Drive from Bangalore to Ooty ?

[Badriprasad Bumbabol]

Hi

Has anyone driven from Bangalore to Coorg or Ooty ? Me and a friend will be in Bangalore for a few weeks and are planning to drive down to either place - without a chauffer/driver. Has anyone on the board done it? Any suggestions ? How much time does it take ?

Thanks in Advance
Tintin

[Mani Ram]

Bangalore - Ooty:
It took around 8 hours for us to reach Ooty - including an hour and a half in Bangalore traffic
The road is not excellent, but nothing to complain either. There is a 15km stretch (just before the ghatt road starts), which is horrible and will take 30-45 minutes to drive thourgh.
Hope both of you can drive well. It is too much for a single person to drive all the way.
Carry some food / drinks with you. Make sure that the car is in good condition. You can enjoy the journey, if you travel in a good vehicle (I loved when I was driving a Skoda Octavia).
The ghatt road isn't very steap. No major risks involved.

Take a 5 to 10 minutes break for every 2 hours. Have some tea / coffee / chai - though I preferred Bacardi & Old Monk

Have a safe journey. Have a nice time.



Update: My last travel was 5 months back. The travel timings are based on that journey. I'm not sure about the current condition of the roads, after the heavy rainfall. I will see whether I can get any recent information from my friends, who travel in this route quite often.
[ December 06, 2005: Message edited by: Mani Ram ]

[Suresh Thota]

I have done ooty to mysore in 2000 and that's my best road journey till date.

Cheers
Suresh

[Badriprasad Bumbabol]

Food and Drinks - We are planning on being Well-Stocked
2 Drivers - Yes, we both drive and so this shud be ok
We are also NOT planning to drive at night at all, to avoid getting lost.
Though I would love to drive your Skoda, we will have to do with an Indica. I will give it to a garage to get it serviced before we go,though.
I havent done any long drives in India - Is it easy to get lost while driving as I havent seen many signs on the road? Are there any Maps/Books that you recommend or which you used on your journey?

I appreciate your help.Any more suggestions will be most welcome.

Tintin

[Aj Mathia]

Ooty is a great place to visit.
The road signs are quite good, you will not get lost day or night.
The must visit spots are
Mini Garden
Kotagiri
St. Catherine Water Falls
Nellakotta

if possible also go to COONOOR. it is 17kms from Udhagamandalam.
attractions there are Sim's Park a botanical garden,
Lambs Rock, Lady Canning's Seat, Dolphin's Nose, St Catherine Falls, Law's Falls, Ralliah Dam.

Kalhatty falls is a good spot as well.

There are many hidden beauties around there but ideally a local will be able to provide you better information. Quite proudly i can claim South South India is a mini heaven.

[Aj Mathia]

Yep i forgot more thing. we hit a rock on the middle of the road while approaching ooty
so as one of you will be driving its a good idea for the other to scan the road instead of masti-fying.
and dont drink drive i know the dabbas off banglore are tempting
finally Freak out and do let me know about your experience.

[Mani Ram]

We are also NOT planning to drive at night at all, to avoid getting lost.
Good. Start early in the morning. 5:30 AM should be fine.

Though I would love to drive your Skoda, we will have to do with an Indica.
Skoda is not mine. My Santro did well to reach there with out any problem, but the driving was dull & boring.
Suggestion: Fill the fuel outside Bangalore - it is cheap. While returning, fill the tank with in Tamilnadu borders. It is still cheaper

I havent done any long drives in India - Is it easy to get lost while driving as I havent seen many signs on the road? Are there any Maps/Books that you recommend or which you used on your journey?
There are lot of deviations in Bangalore - Ooty route, but it should be easy to keep in track, especially since you are travelling in day.

The route goes likes this

Bangalore -> Ramanagaram -> Channapatna -> Maddur -> Mandya -> Srirangapatnam -> Mysore -> Manjangud -> Gundlupet -> Bandipur -> Mudumalai -> Ooty [-> Wellington -> Coonoor]

There are shorter routes, but I wouldn't recommend it for first time travellers like you.

Be careful when you are inside wildlife santuary limits (Bandipur & Mudumalai). Better not to get down from the car.

There are lot of hair-pin bends on the way. They are safe, but be careful.

I don't have a Map, but will check if something is available on the net.

Let me know, if you need more details.

[soniya saxena]

From your name, I am guessing you are non-Indian. If I am wrong, then no problem. But if my guess is right, how the hell do you think you will be able to drive in India.

Originally posted by Tintin Herge:
Hi

Has anyone driven from Bangalore to Coorg or Ooty ? Me and a friend will be in Bangalore for a few weeks and are planning to drive down to either place - without a chauffer/driver. Has anyone on the board done it? Any suggestions ? How much time does it take ?

Thanks in Advance
Tintin

[Badriprasad Bumbabol]

Legally I am ex-Indian, At heart I am an Indian. I still have my Indian license and I intend to use it.

Originally posted by soniya saxena:
From your name, I am guessing you are non-Indian. If I am wrong, then no problem. But if my guess is right, how the hell do you think you will be able to drive in India.

[Aj Mathia]

Originally posted by soniya saxena:
From your name, I am guessing you are non-Indian. If I am wrong, then no problem. But if my guess is right, how the hell do you think you will be able to drive in India.

Foreigners can drive in India if they have a valid Driving licence from their Country and an International driving permit.
So Hell Yea, they can drive.
Its a pity but most Embassies advice foreigners not to drive in India due to the current state of traffic regulations and violations.

[shan Iyer]

There are 2 routes to Ooty from Banglore.

a.) Via Gundulpet , MuduMalai forests

b.) Via Mysore , Bandipur forests

The second route, although shorter , is EXTREMELY EXTREMELY EXTREMELY Steep. It puts a lot of strain on your car. The scenery though, is fabulous. If you are coming down on the secoond route, come only in SECOND gear. A higher gear will take your car out of control.

The first route is a longer one, scenery is quite good, but not as good as the second . Road is not all that step. I am not aware of the present road conditions of both these routes , since its been 2 yrs saince my last visit.

So if you are adventurous take the second route, else go for the first!!!

And avoid travelling after 5 in the evenings on both these routes, since animals are on the prowl in the night!!!

All The Best!!!

[Ashok Mash]

Originally posted by Mani Ram:
No major risks involved.

Take a 5 to 10 minutes break for every 2 hours. Have some tea / coffee / chai - though I preferred Bacardi & Old Monk

Err... uh, I see..!! Well, how about a block of bricks to keep the accelerator down?