Delhi to Manali by Car

makemagic · Dec 17th, 2007, 12:04

That was the best guide i could find, fantastic, i am planning to reach manali on 29th December 2007 with an Accent Car.Is it a safe time to self drive.I have driven to dhanaulti and nainital previously is the drive tougher than that

Styler · Dec 17th, 2007, 17:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by makemagic

That was the best guide i could find, fantastic, i am planning to reach manali on 29th December 2007 with an Accent Car.Is it a safe time to self drive.I have driven to dhanaulti and nainital previously is the drive tougher than that

It is completely safe to drive on this road. Actually i enjoy this drive more than the drive to Rishikesh or to Simla. The reason is that on the entire route there is not one place where you will encounter slow moving traffic or a traffic-jam. There is a slight jam at the panipat, as the new bypass flyover is under construction. You will be too early to get stuck there though.

The route is surely longer than the route to the other places you mention. But don't worry i still think it is more enjoyble and more scenic becuause of less traffic.

Enjoy,
Styler

Dilliwala · Dec 18th, 2007, 00:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by makemagic

That was the best guide i could find, fantastic, i am planning to reach manali on 29th December 2007 with an Accent Car.Is it a safe time to self drive.I have driven to dhanaulti and nainital previously is the drive tougher than that

Manali drive is more comfortable than the other two.

Quote:

There is a slight jam at the panipat, as the new bypass flyover is under construction. You will be too early to get stuck there though.

That's an understatement. At 9 am already it takes 25 min to drive those few km.

makemagic · Dec 20th, 2007, 16:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dilliwala

Manali drive is more comfortable than the other two.

That's an understatement. At 9 am already it takes 25 min to drive those few km.

Thanks everybody for your answers and guidance .

I just hope I successfully reach manali on the 29th and not get struck in the snow midway

makemagic · Jan 2nd, 2008, 15:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by Styler

It is completely safe to drive on this road. Actually i enjoy this drive more than the drive to Rishikesh or to Simla. The reason is that on the entire route there is not one place where you will encounter slow moving traffic or a traffic-jam. There is a slight jam at the panipat, as the new bypass flyover is under construction. You will be too early to get stuck there though.

The route is surely longer than the route to the other places you mention. But don't worry i still think it is more enjoyble and more scenic becuause of less traffic.

Enjoy,
Styler

I finally made my trip to Manali by car driving myself. Your route guidance was fantastic, we bypassed Chandigarh completely. While going we reached Swarghat at 12.30 am starting from delhi at 5.30 am. We took a halt at Swarghat for the night. Hiltop Hotel was a gud experience. We proceeded to Manali the next day at around 9.00 am and reached Manali at around 2.30 pm.

Hotel Beas was proved to be a very average hotel would not reccomend people going there though it is one of the cheapest options,Kunjam and Rohtang Manalsu are much better options to choose. We didnt get snow at Manali so I drove towards Rohtang Pass and we got snow at around Gulaba. But the local guides are horrible, they halted most of the vehicles before Gulaba saying unless u have a 4x4 drive vehicle you cant drive there. I was almost taken in but when the local tout offered the drive in a Santro I caught the bluff and went back and drove my Accent up without any problem. The view was just heavenly up there.

Driving with Snow is a bit tricky though, never accelarate when ur wheels are in snow and dont break in snow ur vehicle will skid.

These guys were charging a hefty Rs 2000/- for two people a 12 km ride to and fro.

There are lots of resturaunts in Manali but people who prefer Chinese cuisine there are two restaurants Chopsticks and Mount View. We found the latter quite better than the first one. The Chicken Sizzler is highly reccomended.We found the shops around in Manali quite costly though.

On my way back we came back in the same day halting in Swarghat for Lunch. To catch Styler's route in the back journey we need to take a turn towards Banur and then its straight to the Amabala Toll Plaza.

Will be glad to answer any question folks

mk26in · Jan 7th, 2008, 09:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by makemagic

Will be glad to answer any question folks

We are glad IMer's advice helped you.
Now show us some Pics

Dilliwala · Mar 21st, 2008, 19:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by Styler

.....Take the NH1, dont turn right for Chandigarh after Ambala. About 8-9 kms after Ambala, before Rajpura, there is a right turn just before the Toll Gate between Ambala and Rajpura. Infact you can see the toll gate 40 mtrs ahead at the point you have to turn right. This is a road which will take you to Banur, around 30 kms, and you will hit a red light where you will cross the Chandigarh -Rajpura Road. Keep going straight for another 25 kms, you will hit the Chandigarh Ropar Highway at a place called Kharar. This is around 14 kms from Chandigarh. Now you are on NH21 as you turn left and drive towards Ropar.

