Budget roadtrip to LEH Ladakh by car

 Road-trip, Experience, Expenditure, Adventurous, Deadliest & Dangerous.

The vehicle used - is Volkswagen Jetta (AT, Diesel).

We, a family of 4 (myself, my husband, and 2 kids)started our road-trip from Kochi, Kerala on October 19. We crossed many states and got new good experiences. The roads were awesome and we loved the drive. Different cultures, foods, languages and but all people are lovely.

Routes Covered:

Total States - 14

Kerala - Bangalore - Hyderabad -Nagpur - Delhi - Ludhiana - Pathankot - Jammu - Srinagar- Gulmarg - Sonamarg - Drass - Kargil - Leh - Khardung La Pass - Hunder - Agham - Shyok -Durbuk - Pangong Tso - Dett Pang - Sarchu to Barchula Pass - Keylong - Manali - Amritsar - Jaisalmer - Vadodara - Bombay - Pune - Tumkur - Hasanur - Tirupur

Total distance covered - 8570 km. No Animal hurt, No Accidents, Only 1-time tyre puncher.

Notes from the trip:

• The adventurous road is Agham to Shyok (Hunder to Pangong lake route, We haven’t seen anybody between 40-50 kms)
• Deadliest & Dangerous - Sarchu to Barchula Pass(My head was on the steering by the way) Temperature was -12.5 degrees.
• Fastest Road - Satara, MH to Tumkur, KA - 662 Kms - 7 Hours - Speed of 140-160/kms - 6 Lane and Fantastic
• Top Speed - Matura to Delhi - 210 kms in Yamuna Express Highway
• Forest Route - Hasanur to Dhimbam about 20 kms and traveled late night with special permission and spotted Many Elephants and Leopard luckily

Today Expenditure:

• Toll Gate - Rs.8000
• Fuel Cost (Diesel) - Rs.58000
• Accommodation & Food - Rs.75000 it depends on the category which you choose but we stayed in 3 & 4 Star Hotel budget of Rs.4000-5000, Homestay and Tents
• General VW Jetta Service - Rs.16000 (Amritsar)
• Number Plate and Sunshade Film Penalty charges Rs.4000

Grand Total - Rs,1,61,000/-

Do's and Dont's we followed during Ladakh Road Trip:

What clothes and essentials we packed and How we packed?

• 15 sets of casual clothes for each.
• Full sleeved tees and full pants for kids which helped to Withstand cold.
• One formal wear because we might visit any temple anywhere or get some business done.
• Packed all the above in one big trolley, medium trolley and a duffel bag.
• Winter jackets which can Withstand - 15 degree cold. Socks, gloves, caps, neck warmer, foot and hand warmers, Thermal wears. These all packed in a seperate bag.
• An essential kit bag with soap, facewash, toothbrush and paste readily available at once
• One bag for shoes and extra slippers.
• 4 pillows, 2 bedsheets, one bedspread.

Thats it. Clothing and essentials part over.

What we took for cooking in case we dint find to get food somewhere?

Essential groceries packed in small covers, tetra pack milk, rice mixes, a burner stove, 5 liter LPG cylinder, one tawa, one 3 liter cooker, 4 plates, aluminum foil wraps, a small bucket, a mug, a scrubber and a small vim liquid packet, a foldable table to keep stove, foldable picnic mat.

All these in a bag. So food part over.

What we bought online?

Puncture kit

Portable digital tyre inflator.

Pepper spray for safety.

Decathlon foldable stool.

Inflatable bed. (for those full moon nights)

Wet body wipes. (survived with this )

What was in our medical kit?

Vaseline, lip balms, iodex, sybol, soframycin, neosprin powder, bandage, cotton, headache tablets, paracetamol tablet,portable oxygen cylinder,digital thermometer, oximeter and an oxygen cylinder.

What to avoid during travel?

Don't get down unnecessarily on the highway.

Don't park car at dhaba's. (Park only in petrol stations, its legally safe)

Everyone doesn't know English, so at least one member must know hindi.

How we stayed and got refreshed?

We didn't stay at hotels every other night. We mostly stayed in our car, parked at petrol stations. We used restrooms over there. We didn't bath daily. We just got refreshed, changed clothes at dhaba's washrooms.

We stayed in hotels only when we thought we really need to feel the feel of luxury bed..

We had a separate big bag for laundry, in which we dumped all our used clothes.

Where we stayed?

• Pathankot (Hotel King Virat - Good)
• Gulmarg (Hotel Affarvat - Very Good)
• Kargil (Hotel Zojila - Good)
• Hunder (Homestay - Good)
• Pangong (Homestay - OK)
• Amritsar (Hotel BR grande - Very Good)
• Jaisalmer (Hotel Ghar - Good)
• Vadodara (The baroda Residency - Excellent)
• Kholapur (Raj Palace - Average)

What food we had all the way?

We ate at dhaba's, hotels and we tried all typical foods when we crossed all states. That was an awesome experience being a foodie. When we dint get food, we had bananas,lazzi,coconut water.

We cooked once and ate puliyotharai and Mestiri Chicken in hunder, Ladakh.

How we drove and what to avoid during driving?

Installed offline maps because we dint get network in all places.

Prepaid wont work in Jammu and kashmir. So one number we used is postpaid.

Mostly avoid music and videos during driving.

We both drove alternatively, we dint feel bored. Per day maximum we drove 800 kms.

He was a PRO in driving, so i got some good time to sleep

How we managed kids?

Keep a snack bag in front seat which will be easy to have.

Dont hear to their tantrums, they fight and they get together. Just watch the road carefully and drive. Dont get distracted, then it will be a major task to take a decision between their silly Nd naughty fights.

Not funny, but i swear every parent knows this scenario . When kids fart, it will be like yuck inside car. So open windows in regular intervals and carry a room spray handy.

Dont buy packed snacks to kids. We carried peanut burfy, roasted peanuts, biscuits, sweets.

Avoid snacking, only then they will eat properly during food stops.

Trip total days - 13 days

Kms covered - 8570 kms

Total expenses - Rs.1,61,000/-

My way of explanation may be lengthy, dont mind it. . I've more to say but i dont want to spam. Anyone has doubts, ping me personally.

We have one life to live, live to the fullest and enjoy each and every moment. Be happy, do good.