[RogueRobot]

Kolkata to Bengaluru trip – October 2024

I had once before done the Chennai to Kolkata trip in 2023. This was my first time doing Kolkata to Bangalore. I had three nights in between, which is one more than the usual two that I’ve seen on these forums. Most of my trip – till Tada near the Tamil Nadu border, was spent on the NH16. The trip was deliberately planned as a beach/water-visit tour. It was a very scenic route, and I think my stops were a little on the other side of typical. I enjoyed the trip a lot, and this is the chronicle.

Day 1 – October 6, 2024, Kolkata to Brahmapur, Odisha
Night stay at OTDC Panthanivas, Gopalpur-on-Sea.
Distance travelled – approx. 630 km

Started at around 4:45, still dark. Since I live close to the airport, I took the Nivedita Setu and reached the Jaladhulagori toll plaza around 5:37 pm. My first stop was the Malti Hotel & Restaurant. At around 75 km, this place is, for me, a perfect stopover, well clear of the city and suburbs traffic, and just before the more fancy places across the bridge in Kolaghat. It’s an unassuming place – serves plain butter toast or omelette toast and muri-ghughni, but it is delicious fare in a good setting with clean washrooms (for the ladies too) and light on the pocket.

After crossing Balasore, a stretch of road is pockmarked, not so good. Needs some careful driving.

Lunch stop was Teji Punjabi Dhaba in Odisha. This was a surprise find. In a typical dhaba setting, enjoyed some sumptuous daal tadka, roti and paalak, followed by thick dahi to complete the meal. It’s a very serene setting, a hill to your right and one infront of you as you sit at the table, enjoying your meal. If you do visit, go to the entrance on the extreme right, in the building in the background, rather than enter the Hotel Swad.

And after you’re done with the meal, lie down on a cot and enjoy this view awhile.

Right after the Dhaba is a BPCL Ghar, where I filled up petrol at Orissa rates. There is also a dhaba here in the fuel station (it’s a BPCL Ghar after all), but I’d satiated myself before I reached here.

Was greeted by some awesome road scenery on the way - always something to look forward to.

Next stop – and last stop for the day was OTDC Panthanivas, Gopalpur on Sea. A word about this place – if you are able to book it, do. Plenty of parking space, private beach access, huge cottage rooms, very hospitable people, and great food. I enjoyed a walk (and a run!) on the beach, saw the sun set (behind me), and went to sleep after a satisfying sip of beer. To reach OTDC Panthanivas take the university road.. search for Berhampur University. That allows you an extra 10 km on the highway, plus the entire approach after leaving the highway is quite good, the roads pristine, as opposed to the route Google may initially suggest, which takes you through the bazaar area and the road condition in places is less than desirable.

This is what the cottages look like. That ochre yellow strip beyond the cottage is the beach hillock, that slopes down to the sea, and is literally a 3-minute walk from the cottages.

Time to retire after a day well spent, and see you on Day 2!

[RogueRobot]

Kolkata to Bengaluru trip – October 2024.

Day 2 – October 7, 2024, Brahmapur to Guntur via Vishakhapatnam, Vijaywada (detour through the scenic Dr NTR Beach road in Bheemli through Vizag).
Night stay at Atlantis Resort and Spa Guntur.
Distance travelled – approx. 700 km

Starting from the OTDC Gopalpur-on-Sea, and entering Andhra shortly after, the early morning drive was quite pleasant – and this was a great place to stop as the two huge statues of Shiv and Parvati hovered up in the distance.

After crossing Srikakulam, there are repair works going on, making the highway heavily patchworked and congested. Below is a screengrab: two lanes blocked.

The highlight of this day was the drive through the beachside roads of Vishakhapatnam. This trip was deliberately planned as a beach/water-visit tour. So as I approached Vizag, I took the suggested detour, turning left and leaving the highway at Gambhiram, my destination: Thotlakonda beach. However, I took a detour from my detour (!) – and turned left towards Bheemli (or Bheemunipatnam, as the map will tell you). Oh, what a joy! When in Vizag, do take a drive on this road, from Bheemli all the way to the INS Kursura Submarine Museum – it’s really a joy to drive on. But beware, as you move towards the city proper, traffic will take over, and most of the charm of the scenic road is blown away in fumes.

