Team-BHP - Bangalore to Tirupati : Route Queries

Quote:

Originally Posted by sairamboko (Post 3897053)

I reached Tirupathi around 8:30pm yesterday . Started at 2pm from my home at Kasavanahalli . To reach the highway it took 1.5 hours!! On the way to Tirupati, while taking Chitoor bypass, we also went to Kanipakkam Ganesh temple. Had a good darshan. Staying at Hotel Bhima deluxe. Got a great offer from make my trip- one night stay for ₹938 and later again am staying here for ₹738.

On the way to Kanipakkam, there is also a famous hanuman temple in a place called Aragonda (Ardhagiri). Belief id while carrying Sanjeevi hill on his hand , a portion of the rock from the hill fell on this place.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ravib (Post 3891944)

1) From Leela palace, you can take Suranjandas Road and join Old Madras Road and drive straight further down via K.R.Puram, Kolar, Palamaner, Chitoor Bypass to reach Tirupati. You don't need to go via Madanapalle as the roads are good enough in normal route plus you get added advantage of food/rest room break options.
2) You can budget for 4 hours minimum to 5 hours max including breaks. So 8 am start should land you at around ~1 pm at Tirupati. You can finish your lunch, take a break and start to Tirumala around 4 pm to join the queue around 5 pm.
3) You may try PLR Grand behind Bus stand. There are lot of options in different budgets in Tirupati.
4) To my knowledge all these years, No there are no private accommodation. All bookings are through TTD.

-Ravi

Thanks. I went via the route you suggested, and it took me 4.5 hours to reach Vishnu Nivasam, opp. Tirupati Railway Station. This included a 30-minute break for breakfast between Mulbagal and Palamner. The road was 4-laned upto some distance after Mulbagal, after which it abruptly became a 2-lane one. But traffic was moving at decent speed despite that. Only issue was overtaking slow-moving trucks on the twisty roads around Palamner.
We almost missed the left turn to Tirupati before Chitoor, but luckily my wife spotted a board which read 'Devasthanam 12 kms'. Not sure what it meant because Tirupati was more than 65 kms from that spot.

We returned on the other route that goes via Pileru, Madanapalle and Chintamani. This route was 2-laned completely, but took us through some thick forests and curvy roads. Some parts of the road were patchy near Chintamani. It becomes 4-lane after that till it joins the Chennai highway at Hoskote. The return took us a total of 4.5 hours, which included a 15-minute break for buying fruits. The distance was 10 kms less, but the driving time was around 15 minutes more.

My family enjoyed the return trip more due to scenic beauty, but I could do better speeds on the Chennai highway as it was 4-laned almost 60% of the distance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vnabhi (Post 3902259)

Good. Hope you had good darshan.
How long it took to complete darshan and in which ticket/queue you went ?

-Ravi

Quote:

Originally Posted by ravib (Post 3902275)

Good. Hope you had good darshan.
How long it took to complete darshan and in which ticket/queue you went ?

-Ravi

We had booked eDarshan tickets for Rs 300 each for the 6 pm to 7 pm slot. We entered the queue near SMC 211 around 610 pm, and reached the spot where they scan the tickets around 15 minutes later.

We were ushered into a large hall in the Vaikuntam complex soon after that (hall number 32), and we were kept inside it till 815 pm! We thought it would take at least 5 hours in all, going by that experience of confinement.

But soon after the hall gates were opened, it took us only 40 minutes to have the 15 second darshan. So the darshan was over by 910 pm. But it took us another 20 minutes to exit the temple, because of a new system they have introduced that allows either entry or exit through the main door. Earlier there was a barricade in the middle that permitted movement in both directions.
It took us around 10 more minutes to get the laddoos, and there was hardly any rush there. From there it took us another 20 minutes to walk to the open ground at SMC where our car was parked.

Lessons learnt:

Start driving at least 2 hours before your darshan timing from your hotel downhill. We made the mistake of stating 65 minutes prior, but got stuck for 30 minutes at Aliprii, due to inadequate security staff, and too many vehicles.
Take the minimum luggage in your car, as all items need to be scanned, and that takes time. Leave the rest in your hotel room.
Don't forget to buy your toll ticket at Alipiri after scanning. Nobody told us, and we were stopped at the entrance of Tirumala and asked to pay Rs 100 as penatly, instead of the normal toll of Rs 30. To make matters worse, the amount has to be paid in Vijaya Bank. As time was short, the security guy agreed to pay it on our behalf, and gave us a slip that would allow us to exit at the same spot without the toll receipt. I reached that spot at 5:50 pm, with barely 10 minutes to spare.
There are new one-ways in Tirumala, so i lost by bearings in trying to navigate to SMC, which is easily accessible without the one way rules. I finally could find the parking lot at 6:05 pm , after lots of inquiries.
Leave your footwear and mobile phones in the car. You will save time by doing so.
Online booking has strict dress code, so please be compliant.

