Mumbai Udaipur Road Trip In a Baleno

Udaipur Trip In Brief:

Travel Time:

Mumbai to Udaipur : 12 hrs with Breakfast and Tea breaks

Udaipur to Mumbai : 14 hrs with Lunch, Dinner and 2/3 Tea/snacks break

Mileage : 20.5 kmpl for 1544kms

Roads :

The Roads from Vasai Creek till Vadodara exit towards Halol is in very good condition, all the potholes due to rains have been patched up.

Halol to Shymalaji is a 4 lane highway with big dividers, in a very good condition apart from few Speed breakers.

Shymalaji to Udaipur roads are under construction for 8 lane highway but in good condition.

Mumbai - Vadodara : Excellent Roads 8Lane

Vadodara - Godhra - Modadsa - Shamalji : Excellent Roads Divided 4Lane

Shamalaji - Udaipur : Good Roads with lots of diversion due to construction

Udaipur:

3 days are enough to explore the whole city. Most of the attractions are just overhyped, most of the attractions can be given a miss.

Generally, all the Shops/ Rickshaws/ Taxis are Greedy for foreigners.

Fatehsagar Lake is more attractive than the overhyped Lake Pichola, don't miss it.

Ropeway is a must do thing in Udaipur.

Aquarium near Fatehsagar Lake is a must do activity in Udaipur.

Don’t forget to eat at Shamiana Rooftop Restaurant ,Rooftop restaurant near Lake Pichola, after visiting many rooftop restaurant's nearby I can assure you that they are the best in terms of Hospitality and Food. Don't miss the dish "Laal Maas"

Don't forget to eat Kadhi Kachori & 7 flavours Pani Puri in the market,search in the bylanes of local market.

Leave your car and travel in an Autorickshaw for Convenience, Comfort & Fun.

Fastag worked effortlessly and instantly at all the Tolls.

In Detail Travelogue:

Once again I go for an unplanned impromptu trip. These are the best & most Memorable trips, trust me.

Udaipur it is.

It's been long I had Udaipur trip in mind, but things never materialized, though I have bypassed Udaipur 4 times since 2017, but never thought of visiting the place.

This time I had planned a 4day trip to either Udaipur or Bhuj during the Christmas vacations, anyday from 25th to 30th.No bookings were done as I was relying on last minute deals.

Out of the blue on 19th Dec,my brother got leave from 22nd to 25th Dec, and he popped the idea of going to Udaipur together.

So we started looking for last minute deals and got a very reasonable Hotel deal with good online reviews (Big Mistake,Dont get bluffed by online reviews and Hotel Pictures)

So the plan was,

21st : Mumbai to Udaipur by road. Leave Mumbai by 10.30pm and reach Udaipur by check in time.

22nd: Afternoon rest, Evening visit to Lake Pichola and Dinner at Rooftop Restaurant.

23rd/24th: Udaipur Sightseeing in an Autorickshaw.

25th: Ropeway visit and return to Mumbai.

Route: Mumbai-Vapi-Baroda-Halol-Godhra-Modasa-Shyamlaji-Udaipur

Cars: Baleno Alpha Petrol and Honda Amaze Diesel

21st Night@ 10.30pm:

Tanked up till auto cut-off from HP petrol pump, checked the tyre pressure, filled the wiper fluid, checked the spare Tyre, and the Baleno was ready to take us to another trip.

Kids bed was ready and the luggage arranged by 10pm.

After a light meal and Black coffee, we were ready and left Mumbai at 10.45pm

As usual, were stuck in heavy traffic from Mulund Toll till Vasai Creek, finally crossed Kinara Dhaba at 12

Onto the fabulous NH8 all the way till Vadodara.

The roads are in very good condition, all the potholes due to the rainy season are patched up. Driving in the night on NH8(48)was safe with steady speeds of 90-100kmph.

The lit up Narmada Bridge was a treat to see in the slight foggy weather.

Stopped for breakfast on a decent highway hotel at 9.15am near Bicchiwara.

The breakfast was very average.

Left for Udaipur and reached our hotel at 11am.

The hotel booked was Udhav Vilas Hotel, the rooms were very tiny with no ventilation, just a big Glass window facing a wall. Online room picture showed us a bigger room, which we were told were of different category. The manager was very arrogant and staff comprising of young boys were under trained.

Rested for the afternoon.

After a short relaxing nap, we left to explore the Lake Pichola and Market area.

Most of the tourist attractions were closed.

Boat ride in Lake Pichola is very expensive.

After enjoying the sunset at the lake we left for dinner at a Rooftop Restaurant on the banks of Lake Pichola.

We booked Shamiana Rooftop Restaurant,

The night views were amazing,

Lake Pichola becomes super attractive in the night with beautiful lights from surrounding buildings.

Shamiana Rooftop Restaurant is the best of the rooftop restaurant's at Lake Pichola with mouthwatering food and very cooperative and caring staff right from manager to waiters.

23rd/ 24th: Next days plan was to cover as many points as possible.

City Palace:

Tickets are little costly.

The place was crowded with many tourists and School kids.

Right from the entrance till exit had to explore the whole palace in queue. Very boring, couldn't take a single picture without extras in it. The palace is just average, after been to a few palaces in India with vast history and Stories. Had very tasty and freshening Soda at the gates of City Palace.

After spending a lot of time in the queue and exploring city Palace left for the next destination Fatehsagar Lake. There was huge traffic as the roads pass through narrow market lanes.

Bagore ki Haveli

Right on the banks of Lake Pichola

A museum with breathtaking views of the Lake Pichola, good for photography.

It's an Museum with lots of artifacts like ancient clothing, utensils, artillery et.al

I was fascinated by the fact that in early times every class and religion of people wore a typical dress which could identify them.

Fatehsagar Lake

Amazing,

Much better than Lake Pichola

The boat ride little pricey, but it's worth it.

Try to do boating during sunset/ late evening.

Walk little ahead on the lakes to find a lineup of amazing roadside food stalls serving delicious dishes.

Enjoy the food with the beautiful views of the Lake.

Aquarium:

Do not miss this amazing place. It's little ahead on the Fatehsagar lakeside.

The aquarium is huge with a sea of fishes and sea creatures.

Beautifully maintained.

There is a restaurant with flooring made of tank with beautiful and lots of fishes.

Must have a few snacks over there.

Saheliyon ki Bari:

Nothing great to see except few showers and gardens

But do eat fresh fruit salad from stalls outside and Tandoori chai.

Sajjangarh Fort

Entry is charged for persons as well as vehicles. You can use their transport services for to & fro, more convenient then driving self all the way to the top.

Fort is small and can be covered in 20 mins. Views from the top are great.

Sajjangarh Biological Park

The best time to visit is early morning if you want sighting of wild animals.

Didnt go as we went to the palace in the late afternoon.

Ropeway:

Must do activity

The Ropeway is close to Lake Pichola.

Hugely popular, went there in the evening to find out waiting period of more than 90mins.

Visited on the last day early morning at 10 to find the waiting period of 30mins. Took the tickets and waited in the queue. There is a restaurant where you can have snacks while waiting.

The Ropeway ride is comfortable, nothing to be scared of.

There are 2 temples on top with a restaurant.

The views of the Udaipur city from the top is magnificent.

Return journey was ordinary with lots of breaks for Tea & Snacks.

Took 14 hrs while returning.

Hope you have liked the travelogue,

though little long and boring, but tried to share as much information as possible to help fellow Enthusiasts.