chorla has seen fresh tar and today is in pink of its health! Its the best ghat road entrance to Goa. So from that point of view its not an issue at all.

[suneetdmello]

Thanks a lot Ampere and Filcord. Really appreciate the help. Will make an overnight stop at Bangalore and proceed the next day. Thanks once again.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by suneetdmello

Thanks a lot Ampere and Filcord. Really appreciate the help. Will make an overnight stop at Bangalore and proceed the next day. Thanks once again.

What I can suggest is instead of Bangalore, you take the 2-lane roads from Hiriyur to get to Mysore by evening. That would be a better option and doable as well. And you can start leisurely the next day without getting into the traffic of Bangalore-Mysore road.

[filcord]

Suneet tell us how it went. Which route did you take? Post your experiences along the way.

[WheelWake]

Bumping up an old thread to understand/evaluate Goa to Ooty route as an alternate to Goa - Udupi - Chikmagalur (as my top destination in CKM isnt available - Tothodahalli). As I am living in Bangalore now I do not want to drive to Bangalore and then to Ooty that will feel like odd. I am also not very keen on stopping over at Mysore. But if required I can do that.

I was actually hoping to get a route which includes either a drive along the coast and enter the western ghats somewhere?

My current plan was to do Goa-CKM via Udupi in 2 days and I hope I can plan a similar drive time for Goa-Ooty. So does Goa-Managalore-Ooty route makes sense?

I will be travelling with my kid and hence dont want stretch any day too much and keep it balanced as mush as possible?

Thanks in advance.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by WheelWake

I will be travelling with my kid and hence dont want stretch any day too much and keep it balanced as mush as possible?

You can do Goa-Ankoka-Honnavar-Jog-Shimoga-Arsikere-Hassan-Mysore-Bandipur-Ooty.

Gives you best of both words. Some amount of coast and some part of ghats. Please also Mysore-Gundlupet is widened and is now a pain to drive. But I think you may have a choice.

Oh wait one option:

Goa-Ankoka-Honnavar-Jog-Shimoga-Arsikere-CR Patna-KR Pete-Srirangapatna-Bannur-T-Narasipura-Chamarajanagar-Gundlupet-Bandipur-Ooty.