sandeep Posted March 1, 2021 Posted March 1, 2021 30 minutes ago, coffee_rules said: We did the golden triangle (including Ranthambore) and the route from Bangalore to Munnar, Thekadi. We employed a driver, who would sleep in the car or nearby motels. Worked out perfect without any issues. They charge some daily-bata. Affordable. You just be careful only on references. How realistic is it to a trip to Hampi, if you are in Bangalore? Is a road trip the best way?
coffee_rules Posted March 1, 2021 Posted March 1, 2021 22 minutes ago, sandeep said: How realistic is it to a trip to Hampi, if you are in Bangalore? Is a road trip the best way? Yes, please do. It is a pleasant ride, about 6 hours on a highway. Hampi has beautiful resorts for comfort stay. It matches Ajanta/ Ellora in magnitude temples, and ruins will haunt you.
sandeep Posted March 1, 2021 Posted March 1, 2021 Just now, coffee_rules said: Yes, please do. It is a pleasant ride, about 6 hours on a highway. Hampi has beautiful resorts for comfort stay. It matches Ajanta/ Ellora in magnitude temples, and ruins will haunt you. would love to. I have a couple of cousins in Bangalore, not ones I'm super close to. But if I can somehow free up 4-5 days on an India trip, Hampi would be close to the top of my list. Historic sites are a big thing for me, from Acropolis to Angkor, Tulum to Knossos, Lothal, Ellora, Ajanta - have been to a few. India is a treasure chest of options, unfortunately I have not been able to get to them yet.
bharathh Posted March 1, 2021 Posted March 1, 2021 5 hours ago, sandeep said: How realistic is it to a trip to Hampi, if you are in Bangalore? Is a road trip the best way? Hampi is haunting ... the ruins are so beautiful - it makes you wonder how amazing the actual city must have been. Apparently the Bahmni kings kept almost 300k soldiers there for 6 months to destroy Hampi. They hated the Vijayanagara empire with a vengeance. The way the city and empire fell is tragic. That said the road trip from Bangalore to Hampi is ok - not the best of roads and not too many amenities on the way. The city around Hampi is criminally under-developed - no great accommodation there. However, there are amazing hotels around. If don't mind spending a little - Evolve Back in Hampi is an experience! Cricketics, sandeep, Yoda-esque and 1 other 1 1 2
BacktoCricaddict Posted March 1, 2021 Posted March 1, 2021 6 hours ago, coffee_rules said: Yes, please do. It is a pleasant ride, about 6 hours on a highway. Hampi has beautiful resorts for comfort stay. It matches Ajanta/ Ellora in magnitude temples, and ruins will haunt you. This is on my bucket list. I lived in Bengaluru for 22 years but never made it to Hampi. coffee_rules 1
EnterTheVoid Posted March 2, 2021 Posted March 2, 2021 The dream is to do a Kerala to Kashmir trip. Just an epic excuse to eat good food the entire way. coffee_rules 1
Mariyam Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 On 3/1/2021 at 8:34 PM, sandeep said: IIRC even Maldives you stuck to Taj - loyal customer :) Not sure if I'm necessarily a fan of long drives, especially in India. The last major road trip I took in India was from Baroda to Ajanta/Ellora - had to do that in a weekend to accommodate a cousin who couldn't take any days off because of his new job. Loved Ajanta/Ellora, but the Indian road trip aspect of it wasn't too pleasant. Or comfortable. Ofcourse this was 2010, so things might have improved. Biggest constraint for road trips in India for someone like me would be time, that's the most precious currency and can't spend it stuck in traffic jams, or bad bumpy roads with slow moving traffic and railroad crossings. My wife keeps telling me that I will love Rajasthan - I have a thing for sculpture and architecture - so definitely will be there at some point. Its just a question of when. Udaipur and Kumbalgarh are very tempting from the accessibility perspective, hopefully I can squeeze it in, next trip. Whenever that will be. Now that my little monkey is in school, its likely going to be in June-Aug timeframe, and the weather is one thing I'm not looking forward to in Western India at least. We'll see. Your road trip to Ajanta is not comparable. So essentially those areas are parched and not very well off. Gujarat/ Rajasthan are a lot better off in terms of road infrastructure than Marathwada/Vidharbha. Most of the roads ( that I've encountered in Rajasthan) are two-four lane on each side highways with scant traffic except trucks near SEZs/ cities. Inter city travel is always scenic. And relatively easy. Its once you reach Udaipur/ Jaipur city limits that mumbai auto/taxiwallas/swiggy delivery boys start looking like the epitome of civilised driving. Your wife, like most wives, is right. Rajasthan has it all. Good architecture: Ranakpur/Chittorgarh. Forts. Tiger Reserves. Nature and even old style hawelis at Fatehpur Sikar. All this is in a general 250-300 km stretch. Though in the June to August window I guess it would be intolerably hot. @Stradlater would know best.
