Another Road trip: No headache of planning, especially in COVID times,made it Runtime, full of Surprises, Situational...
Each year we at least target nearby State for a roadtrip... but in COVID times,we failed twice.. but in 2021 somehow it worked in our favor. Till the last moment we were just finalizing our road trip direction, Madhya Pradesh or Southern India. we started with 3Wks plan but as usual things settled on 2wk and later 1wk.. based on this the region to visit also kept changing... and finally Karnataka made RT-PCR compulsion and we locked Madhya Pradesh.
Day 1 was typical drive ,leaving Pune early and getting closer to some shortlisted places.
Idea was to reach Maheshwar.. and by evening we were almost close to target.
In no time we finalized stay, Hotel RatnaMahal, close to highway.
food options: hotel's kitchen or nearby Rajwadi hotel
We were thinking to cover all nearby places, Mandu-Maheshwar-Onkareshwar. But started little late and lazy drive toward Mandav so only were able to cover Mandav in first half.
We avoided Highway and choose alternative road navigating through villages. Just to get glimpse of Madhya Pradesh lifestyle.
Mandu/ Mandav is typical tourist place so expect crowded area.. where lot of tourists mainly visit Jahaz Mahal and the Jami mashid. There many surrounding monuments and one can easily spend whole day to visit everywhere in town, Alamgir gate, Hindola Mahal, malwa resort, sailani resort
At evening we planed for Maheshwar ghat.. do keep in mind that the fort and museum close down at 6P.M. Boating, handloom Shopping are activities can be done at this place. Around 7PM you can attend Narmada puja.
Few hours Morning drive and we reached Indore, after struggling to find parking we roamed nearby by walking
Wanted to see shopping area but could not found, as there are many changes due to renovation activities.
10 min drive from Rajwada and you can enter in lane dedicated to foodie. All types of Indore's chat and snacks available here in 56 stalls.
We opted to reach Bhopal same day, so that next day we could visit places around it.
Food option: Vrindavan Dhaba
We can call it stone age place, as it gives overall picture how people in that era were living and evolved with time, specially their art evolution.
Reached Sanchi around 5PM, sice weather was cold and low light.. we wrapped up quickly and moved towards Khajuraho.. to find in between stay at night.
We reached around noon. So plan was to stay 2 nights here . Somehow due to Covid restrictions on international tourists we didn't have issue in searching hotel even though it was New Year time.
At evening we visited light and sound show, was not happy with the charges 😑
Hotel manager is polite and cooperative, do stay here as rooms are budget friendly and tasty food.
Not adding any info here for this place, its a must visit place , not for its famous part😜, but for the architecture marvel.
After covering major temples from western group and eastern groups, we moved towards ken ghadiyal sanctuary.
Again the entry fee was surprisingly more.
Things to see:
1 . Raneh waterfall which will be flowing only in monsoon.
2. Drive through sanctuary where few animals can be spotted easily
3. Oldest construction of wall
4. Chance to see crocodile in ken river.
5. Canyon like view
Back to khajuraho, we decided to utilize evening time for shopping.
Shopping options: nearby Gol market, bamboo silk, local artists
Food options: we prefer Ramayana hotel itself as we can have tea even at 11PM. Other option could be Badriseth bhoj
After reaching northern part of MP, if we wish 3- 4 extra day we could have cover Zhansi, Orchcha.. but decide to return.
Considering 2 days travel back to Pune. We thought adding Bhedaghat for stay could be good option.
Activities here: ropeway, boating, marble cliff view point, Dhuwandhar waterfall.
We were not happy with boat ride, as even after paying 800 rs they intentionally do it partially and ask unofficially double money to go further till famous points.
After closing time and some local chowapti snacks, we still had some time left so decide to drive till Nagpur.
Food: the chowpati items were not upto mark.. compare to what we were enjoying from last couple of days
We were stuck in new covid rules for 31st while returning to Pune, and then found it difficult to search hotels for stay nearby Nagpur.
We opted to sleep within car itself for few hours😬, and with some rest we able to come back home.
Points to consider:
Hoteling along highway is poor, get a break as soon as you find place to dine.
Same for staying, apart from tourist places other area has not good deals to stay.
Tea is not upto Mark
Roads are in well condition, so more daily drive can be managed if required.
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