visit to kedar badri from calcutta

hi
i will be leaving for kedarnath and badrinath in oct 2008. can anyone suggest me what will be the most convenient route and where to stay on the way....( economical stay)

hi akashbasu5
welcome to IM
please let me know the no of days you want travel and what mode of transport your planing to go and your budget.

Hi akash.... assuming u travel by train.... u can catch the Dun xpress from howrah, get down at haridwar and move to rishikesh. Shud reach rishikesh by afternoon. take a bus next day early morning to gaurikund.... it goes via devaprayag srinagar rudraprayag sonprayag..and reaches gaurikund around post afternoon. Take rest, next morning start walking (or take dandi/horse if you need one, but best to walk if health permits, u enjoy the most!). 7km till Rambara, refuel and proceed. The last 7 km till kedar is quite steep. You can stay there for a couple of days if time permits (there are birla, bharat sevasram sangha guest houses etc). Can also trek the lake nearby. While retuning, the bus from gaurikund is early morning, will come till rudraprayag, then take a diversion to karnaprayag, chamoli, joshimath and then badri....

thanks can you help me out dipanjan that how i will book hotels of gaurikund and kedar from kolkata??
and one thing i dont have to book any hotel on the way to badri ???
if yes then where will be the appropriate stay enroute ?

thanks kumar..... my budget will be around 8000 for kedar badri tour.... and can you tell me something about the car/bus fare and hotel charges( budget)

hi akashbasu5,
Day 1 = Start from rishikesh/haridwar ( 8 am) and reach gaurikund (night halt) at 5 pm, you can have your lunch break at rudraprayag.
Day 2 = Start walking to Kedarnath at 8 am after having bath at the hot water springs in gaurikund and probably it will take appxm
6-7 hrs of trekking. Lunch break at Rambara.
Day3 = Start walking back to gaurikund and it might take appxm 4-5 hrs walking and night halt at gaurikund.
Day 4 = Proceed to Badrinath and arrive at joshimath 1.30 pm, lunch break at joshimath and proceed towards the gate for entrance at 4pm and reach badrinath at 6 pm.
Day 5 = visit temple mana village and proceed towards
devaprayag luch break at joshimath. night halt at devaprayag.
Day =6 Start towards haridwar.
www.gmvnl.com is the best bet and it falls within your budget.
For further details contact gmvnl Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam Ltd.,
Room no. 224, Marshall House 33/1,
2nd floor Netaji Subash Road,
Kolkatta-700001.
Tel. / Fax : 033-22315554.

many many thanks to you mr kumar....
is there any way that i can extend my tour for "panch kedar" from badri ???

I second Kumars suggestion... GMVN is best bet. Also, if u have acquaintance with bharat sevashram sangha (Ballygunge), they have decent and cheap guest houses in gaurikund, kedar & badri. Though the one in badri is not preferable, as its near the bus stand but not near alaknanda or the temple. Panch kedar will need some more time & effort though, it will be a bit tedious in a short time frame.

Hi once again,
you can visit the panch kedars from guptakashi and rudraprayag but all the four are trekking routes except one from rudraprayag. you might take around 3 days to cover these places excluding kedarnath.

Hi Akash,
Welcome to IndiaMike. Good recomendation from other friends. My itinerary is mentioned here:
http://www.indiamike.com/india/uttar...el-pix-t27551/

BTW, Upasana Exp saves some time but plz check the availability with your schedule. Else you can avail Akaltakht Exp or similar trains upto Laxer / Najibabad and then Haridwar by car / shared car etc.

Can I Have The Full Route Details And Place Sto Stay... I Cxan Afford 10-12 Days For Panch Kedar

Hi Akash u can have a look at these links for a clearer picture:
http://www.jyotirlinga.com/panchakedar.htm
http://www.skylarkadventuretours.com/panchkedar.html
http://www.trekkingingarhwal.com/panch-kedar-trek.html

akash, for October you don't really need to book in advance. There will be plenty of choice, which gives you room to negotiate for best rates. If you book now, they (private places) will just quote you their usual rates.

You may prefer to stay in GMVN anyway, which has fixed rates depending on season - I only mention the above becos quite often one can get cheaper rates for similar or even better accom; this was my personal experience from Badrinath trip last year (Nov).

When do kedarnath and badrinath temples close for winter?

I got the answer from GVML site -
http://www.gmvnl.com/newgmvn/updates/updates.asp?id=4