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I know I have been away from the blog for quite some time, but I’ve been active on Instagram, so if you’ve been following me (@Atulmaharaj) there, you know that I just returned from Goa road trip – my first time to Goa with friends. This Goa trip was after my trip to Delhi for KubeCon India, DevRelCon in Bengaluru, and KubeCon Salt Lake City.
Further, if you’ve been a long-term blog reader, you know I spent a few years of my childhood in Goa. I’ve written a few blog posts on Goa based on my experience – part 1 and part 2. Goa has changed quite a lot since we stayed there, and I got to experience the state all over again during this Bengaluru to Goa road trip.
In this blog post, I’ll share details of our Bengaluru to Goa road trip, our route, and a sneak peek into our stay in Goa. So, without much to do, let’s get into the details.
Fastest Goa Trip Ever Planned & Executed
Everyone in India would agree that planning a trip to Goa is difficult. You always get people on board, plan the dates, and book the tickets; the trip never happens for some reason. Fortunately, ours wasn’t like that.
I was in Bengaluru to speak at DevRelCon when I reached out to a friend to meet for dinner. She, in turn, invited the two other folks, and it became almost like a mini school reunion – yes, I did my 11-12th grade from Bengaluru.
We had an amazing time during dinner, discussing many things that happened between dinner and our days in school. Then, we realized that just a dinner wasn’t enough. One of them suggested we go on a trip together, and we created a WhatsApp group that we named “ZNMD”—based on the famous Bollywood movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.
I was apprehensive of how things would turn out; everyone would get back to their work and forget about this group. Well, within 2 days, we had the group flooded with room suggestions, and the rooms were booked in no time.
I then booked my flight tickets from Hyderabad to Bengaluru and Goa to Hyderabad. The plan was that the group would pick me up from Bengaluru, and then we would drive to Goa and spend a few days there.
Bengaluru to Goa Road Trip
Everyone in the group had visited Goa recently except me. Also, none of them had driven from Bengaluru to Goa, so this would be a new experience for everyone. My friend took his Mahindra XUV 700, my first time in the car for such a long distance and must say it’s an amazing car, with lots of power and can handle bad roads well.
Goa is about 600 km from Bengaluru, an easy single-day drive. The standard route is as follows:
Bengaluru -> Tumkur -> Chitradurga -> Hubbali -> Dharward -> Molem -> Ponda -> Panjim
However, we had a different plan. We had to pick up a friend from Udupi, so we planned to drive from Bengaluru to Udupi, spend a night there, and then drive from Udupi to Goa. This would be a 700 km drive, and since it was a weekend, we had ample time and focused on doing the road trip at ease.
Bengaluru -> Nelamangala -> Channarayapatna -> Hassan -> Sakleshpura -> Dharmastala -> Bethangady -> Bajagoly -> Pullkery -> Udupi -> Maravanthe Beach -> Mudreshwar -> Karwar -> Cancona -> Madgaon -> Panjim
As you can see, we did add quite a few stops along the way from Bengaluru to Goa, where we explored nearby places that otherwise wouldn’t have been possible.
Bengaluru to Goa via Udupi Road Conditions
Talking about the road conditions from Bengaluru to Goa, they’re largely good. Once you leave the Bengaluru traffic, you hit the NH-75, a 4-lane highway that will take you to Belthangady. While most roads are good, the ghat section from Sakleshpura to Belthangady is pretty bad. Repair and widening works are on, but you’ll spend much time stopping and navigating the potholes (and craters) that spoil the otherwise scenic drive. From here until Udupi, the road is double-lane, and overtaking can be challenging with many slow-moving vehicles and random local traffic.
The roads from Udupi to Panjim are beautiful. As you saw in our route plan, we drove through Marvantre Beach and Mudreshwar before reaching Panjim. You must follow NH-66 until Panjim and the roads are good with four lanes. Just beware of random people crossing the highway, so keep an eye on the road and foot on your brake.
Overall, we took our sweet time to finish the 700-odd km in two days, stopping for the night in Udupi.
Quick Tour of Udupi
We reached Udupi late evening, tired and famished from the long drive. Our first stop was the legendary Woodlands Restaurant, a pure vegetarian restaurant practically an institution in Udupi. Despite the 30-minute wait for a table (which is quite normal here), the food was worth every minute. I tried Mysore Bun and Moode Idli for the first time – the buns were a revelation! The sambar here had a unique taste, different from what you typically get in other South Indian restaurants.
