There are multiple travelogues for Bhutan. This is yet another one.
I think the sheer thought of driving 6000 kms is quite daunting and specially for family members for whom 8 to 10 hours drive is quite long already, the thought of driving all the way to Bhutan and back is not really easy to digest.
Not going much into overcoming the initial resistance of all family members, extended family members. But straight to the Travel Part.
Car: Innova Crysta 2.8G AT
No of people - 2 adults, 2 children. (14 yr and 7 yr)
The route chosen was - start date 17th April
1. Bangalore to Rajahmundry
2. Rajahmundry to Bhuvneshwar
3. Bhuvneshwar to Kolkata
4. Kolkata to Siliguri
5. Siliguri to Phuentsholing
6. Thimpu, Paro, Punakha
Same route back. Back in Bangalore on 3rd May.
Preparations
1. Car service : The car is quite new - bought it in July 2018. Got the 10K service done. Filled it up with Synthetic oil.
2. Tyres - Filled them up with Nitrogen. Just went to the local fuel station and filled the tyres with Nitrogen. I am not sure how useful it is - but it held the pressure well - got it topped up at a tyre shop on my way back and the pressure had not changed at all.
3. Bought a large Duffel Bag from Amazon basics - The unstructured shape, I think is very useful for usage on long journeys in a car. A simple search on amazon will yield results on what I am referring to. I think this was a good buy instead of using suitcases which occupy more space in a car.
Day 1: Bangalore to Rajahmundry : We took the route via Kadapa to Rajahmundry (Google showed us this route). Early 4:30 AM start and we reached Rajahmundry by 7:30 PM.
Do note this route i.e. via Kadapa has very limited or almost no places to have breakfast. Best is that you either take the route via Tirupathi or carry some breakfast with yourself. Other than the road is quite good. And day time temperatures are beyond 40 in Summers in this area.
Nearing Rajahmundry - you see acres of paddy crops and some beautiful canals
At Rajahmundry we stayed the night at River Bay Resort. A decent place. booked through Make my trip. You can see the Godavari river, it is right on the bank.
A model ship in the reception area
Day 2 : Rajahmundry to Bhubaneswar: This is pretty standard road, stick to NH16 and it is an 8 hour drive.
The Chilka Dhaba is something one must make a stop - Almost everyone on this forum who has been on this route mentions so we made a stop there as well. Good Prawn masala and rice and some sweets (looked like Malpua) but I am not sure about the name - delicious none the less.
Day 3 : Reached Kolkata - Took an additional days' break in Kolkata. It felt like an achievement to reach Kolkata. The Rabindra Setu or Second Hoogly Bridge welcomes one to Kolkata.
Another reason to stay in Kolkata for additional day was to reach Phuenthsoling on a Monday. The immigration office is Not open on Saturday and Sunday
The Drive from Kolkata to Siliguri is not the best. The NH16 is being constructed at many places. And it took us almost 14 hours to cover 550 odd kms. Booked a place on Sevoke Road, again from MMT to spend the night.
The Drive from Siliguri to Phuentsholing is quite scenic, you get the coronation bridge, tea estates and forests.
We reached Phuentsholing on 22nd there we realised the gates were closed for the elections and will open only the next day after 6 PM !. This was terrible news.
But quite a bit of requesting with the immigration authorities at the gate, showing confirmed stays in Phuentsoling and Thimpu helped us get our car into Phuentsholing.
The Gate from Phuentsholing side.
Straight to the Immigration office. I think there is enough information on how to get the permits already on the forum.
You need
1. Passports / Voter identity cards. We had passports so it was simpler
2. Confirmed booking of stay
3. Itinerary - even a rough one written on paper will work.
4. Photographs
And after taking finger prints you get the entry stamped on your passport
Then straight to the RSTA to get your car permit. Again standard documents
1. Driving license
2. Insurance
3. RC book
4. Pollution certificate
5. Fees - Nu 100 per day. This place did not accept INR so had do a quick currency change for this
If you have your passports the entry permits then your passports get stamped and you don't need to wait for the physical print out of the entry permits.
I think one should plan to stay the night in Phuentsholing, nice town, best place to buy all the souvenirs. I had read it is significantly cheaper there and it is true. My children wanted to buy the local dress - Gho and Kira and the people recommended to go back to Jaigaon and buy them there - much cheaper. We did that. Good placed to eat as well.
Kizom coffee for good coffee and snacks
Hotel Bhutan Residence. This hotel again booked using Make My trip. I think the hotels in Bhutan are cheaper than on the Indian Side. I would highly recommend that you stay on Bhutan' side if you need to spend a day near the border.
The the next day drive to Thimpu - Again scenic amazing drive. You get 2 check posts along the way to get your permits verified. You need to make sure to get your permits verified there.
Entering Thimpu City
Arrived at the resort. We had booked Thori resort again using Make My Trip.
This resort is a decent. We had to book 2 rooms per night and also this resort is good when you have your own car - It is remote and 5 kms in the hills can take 20 mins to go to nearest restaurant to eat, which is the main city. The hotel has decent options to eat but it is better to go any restaurant in Thimpu city.
We decided to head to Thimpu city to roam around. Some pictures from the city itself.
The Clock Square. There was some song and dance program for a fund raising event.
At the entrance of the Restaurant Bhutan Kitchen
Children spinning the prayer wheels
A local girl helping my daughter with the exact way of wearing the Kira
Football match in the olympic stadium