Alternative to Shimla in a Shimla - Kullu - Manali trip?

Hi folks -
Some great resources in this site ... thanks to all the posters who've posted travelogues and tips for newbies like me...
I'm planning a trip with my parents sometime in October to Shimla - and then onwards to Kullu & Manali

My parents have been to Shimla before and so I'ld want to ideally skip this place and stay in some other place prior to moving upto Kullu and Manali. Could you suggest any other place which might be a worthwhile stay and from where a good day trip can be planned keeping in mind that my parents would prefer reasonable comfort (3 star/ gov't guest house acco.) and not more than 1.5/2km walking treks to visit places

Also, couple of other questions - are there busses available right from delhi to manali?

Is a trip possible to Kullu/ Manali from Dulhousie?

I've got about 7-8 days in my hands ...

Some advice would be greatly appreciated

There are HPTDC and HRTC buses between Delhi and Manali.

Have managed to figure that there are Volvo buses from dlh to manali that leave in the evening and reach next morning. So I do think we will be heading directly to mnali first and spend 3 days there.
Do you feel it's worthwhile staying at kullu, or are there betterr places to stay, or is manali a better base?

Also, do you feel going to dharamsala would be a better option from manali rather than going to shimla? How long would that typically take?

A few recommendations here about where to stay in Manali and nearby places.

You can go to Dharamshala from Manali. HRTC buses. Journey time will be around 11 hours.

Thanks for the guidance so far!!
Do you think it's possible to have day trips from manali for site seeing in kullu and then onwards till manikaran? How long would it take to drive tomanikaran from manali?

Does it make sense to keep manali as the base and do daily trips? Or for a trip to manikaran does it make sense robe based nearer to kullu?

Also, which route is better totake for site seeing after visiting rohtang pass- going to kunzum la or going in the opposite direction to keylong?

Sorry to disturb again, but how long do you think it would take to go from shoja to shimla? And would the journey be very picturesque?

Read this and the planning here. Those may not answer your question but will give you alternate plans.

Sorry to confuse you more on where to go.