This routle bypasses the Chandigarh Mess all together.

Hi Styler,

What is the condition of the road between the Toll Gate and Banur, and between Banur and Kharar?

I've also seen a road going from Lalru to Banur, wud that be shorter? Don't know the condition though, plus there's a railway crossing!

Thanks in advance.

Styler · Mar 21st, 2008, 20:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dilliwala

Hi Styler,

What is the condition of the road between the Toll Gate and Banur, and between Banur and Kharar?

I've also seen a road going from Lalru to Banur, wud that be shorter? Don't know the condition though, plus there's a railway crossing!

Thanks in advance.

Hi Dilliwala,

There's nothing to go wrong on that road from NH1 to Banur Kharar. It is a 2 lane road. To take this road you just turn right after 10 mins drive from Ambala. Then you go straight, till you reach the Banur Red Light. You go straight and meet the NH21 at Kharar. If you take the lalru - banur road (this will be perpendicular to the road i'm talking about) you will reach the same red light and you will take a right turn to be on the same road towards kharar.

Styler

Dilliwala · Mar 21st, 2008, 20:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Styler

Hi Dilliwala,

There's nothing to go wrong on that road from NH1 to Banur Kharar. It is a 2 lane road. To take this road you just turn right after 10 mins drive from Ambala. Then you go straight, till you reach the Banur Red Light. You go straight and meet the NH21 at Kharar. If you take the lalru - banur road (this will be perpendicular to the road i'm talking about) you will reach the same red light and you will take a right turn to be on the same road towards kharar.

Styler

So as I understand Toll Gate-Kharar one can drive aankh band karke (well, sort of

- don't mean literally!).
Thanks again - I've linked your previous post in another thread for someone who wants to do the same route (Ambala-Swarghat and north).

Re Lalru-Banur road: Yes, it does look on the map to be about the same length and perpendicular to the a.m. one. Do you know what the road-surface is like? At the Lalru end it didn't look great 2 years ago. Plus there's the railway crossing, so all in all your route seems to be better.

Cheers, Styler

Manzey · May 9th, 2008, 17:19

I followed the route mentioned by Styler (took printouts) and didn't have any problems in following it at all or rather, didn't get lost.
I left Gurgaon at 4:20AM and reached Manali at 5:30pm. It was one of the best long distances drives I ever did. Although it was quite tiring, I felt some what fresh again after coming out of the tunnel.....hope to do this trip again. Thanks Styler...

Cheers...

Styler · May 9th, 2008, 17:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manzey

I followed the route mentioned by Styler (took printouts) and didn't have any problems in following it at all or rather, didn't get lost.
I left Gurgaon at 4:20AM and reached Manali at 5:30pm. It was one of the best long distances drives I ever did. Although it was quite tiring, I felt some what fresh again after coming out of the tunnel.....hope to do this trip again. Thanks Styler...

Cheers...

I'm glad you found it useful.

Styler

gurgaon_resident · May 20th, 2008, 19:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Styler

Hi,

I have driven to Manali 6 times in the last one year, I do it straight every time, and i am the solo driver. Don't think i'm mad, i set up a new office there last year and had to travel there often to get it started.
I have tried all routes and stopovers, and here is my recommendation.

Start at 5 am. Take the NH1, dont turn right for Chandigarh after Ambala. About 8-9 kms after Ambala, before Rajpura, there is a right turn just before the Toll Gate between Ambala and Rajpura. Infact you can see the toll gate 40 mtrs ahead at the point you have to turn right. This is a road which will take you to Banur, around 30 kms, and you will hit a red light where you will cross the Chandigarh -Rajpura Road. Keep going straight for another 25 kms, you will hit the Chandigarh Ropar Highway at a place called Kharar. This is around 14 kms from Chandigarh. Now you are on NH21 as you turn left and drive towards Ropar.

This routle bypasses the Chandigarh Mess all together.

Your first stop should be at either at Karnal, or if you can carry on, stop at Swarghat, whehere you should reach by 10.30-11.00 am. Take a 30 min break for breakfast here at HPTDC Hotel Hilltop. My first stop is always at Swarghat.

