[andyonwheels]

Originally Posted by ashlyak

We travelled from Udaipur - Ahamadabad - Mumabi - Pune - Bangalore, last month.

I am doing the exact same route in few days - except in reverse starting from Bangalore. Any more general tips?!

[ashlyak]

Great to know there are more people like me, who are driving from Bangalore to RAJ !

Well, our trip was from Bangalore-Pune-Ellora-Jaipur-Bikaner-Udaypur-Ahamadabd-Mumbai-Pune-Bangalore.

The roads are good, and nothing to worry about. I was carrying a 20 lt jerry can with diesel , but never used. There are lots of fuel stations on the way. Only issue we faced was - you hardly get non-veg food ! The friend, who as travelling with me is a hard core non-veg believer, and that was the only issue we faced.

We used to hit the accommodation by 8 PM or 10PM, since we had miles more to drive on the next day. And you will get enough number of places to stay on this route, when the road reaches near major cities. ie: We were looking for accommodation near Anand (GUJ), we were not able to spot good ones near the highway. But as we reached near Ahamadabad, there were lots of options. So, plan you trip that way.

Rest all general tips for long drives are already covered in multiple threads. If you have any specific questions/need clarification, feel free to ask.

[andyonwheels]

Originally Posted by ashlyak

Well, our trip was from Bangalore-Pune-Ellora-Jaipur-Bikaner-Udaypur-Ahamadabd-Mumbai-Pune-Bangalore.

: ) Cool!

Strange - now i am doing almost the same as your onward trip but only on my way back. Haha!
Sujangarh-Ratlam-Ellora-Ajanta-Kolhapur-Bangalore

How is the Pune-Ellora-Jaipur stretch? What route did you take for the Pune-Ellora-Jaipur stretch? Was is Ratlam-Chittorgarh? How are the road conditions?

We are planning on parking overnight at Ratlam then head to Ellora first and then to Ajanta before returning back via Kolapur to Bangalore.

[ashlyak]

Pune to Aurangabad to Ellora road is not as great as GQ road. But nothing to complain about ! Which vehicle you are going to drive ?

And from Ellora, we went direct to Jaipur. Close to 1000 KM drive. We took many stops and it was a 15hrs drive. But all thanks to Duster ! We were fresh and not tired after that 15 hrs.

We were not able to include Ajantha in our list, since we had only 10 days for our trip.

There were two times, when I felt so humble and small. First one was when I saw Ellora - thinking of how they might have planned the project and how they might have completed it, after taking so many years. Second was when I met the great Narmada river ! Man, what a beauty ! I have never seen any river so big so mesmerizing like Narmada.

Our trip from Ellora to Jaipur was via Mhow, Ratlam, Chittorgrah,Bhilwara,Jaipur. During this trip, our plan B was (ie: in case, if we are tired or it is night, or we were not able to enjoy the drive), to break the journey at Chittorgrah. And next day, early morning dash to Jaipur.

We felt that some of the areas in MP, (in that route) too lonely and all most no private vehicles on the road. May be, these roads are not safe during night, not sure, need to check with people who know this area. Well, just a word of caution to you.

[andyonwheels]

Originally Posted by ashlyak

There were two times, when I felt so humble and small. First one was when I saw Ellora - thinking of how they might have planned the project and how they might have completed it, after taking so many years. Second was when I met the great Narmada river ! Man, what a beauty ! I have never seen any river so big so mesmerizing like Narmada.

great! thanks for the tips -
am now more excited for the ajanta-ellora visit.

[Gannu_1]

We are headed to Udaipur tomorrow from Surat for the weekend. Planning to depart at 4 AM via the Kamrej exit.



Since we had been to Ahmedabad during Diwali last year, we have some idea about the roads until there. And I understand that the Sardar Bridge has been reopened for both ways so there is no need to take the Golden Bridge and enter Bharuch. Instead from Ankleshwar, we could take the bypass and proceed.

Google Maps suggests that before the expressway ends at Ahmedabad, we should be taking an exit here:


towards Udaipur so we need not enter the city limits. We have no clue how the roads are from Ahmedabad to Udaipur!

