Uttarakhand hills and lakes by car:eight days, both halves of the state
Uttarakhand is two trips that look like one. Garhwal in the west — Haridwar, Rishikesh, Mussoorie — and Kumaon in the east — Nainital, the lakes, Corbett — are 300 km and seven hours apart, and the road between them drops to the plain at Haridwar and climbs again at Kathgodam. Eight days does both honestly: four in Garhwal, one crossing, three in Kumaon. About 1,500 km in all. A sedan bills ₹26,400 for the eight days on the 300 km per day minimum; an Innova Crysta ₹43,200.
Updated · Fares from the published rate card, Sedan ₹11/km to Tempo ₹23/km
- The loop
- 8 days · ~1,500 km
- Driving days
- 5 of 8
- The crossing
- Mussoorie → Nainital, 290 km · 7 hrs
- Sedan, 8 days
- ₹26,400
The mistake most Uttarakhand itineraries make is treating the state as a single hill region. It is two, separated by the width of the Ganga plain, and the crossing between them is the longest day of any trip that does both. Pretending otherwise produces the classic eight-day plan with eleven hours of driving on day five.
The circuit below goes west first — Haridwar and Rishikesh on the way up, Mussoorie for two nights — then crosses to Kumaon on a single committed driving day, and finishes with Nainital, the lakes and Corbett before an easy run home on NH-9. Garhwal first matters because the Kumaon half ends closer to Delhi.
Distances and hours are from the site’s corridor data and from the drivers who run these roads. Fares follow the published rate card — sedan ₹11/km, Ertiga or SUV ₹15/km, Innova Crysta ₹18/km, 12-seater Tempo Traveller ₹23/km — on a 300 km per day minimum, with tolls, parking, Uttarakhand entry and the driver night allowance at actual.
The loop
The circuit, day by day and kilometre by kilometre
Kilometre marks are cumulative from Delhi. Garhwal first, one long crossing, then Kumaon and home on the fast road.
- km0
NH-334Day 1: Delhi to Haridwar
5-6 hrs · 230 kmNH-334 through Meerut and Muzaffarnagar. Arrive by late afternoon and go straight to Har ki Pauri for the evening Ganga aarti, which is the whole reason to stop here rather than drive through. The ghats before dawn the next morning are a completely different place.
Halt: Night: Haridwar
- km230
Short dayDay 2: Haridwar to Rishikesh
1 hr · 25 kmThe shortest driving day of the circuit, on purpose. Mansa Devi by ropeway in the morning, then 25 km to Rishikesh: the Lakshman Jhula and Ram Jhula footbridges, the Beatles ashram, and the Triveni Ghat aarti at dusk. Rafting slots run in the morning if you want them on day three.
Halt: Night: Rishikesh
- km255
The climbDay 3: Rishikesh to Mussoorie
2.5-3 hrs · 80 kmRafting on the Shivpuri stretch in the morning if booked, then up through Dehradun and the 35 km climb to the ridge. The Mall is pedestrian for much of its length, so the car drops at Picture Palace or Library and the rest is walked.
Halt: Night: Mussoorie
- km335
LocalDay 4: Mussoorie
Local day · 50 kmLandour early, which is the quiet half of Mussoorie and gone by the time day visitors have walked up. Then Gun Hill, the Camel’s Back road for the Doon valley view, and Kempty Falls or Dhanaulti in the afternoon. Lal Tibba for the Himalayan line on a clear day.
Halt: Night: Mussoorie
- km385
The crossingDay 5: Mussoorie to Nainital
7-8 hrs · 290 kmThe crossing, and the hard day of the circuit. Down the 35 km to Dehradun, across the plain through Haridwar, Najibabad and Rudrapur, then the 35 km climb from Kathgodam. Leave by six. Nainital applies vehicle entry restrictions on peak weekends and the Mall is closed to traffic in the evening.
Halt: Night: Nainital
- km675
LocalDay 6: Nainital and the lakes
Local day · 70 kmNaini Lake and the Snow View cable car in the morning, Tiffin Top, then down to the quieter lake country — Bhimtal, Sattal and Naukuchiatal, twenty minutes below the town and a different proposition from the Mall. Naina Peak for anyone who walks.
Halt: Night: Nainital
- km745
Permits firstDay 7: Nainital to Jim Corbett
2-2.5 hrs · 65 kmA short drive to Ramnagar and the park. Safari zones run on booked slots at dawn and mid-afternoon, so arrive for the afternoon drive and take a dawn one the next morning. Resorts spread from Ramnagar through Dhikuli to the Kaladhungi road — tell us which one.
Halt: Night: Jim Corbett
- km810
NH-9Day 8: Jim Corbett to Delhi
6 hrs · 250 kmA dawn safari first if the permit allows, then NH-9 through Moradabad and back to Delhi. The easiest final day of any circuit on this site — fast plains highway all the way, and you are home by evening even after a morning in the park.
Halt: Home
- km1060
Delhi
Evening of day 8About 1,060 km on the loop with the local days counted, 1,500 with the detours and safari drives most people add. Eight days at the rate card, tolls, state entry and the night allowance at actual.
