volvo coach mumbai goa

tazzers

Hi,

I am arriving in Mumbai on the 4th january. I am planning to go down to goa on the 5th january. I've read that it is better to take the night volvo bus than the train to goa. Anyone has any experience on this? Where and how can I book the coach tickets to goa? Should I make a reservation over the internet?

Thanks for your info

aadil

The train in the night is much better than the bus at night!!! It is much more comfortable by train as the road is bumpy and the bus is not so comfortable even if it is a sleeper bus. Not too much room to move around. And it takes much longer too. I would recommend the Jan Shatabdi which leaves early in the morning and reaches in the afternoon or the express that leaves around midnight and reaches late in the morning. If you still want to go by bus then there are private and State Transport (ST) coaches leaving from different places in Mumbai like near Metro Cinema Theatre, Dadar, Andheri, Borivali, etc. Bookings can be made through travel agents in all places who normally do bookings for these buses or you can buy your tickets on the bus itself if seats are available at the last minute. Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Aadil.

__________________
Climb high; climb far;
Your goal, the sky,
Your aim, the stars!!!

Indiafan

I would also take train than bus if tickets are avaible.

tazzers

OK, I'll take the train then,

I suppose I'll have to make a reservation as this is the high season. I prefer taking the night train and save on the hotel in Mumbai. Should I make a reservation on the internet or you think I can get two tickets in Mumbai the day before a travel?

Aadil, I think u also replied to one of my messages in another forum about accomodation in Mumbai. I have booked a night in Benazeer hotel, but they didn't ask me for any money in advance, u think thats ok? will I have my room when I arrive?

Chao
Tan

aadil

Best to make reservations right now on the internet at the www.irctc.co.in (Indian Railways reservation) website. The day before you travel will not be possible to get seats unless you try in the foreigner's travel quota or the Tatkal (emergency) quota!!! Even then if it is not possible to get tickets for the train, then try the bus.

If you want I can check with the hotel by phone if they have the room reserved for you for the days you requested. You may send me the hotel booking details in a pm (personal message) here. Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Aadil.

AnnaM

We got the volvo sleeper bus down from Mumbai to Goa and while it wasn't as comfortable as the train it was perfectly bearable (though took ages to get out of Mumbai) - I got plenty of sleep although we were pretty ripped off on the ticket price. Be very clear about how many sleeper berths you have booked, a couple of travellers on our coach had been told they had a berth each but were actually sharing a single one which they were none too pleased about.

Have a great time in Goa!

Anna

aadil

That's the main problem with all the coaches as there is no control over what happens once you board the bus. There is no confirmed booking of berths and then if you are asked to share a berth instead of getting your own single berth then it is not really comfortable especially on the bad roads in India. And yes it takes ages to get out of Mumbai but once you are out of the city things speed up a lot!!!

Cheers,
Aadil.

GoanCanuck

Where did you read this? The train journey is much better than travelling by bus.

Yes, foreigners travelling by bus do get ripped off quite often. The best way to avoid this is by booking your ticket only on KTC(Kadamba Transport Corporation) which is owned and operated by the Goa government. There is no chance of getting cheated on KTC buses and in case you have a problem you can file a written complaint at the KTC head office in Panjim. All complaints are investigated. The private bus companies operating on the Goa-Mumbai route use buses which are not properly maintained and drivers who are not properly trained. This makes for a very hazardous journey. Many people have sustained serious injuries on these private buses.

aadil

Even on the Kadamba bus where I was seeing off a couple of my English friends after I put them on the bus and their luggage was also loaded in front of me there was a guy who came up to them and asked them money for keeping the bags on the bus which was done by myself and not by anyone else. So even with the Kadamba buses there are touts and people ripping you off if you are not smart!!! They ended up paying the guy Rs100 for nothing at all and it was after I left them as I was in a hurry to get to work at night so it was not in front of me or else I would have not let them pay anything. The poor guys were afraid that they might steal the bags otherwise so they paid up!!! Hope this helps and useful on anyone's future trips if they ever take a bus for travel to Goa.

Aadil.

GoanCanuck

How can you blame KTC for this? All KTC employees have to wear their uniform while on duty. Your friends paid money to some porter who was not a KTC employee. If your friends had talked to the conductor they would not have felt pressured to pay somebody who was just trying to make a fast buck.