I hope we could find some decent restaurants/dhabas en route for a quick breakfast and chai. The plan is to reach Udaipur before noon and rest/sleep for a while before heading out. Please let me know if there is anything else. Thanks!

[mvp]

[quote=Gannu_1;3390634]


towards Udaipur so we need not enter the city limits. We have no clue how the roads are from Ahmedabad to Udaipur!
QUOTE]

I travelled from Ahmedabad to Udaipur last month by a multi-axle Volvo. Started around 7PM and reached Udaipur by 11:30PM. The journey was comfortable and so I guess the roads are good.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

We are headed to Udaipur tomorrow from Surat for the weekend. Planning to depart at 4 AM via the Kamrej exit.

Attachment 1219155

Since we had been to Ahmedabad during Diwali last year, we have some idea about the roads until there. And I understand that the Sardar Bridge has been reopened for both ways so there is no need to take the Golden Bridge and enter Bharuch. Instead from Ankleshwar, we could take the bypass and proceed.

Google Maps suggests that before the expressway ends at Ahmedabad, we should be taking an exit here:
Attachment 1219156

towards Udaipur so we need not enter the city limits. We have no clue how the roads are from Ahmedabad to Udaipur!

I hope we could find some decent restaurants/dhabas en route for a quick breakfast and chai. The plan is to reach Udaipur before noon and rest/sleep for a while before heading out. Please let me know if there is anything else. Thanks!

To exit from Baroda-Ahmedabad expressway, please note down the coordinates:
20 kms from the Reliance Petrol Pump
5 kms milestone for Ahmedabad
You will see the third main exit on the expressway (the penultimate ext) where the first sub-exit is marked for Sarkhej/ Rajkot & the second sub-exit is marked for Himmatnagar/ Udaipur (as shown in your map).
Take the SP Ring Road till you reach NH8 at the Ranasan Circle (after crossing the Ramol & Ranasan toll gates on the SP Ring Road).

Ahmedabad-Himmatnagar-Shamlaji-Ratanpur-Rishabdeo-Udaipur is one of the best roads. Pile up of truck traffic from Ratanpur onwards where the ghats start.

From Surat, lots of places to stop over till Baroda. After that, hardly any.
If you leave Surat by 630 am, you won't reach Udaipur before 2-3 pm unless you do a non-stop no-break drive.

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Pile up of truck traffic from Ratanpur onwards where the ghats start.

Yikes! I hope we don't lose our average speed in this stretch.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

From Surat, lots of places to stop over till Baroda. After that, hardly any. If you leave Surat by 630 am, you won't reach Udaipur before 2-3 pm unless you do a non-stop no-break drive.

We will be leaving Surat at 4 AM sharp so I am guessing we'd be crossing Baroda 2 hours later. Maybe we could stop for breakfast somewhere at Ahmedabad around the SP ring road, if there's any.

Many thanks for the tips Kumar Sir! Appreciate it.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

Yikes! I hope we don't lose our average speed in this stretch.



We will be leaving Surat at 4 AM sharp so I am guessing we'd be crossing Baroda 2 hours later. Maybe we could stop for breakfast somewhere at Ahmedabad around the SP ring road, if there's any.

Many thanks for the tips Kumar Sir! Appreciate it.

Plazzio is a good place on Baroda bypass.
You can try Takshashila on Ahmedabad SP Ring ROad.
Hotel Landmark in Himmatnagar is also good.

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Plazzio is a good place on Baroda bypass.
You can try Takshashila on Ahmedabad SP Ring ROad.
Hotel Landmark in Himmatnagar is also good.

We've stopped at Hotel Landmark right now.

There were road repairs in the Baroda-Ahmedabad expressway in 2 stretches about 35 km from Ahmedabad before the Reliance fuel pump and diversions were in place as a result. One section was closed down and vehicles were moving at a slow pace and we lost out on our average speed in these 2 stretches. But we caught up later on.

We passed Best Western Takshashila way back at 7:45 AM. Not the time for breakfast so we gave it a skip and Landmark came at 8:50. Perfect timing! Thanks for the help Kumar Sir. Immensely helpful tips.

