Bangalore to Kodaikanal by Road

It has been a dream holiday. Just back from a road trip to Kodai. And in spite of burning a big hole in my pocket by staying for 5 days and 4 nights at the Carlton, I would love to repeat this holiday in about 3 years time. Why? Read on.

The Route
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A search on Internet reveals that there are multiple routes from Bangalore to Kodai. A route that is highly recommended is

Bangalore - NH7 - Toppur - at which point you get off NH7 and take Mettur - Bhavani - Perundurai - Kangayam - Dharmapuram - Palani - Kodiakanal

Personally I prefer the National Highways. So I took the following (slightly longer, but faster) route:

Bangalore - all the way on NH7 to Dindigul Bypass - Vattalkundu - Kodaikanal

NH7 is under construction but it is not like that the entire stretch is dug up or something like that. Throughout the trip there is at least one lane that is operational. So the speeds drop a little but you should still be able to manage about 70 kmph on an average.

CAUTION: You will know when you will need to take diversions to the other lane but you will never know when the traffic from the other side gets diverted to your lane. So, try not to ride on the faster lane. I would advise that you stick to the left.

I would like to think that the NH7 will be fully operational in about 2 years time. I would therefore love to drive down again in 3 years time.

Yeah! I just love to drive my Scorpio over loooong distances.

We covered the entire stretch of the 455km in approximately 10 hours. This included one break for a heavy breakfast and an hour's stop at a field, where the farmer climbed up the tree to get us Tender Coconut Water - no straws.



We managed our return trip in 9 hours, with one stop for lunch.

(I drive slow with kids in the car - never exceeding 100 kmph. Other cars were zipping past me. So it is possible to make the distance in shorter time, say 7-8 hours. The road is that good.)

We took breakfast (onwards) and lunch (return) at Ghar. This chain of eatery belongs to Adyar Anand Bhavan (Who inspired them to shorten the name to the moronic A2B, I say?) Very neat and clean. The toilets were clean and so were the wash basins. There is one 'Ghar' just after Hosur and one after Krishnagiri (as you go from Bangalore to Kodai). Very convenient.

The 'Spicy Spoon' at Sulagiri (where we had breakfast on my last trip to Mahabalipuram) was not prepared to receive visitors at early hours. SO I missed out on their Ghee Roasts.

The Stay
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We stayed at The Carlton. Yes it is expensive. But if you are willing to splurge here's what you get.

(i) A view to the Kodai lake. So you open you eyes and you are instantly transported to heaven.
(ii) Complimentary breakfast and dinner, every day. The spread is sumptuous and you will not need to have lunch.
(iii) A half-day trip to the tourist spots.
(iv) A complementary shikara ride. (If you are staying for a longer time and you bargain you will get another).
(v) The hotel has its own Boat House. No need to stand in long queues waiting your turn.
(vi) And all the other features that a five star hotel is expected to have (Billiards, Bar, Games room, Library ... stop ... this is not an advertisement for The Carlton.)

Recommendation: Ask for room no. 422. It has a huge balcony (none of the other rooms have this) apart from a sit out. So you get two different views to the lake. The room is strategically located and nearest to the lake (as measured by crows). I would prefer this room to the cottages. This room also had a bathtub. The adjoining room (#421) did not.

The stay was extremely comfortable and that is an understatement.

The Routine
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Get up at 6 a.m.
Go for a walk around the lake - at a moderately brisk pace, it should take you about 45 minutes
Have breakfast.
Go visit the tourist spots (On the first day, take the conducted tour. Revisit the places you like on your own) - I loved the Pine Forest. The Suicide Point is breathtaking. Croaker's Walk is hyped.



Have another round around the lake in the evening at a more gentle pace. The milieu completely changes in the evening.
On some days go horse rising. (The rates are fixed by the authorities, so the pain of haggling is eliminated).
Go to the main market, adjacent to the bus stand.
Have dinner.
Enjoy the rest of the evening - late into the night - on the lawns looking out at the now dark lake (a few flood lights glitter - this adds to the charm.)

The Surprise
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What is a vacation without a surprise pack. We had two.

Just next to the Carlton, there is the Kodai International School (KIS). My wife teaches. So obviously she would love to see the school from inside. One evening as we were returning from the main market, we met a couple who became very friendly with us. Turned out that they teach at KIS. They invited us to visit KIS the following day. It was a delight.

Second, one morning when we woke up we saw a bunch of Tibetans / Tibetan looking people at the hotel lawns. There was also a film crew. We were told that this is some sort of Tribal Shooting. By evening it was clear that Surya (non-Tamil cine-lovers would know him as husband of Jyothika who is Nagma's sister; aaah, now it rings a bell), Nayantara, Saroja Devi, and a host of Tamil film stars were staying at the hotel and this was a proper commercial film shooting. I always wanted to see a film shoot. I expected the shoot to be very noisy. It wasn't. It was a nice experience to watch the entire film crew working out. But after a few takes and retakes, it becomes quite boring.




Do not miss these
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Do not miss out on ...



... the beautiful birds that frequent the lake - the best time to see them is in the morning
... the wild flowers that cling to the rocks on the mountain
... the lotus in the lake
... Danish Display - a curio shop in the main market; they have some amazing stuffs
... Chilli Bhajjis, Home Made Chocolates, Masala Puri and Masala Tea sold on the track round the lake

To summarize, we had a ball.

