Although the travel times are similar on both the routes, the 2nd one is shorter but has worse roads.

BHPian Shrek8421 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

I am a sedate driver. 60 kmph max on single-lane highways and 95 max on 3-lane highways. I also use cruise control when possible.

Just did Bangalore-Goa- Bangalore via 2 different routes:

Route 1:

Bengaluru - Hubli - Yellapur - Karwar - Canacona

Maps onward

• 3 lanes till Hubli
• Single lane good tarmac till Yellapur
• Some potholes and broken tarmac till Ankola
• Back to good roads from Ankola to Goa

Time taken 12.5 hours with about 1 hour breaks

Route 2 (Return):

Old Goa - Ponda - Mollem - Anmod - Haliyal - Dharwar - Hubli - Bangalore

Maps-return

• Good roads till Goa border
• Cemented Anmod ghat till Anmod
• Then diversion via Tinai ghat is very bad, horrible till Castlerock and slightly better from Castlerock to Ramnagar
• Then I missed a turn and missed Ramnagar/Londa and landed in Haliyal
• Road from Anmod to Haliyal is very bad - potholes, broken tarmac etc but very scenic through the forests
• Haliyal to Dharwad is good
• Then back on Hubli to Bangalore highway

But if you do not make the same mistake that I did then the road is bad only from Anmod to Ramnagar.

Time taken 12.5 hours with about 1 hour breaks

Note:

• The times are similar but the 2nd route is shorter, much worse roads
• Chorla ghat is still bad and is a much longer route

Until the road is completely open from Anmod Village to Ramnagar I would recommend the Karwar route especially if going to South Goa.

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