After dinner, we took a short walk to the famous Sri Krishna Math, the spiritual heart of Udupi. The temple, established by Saint Madhvacharya in the 13th century, is known for its unique way of worshipping Lord Krishna through a window with nine holes called ‘Navagraha Kitiki.’
The temple complex also houses eight monasteries (mutts) that take turns managing the temple in a unique two-year rotation system called Paryaya. We arrived just in time for a quick darshan, soaking in the peaceful atmosphere of this historic shrine before heading back to our hotel for the night.
Drive Through Maravanthe Beach and Mudreshwar
The next leg of our journey started early in the morning and took us through Maravanthe Beach, one of Karnataka’s hidden gems. NH66 runs parallel to the Arabian Sea on one side and the Souparnika River on the other, making it one of India’s most unique coastal drives. While the scorching sun made it challenging to enjoy the scenery fully, we could imagine how spectacular drone shots would be of this remarkable stretch, where beautiful waters flank both sides of the highway.
Our next stop was Murudeshwar, famous for its towering 123-foot-tall Shiva statue, which stands majestically against the Arabian Sea backdrop. The century-old temple, built on Kanduka Hill and surrounded by the Arabian Sea on three sides, was crowded. Given our late start and the unexpected crowds, we decided to skip going inside. Instead, we captured photos of the world’s second-tallest Shiva statue and the striking 20-story Raja Gopura, which adds to the temple’s grandeur.
Revisiting Goa – Mixing Meetings And Beach Walks
For those who haven’t followed my Instagram updates, here’s a quick peek into our Goan adventure. Our first stop was deeply personal: I visited my old home from the early 2000s and reunited with our former landlady, a moment filled with pure nostalgia.
We were staying at an Airbnb and while my friends were on holiday, I was on a workation. (Arjun from ZNMD) But I found a perfect rhythm between exploring and working – early morning work sessions, taking calls from scenic beaches, and wrapping up tasks in late afternoons.
Beach-hopping took us from the bustling Palolem to the serene Agonda (my favourite). Some of them were busy taking a dip in the ocean while I sipped my cold drink and was glued to the laptop. Post my calls, I did have my share of beach walking, but that’s the closest I go to sea. Fortunately, the weather this time was pretty good, it wasn’t too humid plus the cool breeze made it really easy for me. On one of the days we also visited the Chapora Fort and the nearby Anjuna and Candolim beaches.
Our food trail included gems like Mum’s Kitchen in Panjim, a restaurant I’d been eager to visit since experiencing their popup at Novotel HICC in Hyderabad, The Black Sheep Bistro and Isabella Tapas Bar, while Cafe Bhonsle became our daily breakfast spot. Its affordable, delicious food kept us coming back. We also checked out the Instagram-famous Thalassa, though I found it more about views than food.
The Christmas spirit in Fontainhas, with its midnight mass and carol singing, added a magical touch. But the company made this trip truly special – our late-night talks until 4 AM, sharing life stories, laughing, crying, and everything in between. It was only my second group trip, but the most memorable one yet.
Summing it Up!
Looking back on this impromptu Goa trip, I realize how the best adventures often come from unplanned dinner conversations. While I’ve visited Goa multiple times—as a child, for work, and solo—experiencing it with old friends added a completely different dimension.
The blend of nostalgia, new memories, and the perfect balance of work and leisure made this trip unforgettable. Sometimes, you only need a WhatsApp group named “ZNMD” and friends crazy enough to turn dinner plans into a road trip within days!
Further, I know I’ve been away from the blog for quite some time now, and I need to get back to writing and sharing my stories. The problem is I’m too fixated on completing a series of blog posts before starting the next one like Paris, Switzerland, Rome etc., but, I don’t think that is going to happen. Hence, I’ll be focusing and writing often without focusing too much on getting a series completed.
Feel free to reach out to me for any assistance. Drop your thoughts in the comments below, tweet to me at @Atulmaharaj, DM on Atulmaharaj on Instagram, or Get In Touch.
Wow what a wonderful trip you had. I can relate to the cancelled plans to visit Goa. Happened with me and my friends many times. We may go on number of trips with family, but one with friends is always a different experience. So happy for you that this impromptu plan worked out for you and you and left Goa with memories for life. How was the long drive experience? Doesn’t it lead to fatigue? I am always curious about that aspect of it as I have never been on such long road trip. Can you write a different post on that experience and pros and cons of it? I feel many will be interested in having an idea of that and will help them plan trips.