The bad winding stretch in the entire Delhi - Manali route is 100 Kms (Kiratpur -Swarghat - Bilaspur - Sundernagar).
So if you have people who get sick on winding roads, just drive very slowly with a few stopovers on this stretch.

The next stop that i take is Hotel Green Valley, on the left side, 5-6 kms before Sundarnagar. You should be here by lunch time. After sundarnagar the road is not winding till you reach Pandoh Dam. Pandoh is a good place to tank up fuel. With this the only next fuel stop you will need is on your way back.

After Pandoh the road is a little winding and is carved out of the hills, next to the river. You should reach the tunnel before Aut at around 3.30 - 4.00 pm. Once you cross the tunnel, you are in Kullu Valley. The road from here is really beautiful, next to the Beas. The tension of the long drive should be over. You should relax and enjoy the drive, taking stops whenever you feel like. You should comfortably reach Manali 6.00 - 7.00 pm

If you have any more questions....ask..

Styler

Hi Styler,

Your info is really insightful. I am planning to drive to Manali next month. A couple of questions if you can help me:

My experience has been that I have managed to average about 60 km/hr on long drives and have done Shimla from Gurgaon in about 5 hours (I drive a Corolla). So is it possible to do Manali in about 8 hours? The constraint is traffic along the way or bad roads/ low speed? I have done upto 400 km at a stretch from Delhi but never been upto Manali.

Thanks in advance
Gurgaon_resident

travel_savvy · May 20th, 2008, 19:28

hi styler...thanx for being so informative...we will be travelling to manali in june 1st week..we will be in a convoy of 3 vehicles as we r 4 couples with kids ,and would love to take a night stopover ,as its gonna be very hectic to go all the way with kids..As chandigargh is too close to delhi..which place out of the two do u reccomend?..swarghat hilltop...or lake view bilaspur? or any 3rd option enroute...we wud like to reach manali around noon the next day....thnx in advance

Dilliwala · May 21st, 2008, 00:16

Swarghat and Bilaspur are the best options. The latter is new and perched right on the edge of the lake/reservoir. And it's a bit cheaper than Swarghat. But you'll have to book soon if you want to stay there.
Other than that, there are plenty of hotels in Bilaspur, many with a view of the lake. I stayed in Hotel Shivalik in Lakhanpur (3 km before) last year and it was good.
Swarghat has only one other hotel, the Black Diamond (new, no idea about rates).

travel_savvy · May 22nd, 2008, 15:52

thnx dilliwalla...booked at lake view bilaspur for a night stopover

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Dec 17th, 2007, 12:04	#16
makemagic Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Delhi Posts: 7	That was the best guide i could find, fantastic, i am planning to reach manali on 29th December 2007 with an Accent Car.Is it a safe time to self drive.I have driven to dhanaulti and nainital previously is the drive tougher than that

May 9th, 2008, 17:19	#25
Manzey Manzey Join Date: May 2008 Location: Bangalore / Gurgaon Posts: 79	I followed the route mentioned by Styler (took printouts) and didn't have any problems in following it at all or rather, didn't get lost. I left Gurgaon at 4:20AM and reached Manali at 5:30pm. It was one of the best long distances drives I ever did. Although it was quite tiring, I felt some what fresh again after coming out of the tunnel.....hope to do this trip again. Thanks Styler... Cheers...

May 20th, 2008, 19:28	#28
travel_savvy Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: india Posts: 4	hi styler...thanx for being so informative...we will be travelling to manali in june 1st week..we will be in a convoy of 3 vehicles as we r 4 couples with kids ,and would love to take a night stopover ,as its gonna be very hectic to go all the way with kids..As chandigargh is too close to delhi..which place out of the two do u reccomend?..swarghat hilltop...or lake view bilaspur? or any 3rd option enroute...we wud like to reach manali around noon the next day....thnx in advance

May 21st, 2008, 00:16	#29
Dilliwala Funky flunky Join Date: May 2007 Location: Dilli Posts: 3,562	Swarghat and Bilaspur are the best options. The latter is new and perched right on the edge of the lake/reservoir. And it's a bit cheaper than Swarghat. But you'll have to book soon if you want to stay there. Other than that, there are plenty of hotels in Bilaspur, many with a view of the lake. I stayed in Hotel Shivalik in Lakhanpur (3 km before) last year and it was good. Swarghat has only one other hotel, the Black Diamond (new, no idea about rates).

May 22nd, 2008, 15:52	#30
travel_savvy Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: india Posts: 4	thnx dilliwalla...booked at lake view bilaspur for a night stopover

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