[black_panther]

I am planning to drive from Kolkata to Nainital and proceed to Ranikhet to meet my cousin and his family once I return back to India.

I looking forward to a time before the onset of monsoons, sometime in June. Although Nainital was great during the rains when I last visited there around ten years ago.

I prefer to drive on roads with good surface and would drive an extra 100 miles to avoid bad roads.

I have not worked on the details, but plan to drive till Varanasi on Day1 and then halt the next night somewhere near Kathgodam and reach Nainital on Day3.

The routes that I found from google are as follows:

Route 1:
Kolkata - Varanasi on NH2 , followed by NH56 till Lucknow.

Route 2:
Kolkata - Kanpur on NH2, followed by EW corridoor till Lucknow (not sure about the latest conditon).

I am looking at the route 2 for now.

I am not sure about the best route from Lucknow. NH24 (Lucknow-Sitapur-Rampur) is shown as "Under Implementation" on the NHAI website. Do I expect a lot of diversions there?

I was somewhat disheartened to find out that a bhp-ian avoided Lucknow - Nainital last year to avoid bad roads. Are these roads in the same state this year as well?

I wouldn't mind halting an extra day at Kanpur/Lucknow to encounter bad roads on the following day.

Is there any other alternate route to look for better road/driving conditions?

I would be travelling with my wife and our son would be of 2 years by then. He is a seasoned traveller and has already completed 4500 kms across India and another 12000 miles at the US. Therefore, no issues with him, except for the requirement of occasional breaks after 3-4 hours of driving.

I'll be driving a 2009 Jan, Chevy Aveo.

I would also require information regarding night halt possibilies near Lucknow and somewhere near Kathgodam. Any decent air conditioned accomodation would be sufficient.

Also, we found a decent hotel at a reasonable distance from NH2 at Varanasi last time, but would stretch till Allahabad if someone is able to suggest a reasonably safe place for accomodation before or after the Allahabad bypass. I would not drive through Allahabad if not absolutely necessary.

[hvkumar]

I think it a batter idea to turn off NH2 at Allahabad and go to Lucknow from there instead of from Varanasi. The former is in good condition, but I heard that Varanasi-Lucknow was not in great shape.

No updates on NH24 between Lucknow and Rampur.

There is no accommodation available on or before the Allahabad bypass, it is best you go into the city and shop for hotels of your choice in Civil Lines area.

If contemplating going via Kanpur, do not take the elevated road bypass, instead keep underneath and turn off towards Ramadevi Chwok at the south end of Kanpur city and thereby connect to NH25 to Lucknow.

[SS-Traveller]

NH24 between Lucknow - Rampur is being 4-laned, and road condition (as in November 2010, after the late monsoons) was not good. The main issue is not about the bad surfacing (it's bearable) but the frequent traffic jams at diversions and when running through small towns. This stretch is best covered very early in the morning or late at night.

Also, IMO driving CCU-Kanpur-Lucknow would be faster, though longer, than diverting to LKO from Allahabad. LKO-Benaras is an absolute no-no - stick to NH2.

[recker_us]

There are limited accomodations in Kathgodam. Your best bet is KMVN guest house. Else you can look for acco in Haldwani.

[black_panther]

Thanks.

I would stick to the Kanpur-Lucknow route. My revised plan is to reach Varanasi/Allahabad on Day1, a short drive till Lucknow on Day2. I have not been to Lucknow, may be we can visit some of the interesting places there if time permits.

I would start off early on Day3, to avoid the crowds on NH24 and reach Nainital on the same day. Does 5:30-6 AM sound good?

Conisdering diversions on NH24, is it a good idea to get off the NH at Shahjahanpur and rejoin NH74 at Jahanabad, thereby bypassing Bareilli and Rampur?

I would consider Haldwani for a night halt if required.

[black_panther]

I wish the dates published on the NHAI website were true! The Lucknow-Sitapur section is due completion on March 2011.

Is it possible to have a night halt somewhere near Sitapur?

I would like to aviod the Bareilly - Lalkuan-Haldwani route to avoid factories and heavy truck traffic at Lalkuan. But I am not sure whether the other options are any better.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by black_panther

I would stick to the Kanpur-Lucknow route. My revised plan is to reach Varanasi/Allahabad on Day1, a short drive till Lucknow on Day2.