Bangalore to Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram) by Road

I think I am going bonkers. Why else would I plan for a trip down to Mahabalipuram - now known as Mamallapuram - in the summer heat?
But there it was and now it is done and I do not regret it one bit.
For the time being this post is for all those who want to drive down to Mamallapuram - now or in the winters.
So sit back, relax and enjoy the drive!

The route
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Bangalore -- NH7 -- Krishnagiri -- NH46 -- NH46 joins NH4 shortly after Vellore -- get off NH4 at Kanchipuram to take SH56 -- via Chengalpattu -- briefly touch the East Coast Road (ECR) towards Chennai -- quick right turn and reach Mahabalipuram

Advise: You will find 4 toll gates on National Highways and one on the ECR. The toll varies from Rs 24 to Rs 45. Keep small change. There is an entry fee at Mahabalipuram also.

The road is GOOD. Even the State Highway is pretty good.

This also happens to be the shortest route from Bangalore to Mamallapuram.

The total distance I traveled? 730km.
This includes our tiny excursion inside the Mahabalipuram town. So, if you take off 30 odd kilometers, the distance one way is around 350km from Bangalore.

It should take you around 5.5 to 6 hours. However, as you will read below it may take upto 8 hours. But that is cool. This road is better than NH4 (also called the Old Madras Road). I heard they are widening NH4 near Kolar and it is all dug up, so perhaps it is not advisable to travel on NH4 now.

CAUTION: Towards evening people in and around Vellore tend to walk casual across the NH. Drive a little carefully.

Our Journey
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We planned to start at 5:00 a.m.; managed to start at 6:00 a.m. We touched NH4 from a small road that joins Sarjapur to NH4. This was we avoid most of the Bangalore traffic.

Just after Hosur, there is a HP outlet, at Sulagiri. They also have a fantastic restaurant, Silver Spoon. I think they have the world's best Vada. The Ghee Roast Dosa (see picture) has a tiny cap and tastes as good as it looks. Tuck in so that you do not have to stop anywhere else for food.



Next stop Kanchipuram - the town of temples and world famous silk sarees. We had to stop there. My mother-in-law would not let me go out of Kanchipuram without buying a saree. We also saw the 1000 year old temple, Ekambareswarar Temple.



The people of Kanchipuram must be the most help people in the world. You ask one person for a route and some 5-6 chaps will be ready to help. And emaculate directions. We needed to get out of Kanchipuram to hit the SH56. One person gave us this: "At one kilometer turn right and then after two kilometers turn left." He repeated it twice to ensure we understood. He was wrong! You need to turn right exactly at 1km and turn left at 1.8 km not 2km!!!! We almost wanted to go back and kiss his hands.

We reached our destination - GRT Temple Bay in Mahabalipuram at 2 p.m. And had a fantastic buffet lunch at the resort.

We followed the same route on return. Had late breakfast at GRT Temple Bay and then stopped only at Silverspoon, Sulagiri for evening tea. On the way we snacked while driving.

Our Stay
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GRT Temple Bay resort is f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c. It also offers fabulous discounts in summer (now you know I am not that crazy!) At the resort you can do lots of stuff, but my advise would be to restrict yourself to only three activities:

(i) Early morning and late evening walks at the beach. From GRT Temple Bay I could walk to the shore temple. It is that near! There is a tiny fishermen's colony on the way. This tiny stretch is a little unhygienic. The fishermen answer nature's call on the sea shore and allow sea to flush away the remains. Not very pleasant.
The walk along the shore away from the shore temple is better. Tiny crabs scurry around. I could see some kingfishers.

(ii) An Ayurvedic massage - once a day. A 45 minutes massage followed by 15 minutes of steam bath. Aahhh! Heavenly.

(iii) Inside the swimming pool for the rest of the day. The swimming pool snakes through the resort and must be around 300-400m in length. Almost all rooms and chalets (except the ones that are facing the sea) face the pool. So one step from your and you are in.



(iv) Read. The private beach enclosed by the resort has chairs and Hammocks. Just relax and do your favourite thing. I read.

This is a shot as I lay in my hammock.



Yes! GRT Bay Resort is expensive. But it is more than worth the money. It also has a fantastic kitchen. The buffet laid down for breakfast is mouthwatering. We took dinner in another hotel in the centre of the town - the hotel is called Mamallapuram Heritage. Nothing elaborate, but good food.

Places to visit in and around Mamallapuram
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The Shore temple, The Five Rathas, Mahishasuramardini Cave temple and the lighthouse, and Arjuna's Penance and the Butter Ball are within a few kilometers of each other and on a cool day manageable of foot - but then there is never a cool day in Mahabalipuram; not even at peak winter. These are world heritage sites and are compulsory to do places.

It was too hot - so we just spent the minimum time required to see these monuments. We returned straight into the pool.

I will put up the photographs on my Squidoo pages soon.

Then there is the crocodile farm. We did not visit this place in this trip; but in one of my previous trips I had gone there. My favourite? A demo by tribals how snake poison is extracted.

In my previous trip I also went to Pondicherry. The drive on the East Coast Road along the Bay of Bengal is enjoyable. I think I will stay at Pondicherry for a few days to really enjoy that place.

I hope this gives enough information for those who wish to plan a trip. If there is any other information you require, please feel free to leave a comment (or send me an e-mail) and I would be only too glad to help.