I managed to park my car near Bheemli and take a walk along the beach. Because it was a weekday maybe it wasn’t so crowded. Whatever the reason, I experienced a peaceful walk.

Anyway, here are a couple of pics – enjoy!

After leaving Vishakhapatnam (and facing some serious traffic during high noon), I was off again. I managed to pass through Vijayawada at exactly the wrong time – just as the evening traffic was at its peak. Spent almost 2 hours stuck in crawling traffic, practicing my inner zen. I’ll only echo the age old wisdom passed on by more learned seers in these forums – avoid Vijaywada during any time of the day where more than 20% of the junta is awake.

I had deliberately booked my stay beyond Vijaywada – so as not to face that traffic again. Arrived in Guntur, the Atlantis Resort was quite accessible on the highway. However, on the whole it was a disappointment. I would advise against staying at this place: rooms are not great, and the swimming pool (tiny one) is chargeable at Rs 300 an hour! However, the food they prepared was quite tasty; parking was not an issue.

Anyway, I was dog tired, and wanted only to sleep. So I slept.

[RogueRobot]

Kolkata to Bengaluru trip – October 2024

Day 3 – October 8, 2024, Guntur to Tada via Pulicat Lake and Bird Sanctuary and Sriharikota.
Night stay at Hotel SRM Grandeurs, Tada
Distance travelled – approx. 400 km

This was my extra day on hand before driving over to Bengaluru, so I did a more relaxed journey. Started late from Guntur – just after 8 am. Three highlights of this day were:

1. The drive through Pulicat Lake and Bird Sanctuary. A joy.
2. Tamil Nadu border and the joy of finding the cheapest petrol of my trip. Worth dipping into the State twice just to fill up.
3. The hotel at Tada (Tadaaa!! I know ) which was a delight.

Here is a screengrab of the early morning road.

There was another twist though. Soon after leaving Guntur, I realized I had a tummy upset. The BPCL bunk at Jonnathali was a lifesaver. A clean washroom with plenty of water supply can be a godsend on the road. I also filled my water bottles with some cold clean water from here (from the water dispenser, not the bathroom )

Anyway, from Naidupeta, I continued straight towards Sullurupeta, instead of turning right towards Renigunta that would’ve taken me towards Bengaluru. From Sullurupeta, I took a left and a short drive and a flyover later, was driving through some sublime scenery – the brackish water of Pulicat Lake on both sides, and a strip of road cutting across it.

I stopped a number of times, and more than once was rewarded with the sight of the first migratory birds already in the waters – here is one sample.

I drove all the way up to Sriharikota, but, of course, a civilian can only enter the premises on the day of launch and that only with a pass – so I had to content myself with driving up to the circle, and being back on my way shortly after.

An auto driver near the Sriharikota circle suggested I go to Arambakkam – specifically, Bheemulavaripalem – if I wanted to experience some quiet by the water. Boy was that a good suggestion. Managed to reach the water side just as the sun was setting, and was rewarded with the following:

If you want to reach this place, your target is the Mission Pulicat TULA Information Center in the pic below – although this Mission Pulicat thing really doesn’t exist. However, it’s there on the map, and can be set as destination. Take the route I’ve highlighted in green and NOT the one through APTDC Resorts BV Pallem as GMaps may suggest – I did, and the roads were iffy at best. High ground clearance vehicle owners please ignore.

You’ll notice the place is right at the AP-TN border, and TN has the lowest petrol rates of the five States I touched – so, you know, do the needful.

A reluctant turn away from this setting – it was turning dark and the roads weren’t exactly spectacular – meant I was a little rueful as I approached the Hotel SRM Grandeurs, Tada after a hearty XP95 refuel at the Tamil Nadu IOCL Arambakkam.

This hotel – the rooms, the people, the surroundings, the food – it was all great. I also had a very pleasant dip at the complimentary swimming pool, feeling all the tiredness and tension drain away from my body under the waxing moon and stars.

I guess proximity to the Sri City business centre means these hotels do have to live up to a standard.

After a largely rewarding - if tiring - day, I was ready to retire for the night.

[RogueRobot]

Kolkata to Bengaluru trip – October 2024

Day 4 – October 9, 2024, Tada to Bengaluru via Sullurupeta, Srikalahasti, Tirupati bypass, Chittoor, Palamaner, Hoskote.
Distance travelled – approx. 355 km

More than enough is written about of this route – so I will keep this short. The approach road to Srikalahasti from Tada, as I took a left from Sullurupeta, was a surprise – didn’t expect to drive through such surroundings.