CCU-LKO is driveable in 1 day - @1100km, driving time 15 hours (including breaks) at most. Leave CCU at 4am and you can check in at LKO by 7pm. Excellent road. You will have all of Day 2 to explore LKO.

I would start off early on Day3, to avoid the crowds on NH24 and reach Nainital on the same day. Does 5:30-6 AM sound good?

4-4:30 am is a good target time to leave LKO - truck traffic is lowest between 3am & 6am on the highways.

Conisdering diversions on NH24, is it a good idea to get off the NH at Shahjahanpur and rejoin NH74 at Jahanabad, thereby bypassing Bareilli and Rampur?

Shahjahanpur-Pilibhit - I'm not aware of the condition. The other (to my mind, more preferable) option is Bareilly >> Pantnagar (SH37) >> NH87 >> Haldwani >> Kathgodam. Just heard the road was being relaid a month ago, so I would expect to have a decent surface (though narrow).

I would consider Haldwani for a night halt if required.

Why bother? Straight up to Nainital is eminently doable.

[black_panther]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

CCU-LKO is driveable in 1 day - @1100km, driving time 15 hours (including breaks) at most. Leave CCU at 4am and you can check in at LKO by 7pm. Excellent road. You will have all of Day 2 to explore LKO.

Considering a hot summer day, is it a good idea to explore LKO during the day? I was thinking of driving during the day and roaming around in the late afternoon/evening.

4-4:30 am is a good target time to leave LKO - truck traffic is lowest between 3am & 6am on the highways.

I was worried a bit about the safety issues. Otherwise 4:30 am in the morning should be fine.

Shahjahanpur-Pilibhit - I'm not aware of the condition. The other (to my mind, more preferable) option is Bareilly >> Pantnagar (SH37) >> NH87 >> Haldwani >> Kathgodam. Just heard the road was being relaid a month ago, so I would expect to have a decent surface (though narrow).

Good to know that Bareilly >> Pantnagar >> Haldwani is being relaid. This is definitely the most preferred route from Lucknow to Nainital. However, someone who has taken this route from Lucknow earlier has complained of too much truck traffic at Lalkuan due to the factories there. He said that static trucks were all lined up and blocked the road.

But the information is good enough to rule out the Rampur >> Bilaspur >> Halwani route for now.

Another reason for considering Shahjahanpur is that, google showed a good number of hotels for night halt there.

Why bother? Straight up to Nainital is eminently doable.

Sure. This is entirely a back up plan for safety reasons, in case we are delayed.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by black_panther

Considering a hot summer day, is it a good idea to explore LKO during the day? I was thinking of driving during the day and roaming around in the late afternoon/evening.

LOL... I'd rather have a full siesta after a nawabi meal! (This thread might help.)

I was worried a bit about the safety issues. Otherwise 4:30 am in the morning should be fine.

No known issues in that area. West of Moradabad and Moradabad-Bareilly are the known dicey areas for night travel, but no issues at break of dawn.

... someone who has taken this route from Lucknow earlier has complained of too much truck traffic at Lalkuan due to the factories there. He said that static trucks were all lined up and blocked the road.

True. Also jammed due to the sugar cane season, which is over from mid- / end-March.

This is entirely a back up plan for safety reasons, in case we are delayed.

Head for Rudrapur if required - one of the fastest-growing cities in that region. Plenty of new hotels there.

[black_panther]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

LOL... I'd rather have a full siesta after a nawabi meal! (This thread might help.) .

Some YYummy food!! I'll need to budget atleast a day at LKO.


I was going through some other threads and found that Uttarakhand was severely affected by floods last year. I was out of touch with the road conditions for sometime and overlooked the situation.

I plan to do some driving beyond Nainital. I have not decided on all the destinations yet, but I intend to include at least Ranikhet and Kausani in the list. Is there any update on the road conditions in that region? Or is it advisable to rent a car (with driver) to do all the sight seeing.

I'll need to drive to Ranikhet (NH87) as we intend to spend a couple of days there.

[black_panther]

I had to postpone the tour till October-November this year for several reasons.

Here is the update that I received on the road conditions on June 1st.

