Planning a road trip from Mumbai to Delhi and back

[Moin.]

Wow, such a long raod trip that too with a lady and a 6 year old kid. Have a safe journey and please share the pics.

Has anyone tried using a GPS for such kind of trips, the mapmyindia type units. Are these really useful ?

Regards
Moin.

[Bhargav]

Google has mapped out Indian metropolitan cities do if you have a smartphone with Internet capabilities then that should just work fine.

[Ace_doc]

i did this run last year in may. drove alone via jodhpur (catching up with old friends).
my experiences-
1) no need to drive at 70, most places save where abhijeet has kindly pointed out are good till 90-100.
2) roads are better in raj and gujrat as compared to maharashtra.
3) safety is not that big an issue. i rarely drove after dark. averaged around 500 kmph plus per day.
4) just make sure that the vehicle is well serviced and in good trim.
5) any smart phone with gps will serve admirably.
6) carry adequate drinks in the car as some segments don't have any facilities like a dhaba etc.
7) accidents are a fact of life so take care.
rest it is going to be blast.

[mundaire]

Don't know about MapmyIndia, but Google maps is not particularly accurate. I've added several decent roads on to Google myself, which were completely missing from their database but I knew to be good motorable roads with low traffic density. Local intelligence is best if you ever decide to go off the National Highway network and use some of the back country roads; unlike USA/ Europe in India you simply cannot depend on a GPS unit for that sort of information (hopefully this will change soon).

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[Hammerhead]

Edit:

I plan to take Mumbai - Ahmedabad - Jaipur - Delhi, route .

That's most traveled route in almost all the northern part of India and people are calling for all sort of gadgets.
There are enough traffic on there day and night , just don't wander off . Had you taken the route via Gwalier , I would have given you a tank full of gas. Our old friends still running gas station there :
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unlike USA/ Europe in India you simply cannot depend on a GPS unit

Ah ..unlike USA/Europe in India, I would not drive the back country roads especially if I'm driving with my family.
I would stay on well traveled roads and might get late but - Haji

[Bhargav]

unlike USA/ Europe in India you simply cannot depend on a GPS unit

Ah ..unlike USA/Europe in India, I would not drive the back country roads especially if I'm driving with my family.
I would stay on well traveled roads and might get late but - Haji

I guess totally depending on the GPS is dumb. I don't have a GPS here in the US. I always learn my map when I am planning long drives and always carry paper map with me. I always have a designated "navigator" who is a non driver and a driver backup. And I have my iphone with google maps in it + a car charger to get a position on the map.

I have seen some of my friends who depend on "GPS" just keep driving when the GPS says "Turn left" "Take next right" and they get confused when the GPS says "remapping" .

I remember one of my friend who was driving to Vegas from Los Angeles for the first time alone and he rented a gps. The GPS device use to hang from time to time on one particular directional instruction e.g. "Take next right" and he drove around at least 50 miles aimlessly after figuring out the problem . Imagine this situation when you are with family and kids - Scary.

Moreover, GPSes always try to map shortest or fastest routes and these routes might not always be safe.


And remember, pics or it never happened

[xl_target]

Nowadays, for the most part, GPS systems do work pretty well. I very rarely carry a paper map anymore.
You really don't need it so much in the country but it is nice to have in a big city or on a long trip. At the very least, you always know where you are at the moment.

For example, last year, my daughter and I were on the way home, from a trip down South (and we had completed an all day hike), and were tired. We were in Kentucky and it was starting to get dark so I hit search (on the Tom Tom unit) for campgrounds within 50 miles and it popped up a bunch that we could pick and choose from. It even told us the amenities available at each location. You can do the same thing when searching to see how far the next gas station is what the next restaurant is. These are some of the things that one can do on the fly with a GPS unit.
It can also calculate alternate routes (you can choose the shortest route, fastest route or route it through a particular destination) and give you mileage, speed, direction, e.t.a, etc. Some of the newer units will also give you warning about traffic delays and route you around construction.

On the other hand, most areas in the US, except parts of some inner cities are very safe. Highway travel is no sweat. Just set the cruise, crank up the tunes and kick back. It helps to have a big old boat of an American car for the freeways. It's like sitting on your living room couch while going down the highway.

Mine lives in my car even if I don't use it all the time.

