Independence Day Road Trips

Welcome to Issue 76 of Travel Viewpoint, our August 2025 issue: The Independence Day Road Trips.

The long weekend around 15 August is one of the best times of the year to take to the road in India. The monsoon has turned the countryside green, forts and temples are quieter than in the winter season, and villages and towns along the highway are decorated for the national holiday. This issue is built around two classic long-weekend drives, one from Delhi and one from Bengaluru, along with the practical advice that makes a holiday drive enjoyable rather than exhausting.

The northern route: Delhi into Mewar

Our northern route leaves Delhi for the Aravallis, where the monsoon transforms rocky ridges into green hills. It ends at Kumbhalgarh, a UNESCO-listed hill fort with one of the longest walls in the world, and includes a morning at Chittorgarh, the great fort of Mewar, at opening hour.

The southern route: Bengaluru to Hampi

Our southern route heads north from Bengaluru across the Deccan to Hampi, the former Vijayanagara capital, at its greenest. Along the way we stop in Chitradurga, a highway town with a spectacular boulder fort, and take a spur west to the Chalukya temples of Badami, Aihole and Pattadakal.

Practical pieces

Every road trip depends on the unglamorous details. This issue looks honestly at highway traffic on 15 August, explains which route we would skip because of convoys and closures, covers fuel, FASTag and monsoon mist, and offers a realistic packing list for a hot car.

Inside This Issue

Editor’s letter: The Independence Day Road Trips: Why the 15 August long weekend belongs to the road.
Delhi to Kumbhalgarh in three days: Three days from Delhi into the green monsoon Aravallis, ending at the great walls of Kumbhalgarh.
Bengaluru toward Hampi after the rain: The Deccan after the rain, and how to see Hampi in the green season.
What the highways actually do on 15 August: Traffic, city restrictions and toll queues around Independence Day, and how to time your drive.
One fort at opening hour: Chittorgarh’s vast plateau in the quiet first hour, with full reservoirs.
A night in a highway town worth stopping: Why Chitradurga, usually a fuel stop, deserves a night.
The route to skip because of convoys: Why the Jammu–Srinagar highway is a poor choice this weekend, and gentler alternatives.
A guest note from the passenger seat: Our guest slot: the underrated job of the passenger.
Fuel, FASTag and fog: Fuel planning, FASTag essentials and driving in monsoon mist.
A less-driven spur off the main highway: Badami, Aihole and Pattadakal: the quieter spur west of Hampi.
Packing for a hot car: An honest list for humid August heat.

How to use this issue

If you are planning a northern trip, start with the Delhi to Kumbhalgarh route and the Chittorgarh piece. If you are in the south, begin with Bengaluru to Hampi, Chitradurga and the Badami spur. Whichever way you go, read the practical pieces before you leave: they will save you time, money and stress on the road.

We hope this issue inspires you to drive somewhere new this Independence Day. Leave early, respect the monsoon, and stop often.