Did lucknow -sitapur-bareilly-nainital stretch on 1st june and road conditions are as mentioned below:
1. Lucknow to Sitapur – Very good. Expressway is almost complete except couple of places where Flyovers are uncer constructions but those stretches are very small so need not worry. They have not yet started charging toll.
2. Sitapur to Shahjahanpur – Good. Not a dual carriageway but one can drive at descent speeds.
3. Shahjahanpur to Bareilly – Ok type roads.
4. Bareilly to Haldwani – Single carriageway. Ok roads.
5 Haldwani to Nainital – Good roads.

Hope this helps.

[abhi_N]

I am planning for a road trip from Kolkata to Munsyari with my family during October. Below is the plan :

Day 1 : Kolkata -> Allahabad
Day 2 : Allahabad -> Bareilly
Day 3 : Bareilly -> Nainital
Day 4 : Nainital -> Bageshwar -> Chaukori
Day 5 : Chaukori -> Patal Bhubaneshar -> Chaukori
Day 6 : Chaukori -> Munsyari
Day 7 : Munsyari
Day 8 : Munsyari -> Pithoragarh ( via Jauljibi Madkote Road )
Day 9 : Pithoragarh -> Tanakpur
Day 10 : Tanakpur -> Lucknow
Day 11 : Lucknow -> Varanasi
Day 12 : Varanasi -> kolkata

Please let me know if it looks viable, specially with a small vehicle like India Vista.

I have already booked KMVN at Chaukori and Munsyari.

What would be the best route between Varanasi to Haldwani ? Google map shows many options. Is it better to stick on to NH2 till Kanpur and then go via Lucknow ?

Thanks,
Abhijit

[black_panther]

Originally Posted by abhi_N

I am planning for a road trip from Kolkata to Munsyari with my family during October. Below is the plan :

Day 1 : Kolkata -> Allahabad
Day 2 : Allahabad -> Bareilly
Day 3 : Bareilly -> Nainital
Day 4 : Nainital -> Bageshwar -> Chaukori
Day 5 : Chaukori -> Patal Bhubaneshar -> Chaukori
Day 6 : Chaukori -> Munsyari
Day 7 : Munsyari
Day 8 : Munsyari -> Pithoragarh ( via Jauljibi Madkote Road )
Day 9 : Pithoragarh -> Tanakpur
Day 10 : Tanakpur -> Lucknow
Day 11 : Lucknow -> Varanasi
Day 12 : Varanasi -> kolkata

Please let me know if it looks viable, specially with a small vehicle like India Vista.

I have already booked KMVN at Chaukori and Munsyari.

What would be the best route between Varanasi to Haldwani ? Google map shows many options. Is it better to stick on to NH2 till Kanpur and then go via Lucknow ?

Thanks,
Abhijit

Nainital -> Bageshwar -> Chaukori - This can be too long a journey for a day. You can take the route via Almora.

Last year, the roads in the Pithoragarh side were affected by the floods. But both the routes to Choukori (via Almora or Kaushani) were in good shape. The onward road to Munsiyari was also good. If the road conditions in the Pithoragarh district have not improved, it would be advisable to stick to the Almora/Kaushani routes.

For both the KMVNs, the super-deluxe/most expensive rooms on the top floors have the best views.

Varanasi - Allahabad bypass - Lucknow should be the ideal route, although I am not aware of the road conditions.

[joybhowmik]

Originally Posted by black_panther

Nainital -> Bageshwar -> Chaukori - This can be too long a journey for a day. You can take the route via Almora.

Is it? Probably depends on the mode of transport. By private car, it takes around 7-8 hours with breaks. And you don't need to drive into Almora town - just take the bypass. Of course if you spend time at Bageshwar temples - add another couple of hours.

[abhi_N]

Originally Posted by black_panther

Varanasi - Allahabad bypass - Lucknow should be the ideal route, although I am not aware of the road conditions.

Hi Black_panther, thanks for replying. Did you mean, Allahabad > Raebareli > Lucknow through NH24B and then Sitapur > Shahjahanpur > Bareily through NH24 ?

Also please suggest me if it would be prudent to go beyond Nainital and stay somewhere else, so that we can do the Bageshwar Chaukori route at ease? Why I am asking is we've been to Nainital twice in the past, but quite sometimes back, and it would be nice to spend some time in Bageshwar temple while travelling to Chaukori. Can you suggest any good place apart from Almorah, which I don't like personally.

Thanks a ton