4 Epic roadtrips in India with your friends to make memories

Who can forget the iconic Dil Chahta Hai movie with the carefree boys Sid, Akash and Sameer (played by Akshaye Khanna, Aamir Khan and Saif Ali Khan respectively) and the roadtrip they took, driving through the Mumbai-Goa highway for a fun vacation? Goa is always a good idea and with friends it’s an even better idea! Swaying palms, long roads leading to awesome beaches, lip-smacking food and great vibes. Sounds like the perfect setting to add to your bag of friendship memoirs and worth driving towards?

The Mumbai to Goa route will roughly take 11 hours and Pune to Goa will be about 9 hours. Occasional breaks can be taken along the highway NH-17 as pit-stops and for recharging yourselves too as there are many good hotels and dhabas all throughout this drive! The highway makes for a wonderful, smooth drive. Don’t forget to take the quintessential gang pic atop the Chapora Fort in Goa- for your own DCH moment and of course try the water sports together, if the weather is good! The best time to go to Goa would be September to March, but the rains are lovely too. Goan nightlife with its snazzy pubs and cool clubs is an added bonus and so are the sea and surf. Worth making a roadtrip of it! Fancy doing some tours and activities alongside? You can pick from our curated list on delights.intermiles.com and earn InterMiles for your spends too! Make it count.

Ladakh is quintessentially picture perfect and literally heaven on earth. Being blessed with all kinds of terrain you would possibly want to explore- high rugged mountains and valleys, deserts, flower valleys, beautiful lakes or Tsos, awe inspiring monasteries, the world’s highest motorable road at 18,000 feet- Khardungla and so much more! Ladakh is an adventure in itself & with friends to add to this… sheer magical times! The best time to hit this roadtrip is in the months of June to September.

The distance between Manali–Leh is about 473 kilometres and can be covered in two days as it may take a while as you drive through higher altitudes. Make stops at Keylong and Sarchu to relax and acclimatise to the higher altitudes.

Some fun activities to try with your posse- try a trek to the hilltop monastery Spituk Gompha or if you are up for it- get a rush of adrenaline by river rafting on the Zanskar- you will never forget it!

Tired of days in the concrete jungle of your city? In need of inspiration, chilling out and simply rejuvenating your senses in serene, cool and picturesque environs? The drive from Bangalore to Coorg via Mysore and then onwards to Ooty provides the much-needed respite.

Coorg is known as Scotland of India, with its green rolling tea and coffee plantations, lush waterfalls and great lakes. The best route from Bangalore to Coorg is the Kushalnagar route, stretches along NH275 for 272 kilometres (172 miles), which can be covered within six hours. Do leave early in the morning to avoid traffic. This route is very scenic and on the way you can also stop and visit Bhagamandala temple, Abbey falls, Golden temple and the Dubare elephant camps. While at Coorg you can also visit Raja Seat in Madikeri which gives you a lovely breath-taking panorama from atop of the verdant hills and fields with lovely flowers sprawling all around. If you plan to spend some time in Coorg, a trek to the Brahmagiri peak or Talacauvery, the origin of the river Cauvery can be explored. The Jeep drive to Mandalpatti, also makes for an enjoyable activity.

Proceeding onwards from Coorg to Ooty, the distance by road is roughly 236 km and will take about 6 hours. Once at Ooty there’s so much to do with friends- stopover at Shola grasslands where many-a Bollywood film has been shot, visit the Botanical gardens or simply buy the lovely local chocolates available all over the place.

While anytime of the year would be good, try going for this roadtrip in the months of September to March. The best environment always brings with it stillness and time to explore ourselves through introspection too. And sometimes the best way to get insights about yourself as well as pragmatic solutions is when you have a heartfelt chat with your besties. They have been your best sounding boards over the years!

Pro Tip- You can now refuel your tanks at select IOCL outlets, 500+ to be precise spread across 8 cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Surat, Baroda and Ahmedabad where you can now earn InterMiles. Infact the best part is you can also redeem your InterMiles now for free fuel. You can further accelerate your InterMiles earnings by using any of our co-brand cards for all your everyday spends.

Also known as the Golden Triangle, Delhi, Agra and Jaipur are connected via the Yamuna Expressway and NH8. This roadtrip is picturesque and has the choicest of dhabas all along the way along with very interesting landmarks that are milestones in Indian history! The Jama Masjid, Mughal Red Fort in Delhi, Amer Fort and City Palace in Jaipur and of course one of the wonders of the world- the Taj Mahal in Agra! Just the long unending highway, the chatter of your friends, the windows rolled down and a lovely tapestry of beautiful sights along the way.

Though this trip covers a distance of 449 kilometres (279 miles), which can be driven in seven hours, stretch it out to two or three days by taking stops along the way, to visit some of the iconic places along the way, savour local cuisine and simply revel in the company of your favourite people. Best time to make this plan and hit the road would be August to March, when the weather is agreeable.

You can belt out your favourite movie songs- the ones you used to be crazy about, discuss memories around- full on nostalgia courtesy this wonderful roadtrip. Make many more memories, pull each other’s legs, discuss your favourite series and recreate the fun times you had in the past! For your rest and stay along the way, choose from hotels, homestays, BnBs, resorts etc that you and your group would find suitable on hotels.intermiles.com.