[Topolino]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

We've stopped at Hotel Landmark right now.

There were road repairs in the Baroda-Ahmedabad expressway in 2 stretches about 35 km from Ahmedabad before the Reliance fuel pump and diversions were in place as a result. One section was closed down and vehicles were moving at a slow pace and we lost out on our average speed in these 2 stretches. But we caught up later on.

While returning back to Surat you can go via Modasa-Lunavada-Godhra-Halol-Vadodra. The road is in better condition than via Himmatnagar-Ahmedabad road. Also you can avoid sections where road repairs are going on and traffic between Chiloda-Ahmedabad

[Gannu_1]

Wrapped up the Surat-Udaipur journey without any troubles.

- From Surat, there were 7 toll booths in total. Since our car was registered under the Surat RTO, we didn’t have to pay at the first toll booth. Total amount to be paid was Rs. 329 so that’s Rs. 748 for the whole trip. Here are the toll slips:



- The NE-1 was mostly good except a couple of stretches - 25 km and 30 km before Ahmedabad, wherein diversions were in place and repair work was being carried out by IRB. Fortunately, the diversions were removed during our return journey.





- A small stretch after the SP Ring Road, Ahmedabad had some bad roads. Lasted around 10-12 km IIRC.



- Towards Udaipur, roads were good albeit curvy. There was a slight congestion at Ratanpur (GJ-RJ border) with goods trucks and trailors waiting to clear the sales tax queue. No issues for private cars though.



- Sights like these were very common in these stretches:













- Some of the roads were beautifully constructed with proper dividers in place and Bougainvillea bushes on the sides. The bushes required some trimming though. Probably not being attended to unlike the roads in the NE-1 stretch.





- Himmatnagar is a good pit-stop between Ahmedabad and Udaipur with some good restaurants and lodges especially for those doing night drives looking for an overnight halt. Hotel Landmark (as suggested by HV Kumar Sir) and Hotel Milestone have 2 very good vegetarian restaurants. A wholesome breakfast (idli-dosa-vada types) for 2 came to approx. Rs. 250. Looks reasonable. Washrooms were clean and hygienic so thumbs up again.





- Between some stretches of the road towards Udaipur after crossing the Ratanpur border, there were grooves spaced out. I am not sure why these were in place. Are these for waking up the truck/trailor drivers doing long distance drives, who may tend doze off? Not really sure but have a look:



They would create an irritating noise each time we swerve left and right.

- Fuel at Udaipur was cheap. Diesel was priced at the 56-57 Rs. mark. In comparison, the prices in Surat is around the 62 Rs mark. We filled the tank to the brim!

Originally Posted by Topolino

While returning back to Surat you can go via Modasa-Lunavada-Godhra-Halol-Vadodra. The road is in better condition than via Himmatnagar-Ahmedabad road. Also you can avoid sections where road repairs are going on and traffic between Chiloda-Ahmedabad

But we didn't want to skip the Baroda-Ahmedabad NE-1. Rarely do we get to drive on roads like these.

Would surely like to try this road sometime in the future though.

[Topolino]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

- Between some stretches of the road towards Udaipur after crossing the Ratanpur border, there were grooves spaced out. I am not sure why these were in place. Are these for waking up the truck/trailor drivers doing long distance drives, who may tend doze off? Not really sure but have a look:

Attachment 1221381

They would create an irritating noise each time we swerve left and right.

These are the imprints where tarmac got accumulated in between the wheel track of heavily loaded trucks (like one you clicked with blocks of marble) and formed humps as high as 10-15 cm, which are now scrapped off. Earlier it was very risky to drive at speeds on these humps.

[Sprucegoose]

Hey guys,
I'm headed to Udaipur tomorrow.
I'm leaving Bombay around 4PM [Don't want to postpone it as I will lose the option to stop somewhere if I get tired]

Is there any news on the condition of the Highway?
My mum was saying that there has been a bridge collapse on the Mumbai Ahmedabad highway, but when I googled it i just got news of an accident yesterday when a tanker caught fire.

Is the road Open?

Regards,
Sprucegoose