TT - Indian Subcontinent - buses in india

Hi

Taking a bus ride in India - is it cheap? Do you recommend it ? Where are the best buses ?

Which are the most scenic routes?

One would be scared of taking a bus ride in India ,but many do it - why ?

http://www.oocities.org/webyatra/whileinindia/busesinindia.htm

http://www.oocities.org/webyatra - COMPREHENSIVE FAQ INDIA TRAVEL WEBSITE

webyatra,

I only enjoyed one bus ride in India, and that was in the south through the Western Ghats. Very scenic. Overall, the train is so much better.

Good luck with your website. I checked it out and its coming along nicely.

Try the deluxe buses of Rajasthan Roadways. they are very comfortable and even safe. Even there isnt much hastle with the reservation. You can even book it online. Check it..

http://www.rsrtc.com/reservation.htm

They have these rules and conditions for online booking...

1. Maximum number of seats available for reservation through internet will be
two in every service.
2. Confirmation of seats shall be mailed to e-mail address given .
3. Request for reservation may be given in the prescribed form to RSRTC e-mail
address mdrsrtc@datainfosys.net
4. On confirmation of seat, intimation of confirmation shall be given in the e-mail address of the passenger.
5. Time of acceptance of reservation request and confirmation of tickets will be from 10.00 A.M. to 5.00 P.M. (IST). All the requests received after 5.00 P.M. (IST) shall be responded only on next working day.
6. If the seat is confirmed, passenger has to obtain the ticket before one hour of the departure of the bus from the Central Bus Stand, Jaipur.
7. If ticket is not purchased before an hour of the departure of the bus, the reservation may be treated as cancelled.

We Reach .... Where our Dreams Take Us....

Trains are good for long trips, but otherwise they just run alongside slum areas with little scenery but extreme poverty and rows of people using the fields as toilets in the morning. Therefore i like to take hair raising bus rides through villages sometimes and get right into the thick of Indian chaos. LOL

This is the strangest life i've ever known -Jim Morrison

Cannot agree more...trains are so much more boring then buses. the views on my journey from rishikesh to dharamsala blew my mind. The mountains and clouds touching eachother. Elephants blocking the roads, and the opportunity to get off and stretch legs and buy a bunch of bananas...all not possible on a train journey. Go for the buses...there will be no disappointment....

Just to add to the above, if you are going into the Himalaya, you will have no choice but bus (of course you can take the quaint l'il train to Shimla, but that's about the limit).

The Himalaya bus rides are beautiful (in daytime) but scary when you have to pass a truck or another bus on abyssal side of a narrow mountain road. (But that's part of the thrill of India, IMHO.)

Trains are much better for night travel (second class sleeper is what I usually get). You can get horizontal, and aren't bounced all over the place. I generally can't sleep sitting upright, even on a cushy airplane, so on a rattling, bouncy bus, fuhgeddabouddit. After an all-night bus ride, I feel like hell. After a nocturnal train ride, I may not have slept soundly, but at least I've caught a few hours.

The other good thing about buses is that if you've arrived in Delhi and get the omigodihavetogetoutofthisfuckingplace urge, you can get one the same day. You can usually book (for modest surcharge) at the guest house, without walking all the way to the train station, waiting in line, and booking for the next morning.

on the bus from manali to leh (ladakh) the scenery blew my mind. it takes 2 days with a camping stop in between. it is also the worlds 2nd highest road which is a talking point. it only cost about 850rs aswell.
you can then take a bus from leh to the nubra valley which takes about 10 hours and is the worlds highest road. as there are only shitty local buses half the people have to stand up. It was very amusing watching every western person on the bus faint due to lack of oxygen.