sandeep Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 7 hours ago, Mariyam said: Your wife, like most wives, is right. That I can deal with, now my daughter is 5 going on 15, and she's another one who "knows it all and thinks she's always right". It aint easy I'll tell you. My mom gently reminds me that better a challenging child who pushes boundaries, rather than a dumb one who just does what you say. Easy for her to say - She has conveniently slipped into doting grandma mode - polar opposite of the tough no-nonsense stuff I grew up with! 7 hours ago, Mariyam said: Your road trip to Ajanta is not comparable. So essentially those areas are parched and not very well off. Gujarat/ Rajasthan are a lot better off in terms of road infrastructure than Marathwada/Vidharbha. of course - and my experience is quite dated, so not really extrapolating from that. What's the minimum # of days do you think one would need for Udaipur and vicinity? Without rushing around from one "site" to another? I think Jaipur etc would have to wait for another time, I'd be tempted to squeeze in Kumbalgarh though. Mariyam 1
Mariyam Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 (edited) @sandeep You set your base at Udaipur and do the various day trips: Day 1: Chittorgarh. Around 120kms away. You can easily spend 3-4 hours exploring the entire place. Lots of history. Mostly tragic. For those uninterested in history and architecture ( read me) there are many spots to take wonderful pics and earn brownie points on SM. Day 2: Ranakpur. The temple complex is beautiful even if you aren't interested in Architecture. Best to have one of those ASI certified guides. Preferably book one from the hotel. You'd have ample time to be back in Udaipur by the evening and shop locally. Day 3: Haldighati + Kumbalgarh. Haldighati has this museum with 70s Bollywood like battle effects. If nothing else your daughter would enjoy the show. Kumbalgarh of course is a huge fort complex with lots of places to explore and a lot of walking involved. Generally this leg of the drive is also very scenic. Day4: City tours/ Jag Mandir/ City Palace/ Gangaur boat ride Day 5: Ajmer Sharif/ Nathdwara 4-5 days should be ample time to cover the place in good detail. Edited March 3, 2021 by Mariyam sandeep and Cricketics 1 1
sandeep Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 Thank you! Obviously I would do my own research and planning - one of the fun parts of any trip for me - But its always very helpful to have first-hand input from like-minded folks who've been there. Mariyam 1
coffee_rules Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 @sandeep my s-I-l’s family went with a large group to Jaisalmer, Udaipur. They were raving about a night camp in the desert, that’s in my bucket list. We couldn’t go here too Great wall of India,Rajsamand, looks amazing sandeep 1
sandeep Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 25 minutes ago, coffee_rules said: @sandeep my s-I-l’s family went with a large group to Jaisalmer, Udaipur. They were raving about a night camp in the desert, that’s in my bucket list. We couldn’t go here too Great wall of India,Rajsamand, looks amazing A hot air balloon ride, or a chopper flight would be awesome way to check this out. Reminds me of that viral video....
Mariyam Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 29 minutes ago, coffee_rules said: @sandeep my s-I-l’s family went with a large group to Jaisalmer, Udaipur. They were raving about a night camp in the desert, that’s in my bucket list. We couldn’t go here too Great wall of India,Rajsamand, looks amazing This is Kumbalgarh!! coffee_rules 1
coffee_rules Posted March 3, 2021 Posted March 3, 2021 23 minutes ago, Mariyam said: This is Kumbalgarh!! https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/great-wall-india Mariyam 1
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