[Bruno22]

We frequently take long road trips with our kids. Here are some things we do to make the journeys more fun and safe...
1. Get your child a nice comfortable branded car seat. You will find these in the Mother care shops at some malls in Mumbai. This ensures he is comfortable and secure even while he naps. And please belt him in. Most seats go according to weight and not age so knowing is weight helps before buying.
2. Carry along some toys/games and plenty of snacks and packed food and water. Sometimes packaged water in remote areas are very suspect!
3. Good music also helps.
4. Carry basic medicines and something suggested by your child's doc to combat car sickness and general discomfort. The driver must NEVER take these meds as they make you sleepy.
5. A good GPS or even Google maps can help you chart the route. Print out the route charted by Google maps so you have it handy even if you don't have Internet signal.
6. Always keep a good India Road map in you car. Most book shops will stock these.
7. Always do a once over of your car, checking every thing including the spare tyre and the jack/wheel spanner. I have had a hydraulic bottle jack fail on me once. Now I carry two on long trips.
Enjoy your drive
Regards
Bruno22

[dr.jayakumar]

Look forward to your report on this trip. My family did make some road trips when I was growing up, some were short like Bangalore-Mercara, Bangalore-Ooty, Chandigarh-Simla but some were longer like Udhampur-Shrinagar-Pahalgam. Never had any problems but that was in the 1970's before any of the BS in Kashmir started. While growing up in India, I have traveled the length and breadth of the subcontinent but mostly by train. It was very safe back then, even for a 16/17 year old travelling alone. I'm not sure how much things have changed now.

You will be seeing the true heart of India when travelling that route and we would very much like to come along with you (at least in spirit) on the trip so please post lots of photos. I hope you and your family have a safe and untroubled trip.

banglore to ooty and banglore to mercara was my favourite road trip when studying in b'lore in early eighties.i travelled mostly by bike(RD 350)
regards

[Ace_doc]

Don't know about MapmyIndia, but Google maps is not particularly accurate. I've added several decent roads on to Google myself, which were completely missing from their database but I knew to be good motorable roads with low traffic density. Local intelligence is best if you ever decide to go off the National Highway network and use some of the back country roads; unlike USA/ Europe in India you simply cannot depend on a GPS unit for that sort of information (hopefully this will change soon).

Cheers!
Abhijeet

recently had to travel to some godforsaken place near the andhra - karnataka border. nokia maps held up well till it was online but later it was back to the old " bhai saab ! bidar kitana door hai ? " raag.
for most of india if you are not going too far of the beaten track nokia maps is ok.

[shooter]

try to avoid the round around udaipur-mt. abu at night.

(disclaimer: this tip and info is 7-8 yrs old but was accurate then)

[mundaire]

try to avoid the round around udaipur-mt. abu at night.

(disclaimer: this tip and info is 7-8 yrs old but was accurate then)

Bhils?

[Ace_doc]

better avoid most places at night until you are packing heat and have a genuine emergency.

[only32owner]

A quick thanks to all for your suggestions, pointers and everything else.
Will post a detail report soon.

Regards.

[rhandle]

Mumbai Delhi road trip is actually very safe.

I have been doing Delhi Mumbai round trips since year 2001, and have done it almost every year till date, at times more than twice in a year.

My first trip was in Matiz with my 3 year old son. In 2003 it was with my son and my six month old daughter.

My fastest trip has been in 18 hours drive flat in car, and 24.5 hours on my bike - RE 500.

Do whatever do not miss the trip fun. If you feel like stopping stop. There are umpteen numbers of hotels enroute. Only 14 kms of total road is there which would be single lane, one after Ahemdabad and another near Udaipur.

Be careful to take Udaipur -Chittorgarh -Bhilwara - Jaipur route rather than Udaipur -Nathdwara -Ajmer- Jaipur route.

Ajmer route is more scenic but Via Chittorgarh you would reach fast. After Udaipur you wont find any good place to rest or sleep till you reach kishangarh. But then city of Bhilwara is not more than 6 kms from highway and in case you feel like taking a night halt you can always move in.

My advice, start from Mumbai pretty early in morning say 3 am and reach Ahemdabad or Himmat Nagar. Himmatnagar has hotel landmark right where the highway turns towards Udaipur. Nice vegetarian place, even though owned by a Muslim.

I have travelled at every possible time in day and night along with family and thankfully in the whole decade of more than 20 roundtrips never had a problem with people, road. The most difficult part is Jaipur Delhi Stretch.

Keep yourself fuelled, have lots of water and things for your kids. Have a air compressor and puncture repair kit for your car.

Carry Coleen or any other glass cleaner and news paper to clean windshield and headlamps as many insects would be sticking to them.

Drive as long as you feel comfortable. If any time you dont, please take a break or have the halt, no matter where you are.

looking forward to your pictures and trip report.