The eight-day Uttarakhand circuit at a glance
Hours are real driving hours including the hill sections. The three local days bill the 300 km per day minimum, which is why the eight-day fare is flat rather than the sum of the legs.
| Day | From → to | Km | Hours | Night | What you see |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delhi → Haridwar | 230 | 5–6 | Haridwar | NH-334, the evening Ganga aarti |
| 2 | Haridwar → Rishikesh | 25 | 1 | Rishikesh | Mansa Devi, the footbridges, Triveni Ghat |
| 3 | Rishikesh → Mussoorie | 80 | 2.5–3 | Mussoorie | Rafting, Dehradun, the 35 km climb |
| 4 | Mussoorie local | 50 | 2 driving | Mussoorie | Landour, Gun Hill, Lal Tibba, Dhanaulti |
| 5 | Mussoorie → Nainital | 290 | 7–8 | Nainital | The crossing: Garhwal to Kumaon |
| 6 | Nainital local | 70 | 2.5 driving | Nainital | Naini Lake, Bhimtal, Sattal, Tiffin Top |
| 7 | Nainital → Jim Corbett | 65 | 2–2.5 | Corbett | Ramnagar, an afternoon safari |
| 8 | Corbett → Delhi | 250 | 6 | Home | Dawn safari, then NH-9 |
| Total | The loop | ~1,060 | ~29 driving | 7 nights | Both halves of the state |
Fares for the eight days: Sedan ₹26,400, Ertiga ₹36,000, Innova Crysta ₹43,200, 12-seater Tempo Traveller ₹55,200. Tolls, parking, Uttarakhand entry and the driver night allowance at actual. Corbett safari permits are booked separately and should be fixed before the car.
The crossing
Mussoorie to Nainital is the day that decides the trip
Two hundred and ninety kilometres and seven to eight hours, and there is no shortcut. Garhwal and Kumaon are separated by the Ganga plain, so the road goes down from Mussoorie to Dehradun, across through Haridwar and Najibabad to Rudrapur, and then back up the 35 km from Kathgodam. Two hill descents and one hill climb with four hours of plain in between.
The practical consequences are worth stating. Leave Mussoorie by six, not eight — the Dehradun descent is slow and the Kathgodam climb at the far end is slower if you reach it in the evening. Take lunch at Najibabad or Rudrapur rather than stopping twice. And do not plan anything in Nainital for that evening beyond dinner.
The alternative, for anyone who would rather not spend a day in the car, is to treat Uttarakhand as two separate trips — four days in Garhwal from Delhi, and a separate four days in Kumaon. The Kumaon half is actually closer to Delhi than Mussoorie is.
MussoorieThe permits
Corbett safaris have to be booked before the car
This is the one item on the circuit that cannot be arranged on the day. Corbett safari permits are sold by the forest department per zone and per time slot — dawn and mid-afternoon — and the popular zones go weeks ahead, particularly between March and June and over long weekends. Dhikala, the deepest zone, needs its own overnight permit.
The practical order is therefore: fix the Corbett permits for days seven and eight first, then build the rest of the circuit backwards from them. Doing it the other way round is how people end up at Ramnagar with no drive available.
The park’s core zones close during the monsoon, roughly mid-June to mid-November, though Jhirna and Dhela stay open year round. If your dates fall in that window, say so and we will tell you honestly what is available rather than letting you plan around a closed gate.
The variations
What to cut at five days, and what to add at twelve
At five days, pick one half. Garhwal — Haridwar, Rishikesh and Mussoorie from Delhi — is a comfortable five days and the drives are short. Kumaon — Nainital, the lakes and Corbett — is the same, and is slightly closer to Delhi. Attempting both in five days means the crossing eats a fifth of the trip.
At twelve days, the additions depend on which half interests you. In Garhwal, add Chopta and the Tungnath walk, which is the best thing in the state and needs two nights, or the Char Dham gateway towns of Devprayag and Rudraprayag. In Kumaon, add Kausani and Binsar for the sunrise Himalayan views, and Almora with the Jageshwar temple cluster.
What not to add is Auli or Munsiyari on a twelve-day loop that already does both halves. Each is eight to ten hours from the nearest town on this circuit and belongs to a trip built around it.
Weekend getaways from Nainital, including Kausani and Binsar
The season
When to do this circuit, and the two windows to avoid
March to June and September to November. The spring window is warmest and busiest, with Mussoorie and Nainital both filling to the point of vehicle entry restrictions on peak weekends. September to November is the better half of the year here — clear air, the best Himalayan views from Lal Tibba and Naina Peak, and far fewer people.
The first window to avoid is the monsoon, July to mid-September. The hill roads carry landslide risk, the Mussoorie descent and the Kathgodam climb both slow considerably, and the Corbett core zones are closed. It is passable but the circuit loses its best features.
The second is the Kanwar yatra, usually late July into August, which puts enormous pedestrian traffic on the Haridwar and Rishikesh roads and leads to extended vehicle diversions and closures. If your dates fall there, the Garhwal half of this circuit should be reconsidered rather than merely re-timed.
Three things the drivers would tell you
Book Corbett first, then the car
Safari permits are zone- and slot-specific and go weeks ahead in season. Everything else on this circuit can be arranged around them; they cannot be arranged around anything.
Leave Mussoorie at six on day five
The crossing is seven to eight hours with two hill sections. Starting at eight means arriving at Nainital after dark and climbing from Kathgodam in the worst conditions of the day.
Both Malls are walked
Mussoorie’s Mall and Nainital’s lakeside Mall are closed to vehicles, the latter entirely in the evenings. The car drops at the permitted point; tell us your hotel and we will plan it.
Nainital caps entry on peak weekends
In April to June the town restricts vehicle entry on the busiest weekends. It is worth knowing before you plan a Saturday arrival.
The aarti and the dawn ghats are two different visits
At Haridwar, the evening aarti at Har ki Pauri and the same ghats at four in the morning are not the same experience. The night in Haridwar is what buys you both.
Questions people ask
Frequently asked questions
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