Comfort on overnight buses

comfortable.
bus.

In the same sentence.
thats a good one.

Thanks for all your replies and yes, the journeys sound absolutely horrendous!!

The journey we had in mind was either Dehra Dun to Nainital, or Dehra Dun/Hardiwar to Shimla. I've read that you can get a Volvo there but still doesn't sound too comfortable!

What about getting a driver and doing the route by car instead, or do they not drive at night in Uttarachal or Himachal Pradesh?

ah! buses

Kathgodam looks to be about 25-30kms from Nainital.

Train 4120 departs Dehra Dun daily at 22:30, then Haridwar at 00:05 and gets to Kathgodam at 07:15

2-tier air con = Rs 606
Sleeper Class = Rs 166 (not air con)

Be extra careful with the date if booking from Haridwar.

A car and driver is a very nice way to travel, although it's obviously more expensive than a train or a bus. But you DO NOT want to be out on Indian roads AT NIGHT if you can avoid it, especially in the hills/mountains. The roads can be difficult enough even in daylight. Some vehicles don't even turn their lights on at night, and there are still animals wandering around on the roads. You also can't sleep in the car.

You seem to have a bit of a fixation on traveling at night, which I don't quite understand. Apart from overnight trains, I'd avoid it. Sleeping in a car is impossible - OK, you can doze off but you won't be truly rested - and how relaxed will you be if you're worried (which you should be) about your driver dozing off as well? Sleeping well on a bus is almost impossible IMHO, and being on the road in a bus in the dark can be just as scary as being in a car. To the extent that you will be traveling to places that are actually on train lines, a couple of overnight train rides would be OK and can be a bit of a time-saver, but if you do too much overnight travel, even on trains, in a two-week period, you'll be exhausted all the time. You'll also feel constantly grubby, because can't get properly cleaned up after spending the night on a train much less on a bus or in a car! So if you're going to have to check into a hotel or guest house to clean up anyway, you might as well plan to do a good bit of your traveling during daylight hours, when you'll also be able to see the countryside, and then check into a hotel/guest house where you can clean up (bucket bath or possibly a shower) and actually get a decent night's sleep in a real bed (which will be as hard as a rock but more comfortable than a train berth), then spend the next day and another night in your given location (or more depending on how much there is to do/see), before moving on the following day, in a pattern like this: travel during the day, arrive and spend the night, tour/sightsee/hang out for a day (or more, depending ...), spend another night in the guest house, travel during the day to the next location, etc.

To add to dzibead's post, driving around the Himalayas at night is like going to a concert with earplugs; you won't enjoy anything.

Thanks for the train info - I think that's going to be the way to go on this one.

Well, I suppose I am quite fixated! I wanted to avoid spending time during the day travelling. Of course, it does mean I am going to miss out on some scenery, but in 16 days, we only have 3 overnight trips including this one, all by train, so I don't think that will be too bad. I don't mind doing trips of 6 hours or less during the day - but not longer than that!

captmahajan, nice way to put it! I also would agree.

Personally I would rather go to fewer places and spend more time at each. Sure you may be missing out on some things, but that's true either way.

Great post #20 by dzibead.
In short, night travel shud only be on sleeper trains.
And yes, certainly in UA one major road is mandatorily closed at night - Rishikesh to Karnprayag, probably upto Joshimath.

The first and last time I heard my sainted mother use the "F" word was on an overnight bus! She did not like stopping at every other town (good thing we got the express).

the law of overnight bus journeys in india:

- the bus will always make it's first toilet break before you 'need' to go

- you will be lulled into a false sense of security that there will be regular stops (ha ha ha) and wait for the next one

- the next stop will not come until several hours after you think your bladder cannot last another minute

- here ends the law

ps invaluable overnight bus item: valium!!