The Tirupati bypass after Renigunta was an expected pain that I drove through with gritted teeth. I would highly recommend a break at Hotel Sapthagiri Holiday Resorts. Good clean place with good food and coffee. And the next one at Sree Krishna Grand. If you still crave another coffee before entering Bangalore, the Mallige Restaurant is a good option, with a warm host and good, cheap tea and coffee.

That was it, really. Was greeted with cantankerous traffic as I approached the city, growing denser and slower by the minute. Finally reached my destination around 2 in the afternoon. 2085 kilometres and 4 lovely days made for a memorable solo drive.

Most of my trip – till Tada near the Tamil Nadu border, was spent on the NH16. The trip was deliberately planned as a beach/water-visit tour.

Total distance covered – 2085 km.
Total toll paid – INR 3139, which translates to Rs 1.5 per km.

Premium Petrol rates per litre (BP Speed, IOL XP95, HPCL Power95) across states during that week were as follows:
WB – 112; OD – 109; AP – 116; TN – 107; KA – 110.

This Google Maps list will give you an idea of my fuel and food stops, night stays and places I visited during the trip. Plus a few more that I’ve added for reference.

Signing off with a couple of my favourite pics from the journey.

My sincere thanks to all contributors on the Bangalore - Kolkata route queries forum (Bangalore - Kolkata : Route Queries), although I notice there aren't nearly as many posts about the down route from CCU to BLR. Hope this will contribute in that aspect.

Cheers – and happy revolutions to all!

[KarthikK]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Utopian]

awesome snaps esp. around Odisha and coastal AP. Will you have any idea how Gopalpur is connected say from a public transport point of view esp. trains. It is on my radar although I want to do a quiet train led journey.

The i10 also looks in comfort with the surroundings. I have never seen this color on Delhi roads, it surely looks good.

[reignofchaos]

Lovely travelogue! Lovely photos of sights and sounds on the way.

Had a question - With all the bad stretches and road construction, does it make sense to do BLR-Hyderabad-Vijaywada-Kolkata these days?

[RogueRobot]

Originally Posted by Utopian

awesome snaps esp. around Odisha and coastal AP. Will you have any idea how Gopalpur is connected say from a public transport point of view esp. trains. It is on my radar although I want to do a quiet train led journey.

The i10 also looks in comfort with the surroundings. I have never seen this color on Delhi roads, it surely looks good.

Hi Utopian - first, thanks! That royal blue is my favourite!

Now - if, as I understand from your post, you're making the journey all the way from Delhi, then I'd highly recommend to put the Chilika Lake on your plans. It is the largest brackish water lake in India (second being Pulicat) and Chilika is very well connected with Bhubaneswar, which is very well connected with Delhi by train and flights.

Bhubaneswar to Rambha (for Chilika lake) and then to Brahmapur (for Gopalpur) would be the connecting train stations. Trains are available, if not very frequent. Hope this helps. Cheers.

[RogueRobot]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

Lovely travelogue! Lovely photos of sights and sounds on the way.

Had a question - With all the bad stretches and road construction, does it make sense to do BLR-Hyderabad-Vijaywada-Kolkata these days?

Thank you!

Yes it absolutely makes sense to do the road trip. Bad stretches and construction work are just that - they occur in stretches. For the most part, the highways are a joy to drive on. With a bit of advance planning, you can avoid the Vijaywada kerfuffle. Of course, no one can predict you won't get stuck in a jam, but ... glass half full, eh?

[Game_of_Roads]

Nice write-up , thanks for sharing ! Reading it took me 2 years back when we did BLR-Kolkata (in a grand i10 as well) with 2 senior citizens, my wife and my 2.5 year old over 3 nights/4 days with night halts in Vijayawada, Vizag and Bhubaneswar. Other than the stretches of bad roads between Tirupati and Nellore and in Orissa, the driving wasn't too demanding as it's a pretty much flat terrain along the coast. In fact, for experienced drivers it may even be a tad bit boring but given an option I'll be happy to do it again ��

[RogueRobot]

Wow, that must have been fun - full family over four days on the road! Yes, it's not a demanding route. Done occasionally, it can be lots of fun.