posts 3&4- i agree. what is so special about sitting on a train that stinks, where everyone stares at you because your not indian. to be fair the railways are run exceptionaly well, which makes traveling by train easy

webyatra	buses in india - (5 replies) Hi Taking a bus ride in India - is it cheap? Do you recommend it ? Where are the best buses ? Which are the most scenic routes? One would be scared of taking a bus ride in India ,but many do it - why ? http://www.oocities.org/webyatra/whileinindia/busesinindia.htm http://www.oocities.org/webyatra - COMPREHENSIVE FAQ INDIA TRAVEL WEBSITE
rainboy	1. good luck with your site webyatra, I only enjoyed one bus ride in India, and that was in the south through the Western Ghats. Very scenic. Overall, the train is so much better. Good luck with your website. I checked it out and its coming along nicely.
jyotipg	2. Not all buses are scary.. Try the deluxe buses of Rajasthan Roadways. they are very comfortable and even safe. Even there isnt much hastle with the reservation. You can even book it online. Check it.. http://www.rsrtc.com/reservation.htm They have these rules and conditions for online booking... 1. Maximum number of seats available for reservation through internet will be two in every service. 2. Confirmation of seats shall be mailed to e-mail address given . 3. Request for reservation may be given in the prescribed form to RSRTC e-mail address mdrsrtc@datainfosys.net 4. On confirmation of seat, intimation of confirmation shall be given in the e-mail address of the passenger. 5. Time of acceptance of reservation request and confirmation of tickets will be from 10.00 A.M. to 5.00 P.M. (IST). All the requests received after 5.00 P.M. (IST) shall be responded only on next working day. 6. If the seat is confirmed, passenger has to obtain the ticket before one hour of the departure of the bus from the Central Bus Stand, Jaipur. 7. If ticket is not purchased before an hour of the departure of the bus, the reservation may be treated as cancelled. We Reach .... Where our Dreams Take Us....
Ayahuasca	3. Trains overhyped Trains are good for long trips, but otherwise they just run alongside slum areas with little scenery but extreme poverty and rows of people using the fields as toilets in the morning. Therefore i like to take hair raising bus rides through villages sometimes and get right into the thick of Indian chaos. LOL This is the strangest life i've ever known -Jim Morrison

Daliatree	4. trains and buses Cannot agree more...trains are so much more boring then buses. the views on my journey from rishikesh to dharamsala blew my mind. The mountains and clouds touching eachother. Elephants blocking the roads, and the opportunity to get off and stretch legs and buy a bunch of bananas...all not possible on a train journey. Go for the buses...there will be no disappointment....
Widespread	6. buses vs. trains Just to add to the above, if you are going into the Himalaya, you will have no choice but bus (of course you can take the quaint l'il train to Shimla, but that's about the limit). The Himalaya bus rides are beautiful (in daytime) but scary when you have to pass a truck or another bus on abyssal side of a narrow mountain road. (But that's part of the thrill of India, IMHO.) Trains are much better for night travel (second class sleeper is what I usually get). You can get horizontal, and aren't bounced all over the place. I generally can't sleep sitting upright, even on a cushy airplane, so on a rattling, bouncy bus, fuhgeddabouddit. After an all-night bus ride, I feel like hell. After a nocturnal train ride, I may not have slept soundly, but at least I've caught a few hours. The other good thing about buses is that if you've arrived in Delhi and get the omigodihavetogetoutofthisfuckingplace urge, you can get one the same day. You can usually book (for modest surcharge) at the guest house, without walking all the way to the train station, waiting in line, and booking for the next morning.
stevebham	5. buses on the bus from manali to leh (ladakh) the scenery blew my mind. it takes 2 days with a camping stop in between. it is also the worlds 2nd highest road which is a talking point. it only cost about 850rs aswell. you can then take a bus from leh to the nubra valley which takes about 10 hours and is the worlds highest road. as there are only shitty local buses half the people have to stand up. It was very amusing watching every western person on the bus faint due to lack of oxygen. posts 3&4- i agree. what is so special about sitting on a train that stinks, where everyone stares at you because your not indian. to be fair the railways are run exceptionaly well, which makes traveling by train easy