Quote:

Originally Posted by palsaumik (Post 3910389)

I am planning to visit Tirupati on 13-Feb with my family from Bangalore.

:OT My mother-in-law is a senior citizen. She is unable to stand for a long time nor can she walk for long distances. What are the facilities provided to escort such senior citizens? Any detailed information would be of tremendous help. Cheers!

There is a senior citizen queue available (a shelter near the foot over bridge in south mada street) through which senior citizens can wait and enter temple in specific time.For those who cannot walk independently can be accompanied by another person. ID proofs are must.
I believe the senior citizen queue opens at 10 am, so people have to wait from 8 am or so. They will provide breakfast/food as well IIRC. For this senior citizen queue there is no need to climb any steps/stairs or difficult paths for kms. They need to walk till main gopuram and enter the temple , have darshan and come out. Should not take too long for walking and having darshan, however, the waiting times may be bit high.

Also beware of little push even in senior citizen queues caused by those younger people accompanying senior citizens.

Call TTD helpline numbers as they are usually helpful and provide latest information.

-Ravi

Quote:

Originally Posted by palsaumik (Post 3910389)

I have just returned from Tirupati yesterday. The crowd is very low and darshans are very easy. Regarding the Senior citizen darshan, there is one at 09:30 am in the morning and the other at 03:00 pm in the afternoon. Ideally, the Senior citizen darshan should not take more than 30 minutes to complete. She can reach the queue entrance not more than 5 minutes before the allotted time. Unless, she is completely unable to walk or require additional assistance, they do not allow any people to accompany. But lot of help is available based on the condition of the senior citizen and hence should be easy. Please ask her to carry an identity card (Aadhar card / Voter ID) and it should be easy. PS: Even wheel chairs are also available on request. The darshan entrance is right opposite to the main entrance and there is a signage for people to locate it. I would like to advise that she completes the darshan on 13th Feb itself, since 14th Feb happens to be RathaSaptami and they are expecting a huge crowd in Tirumala on that day. You could expect heavy rush and this could be for senior citizens as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by condor (Post 3917926)

Are there any decent places for food (veg) at/before Madanapalle ? Plan is to start after breakfast from BLR, and have lunch at Madanapalle before proceeding further.

Nope. As far as my memory goes there is no big/decent place for food in Madanpalle. We went to a rather small hotel to get some tea and for a loo break and that was again nowhere close to recommendable. And if you are looking for veg-only hotels, you better stick to the usual Old Madras Road. But if you have breakfast just before you hit the highway, I guess you should be able to manage with a snack break and then have a good lunch at Tirupati instead of compromising for a bad lunch at Madanpalle.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vnabhi (Post 3902465)

Lessons learnt:

Start driving at least 2 hours before your darshan timing from your hotel downhill. We made the mistake of stating 65 minutes prior, but got stuck for 30 minutes at Aliprii, due to inadequate security staff, and too many vehicles.
Take the minimum luggage in your car, as all items need to be scanned, and that takes time. Leave the rest in your hotel room.
Don't forget to buy your toll ticket at Alipiri after scanning. Nobody told us, and we were stopped at the entrance of Tirumala and asked to pay Rs 100 as penatly, instead of the normal toll of Rs 30. To make matters worse, the amount has to be paid in Vijaya Bank. As time was short, the security guy agreed to pay it on our behalf, and gave us a slip that would allow us to exit at the same spot without the toll receipt. I reached that spot at 5:50 pm, with barely 10 minutes to spare.
There are new one-ways in Tirumala, so i lost by bearings in trying to navigate to SMC, which is easily accessible without the one way rules. I finally could find the parking lot at 6:05 pm , after lots of inquiries.
Leave your footwear and mobile phones in the car. You will save time by doing so.
Online booking has strict dress code, so please be compliant.

Thanks Vnabhi for the detailed description!

We have booked e-darshan at 5pm to 6pm slot on 27th Feb (coming saturday). Will be driving with family (Mom, Dad, wifey and 5 year old son) and plan to start early from Bangalore on 27th and check into Fortune Grand Ridge by 12pm. Leave for Tirumala by 3pm after lunch and some rest and reach before 4:30pm for the darshan time at 5pm. Few queries for frequent travellers:

Planning to take the usual Mulbagal-Chittoor-Tirupati route. Which is the best place for breakfast on this route?
Is the above timing good or should I reach Tirumala earlier than this?
Best Parking spot and how far is it from the main temple?

Many Thanks!

Regards
Vinay