How To Travel From Shirdi To Ichalkaranji By MSRTC-My Amazing 435 KM Journey

Namaskar and Jai Maharashtra friends. Today in my blog I will give you information about my journey on the Shirdi To Ichalkaranji route. This post is a direct continuation of my previous journey.

Friends, in my previous blog I told you about my Chikhli to Shirdi bus journey. That journey was 270 kilometers and my bus was MH 20 GC 2897. That bus left Chikhli Bus Stand at 6:00 AM from platform number 2 and it went via Jalna, CIDCO, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Newasa, Shrirampur and Rahata.

I reached Shirdi Bus Stand at 1:30 PM in the afternoon. The ticket for that journey was 250 rupees. After reaching Shirdi, I took a night halt at Shirdi. Next day morning I started my new journey from Shirdi to Ichalkaranji.

So if you want to go from Chikhli to Ichalkaranji, you can first come to Shirdi and then take this bus. This is how my full chain is connected – Alibag to Pandharpur to Buldhana to Chikhli to Shirdi and now Shirdi to Ichalkaranji.

So now I came to Shirdi Bus Stand at 5:30 AM in the morning. At this time there was not much crowd, but this bus stand becomes very crowded during the day. Many long-distance buses leave from this bus stand. Shirdi Bus Stand is one of the most important bus stands in Maharashtra.

At this bus stand you will see buses from different states like Madhya Pradesh state, Karnataka state and Gujarat state. So you can guess how much importance this bus stand holds.

It was still a lot of time for the bus to come, so I thought let me eat something. Outside the bus stand, you will see many hotels in one line. Till now the day had dawned quite a lot and everything at Shirdi Bus Stand started to look clear.

From Shirdi Bus Stand, I got a bus to go to Ichalkaranji. The route of this bus was from Shirdi to Rahuri, Ahmednagar, Shirur, Pune Swargate, Satara, Karad and finally Ichalkaranji.

Exactly at 7:00 AM in the morning, my bus left Shirdi Bus Stand for its journey. In this bus, a charging point is provided for mobile charging which is on the side of every seat. But the problem is that your mobile does not charge quickly.

Shirdi To Ichalkaranji Ticket Price

The fare for Shirdi To Ichalkaranji by MSRTC bus was 650 rupees. This fare may decrease or increase over time.

Shirdi To Ichalkaranji Distance By MSRTC Bus

Also the distance from Shirdi to Ichalkaranji is 435 kilometers in this way and it was almost a nine hour journey.

My Real Hour By Hour Journey – With Each and Every Village, River and Ghat

While running on the highway, my bus went via Babaleshwar and after that via Kolhar Budruk and then after traveling on the bridge of Pravara River, now my bus reached Kolhar Khurd.

In the same way, via Rahuri Factory and also it reached Rahuri Bus Stand at 8:15 AM. Rahuri was the first stage on my route. The road till Rahuri from Shirdi was very good. At Rahuri Bus Stand, platforms are given on both sides. The shed of the bus stand is made of tin sheets.

From Rahuri Bus Stand, my bus now starts running again on a single road to reach the next stage. While being in the village, it travels on the bridge of Mula River and also via Rahuri Khurd and then after Shingve Naik and from there onwards near Ahmednagar it travels on the bridge of Sina River and then it reached Tarakpur Ahmednagar Bus Stand at 9:00 AM in the morning on platform number 7.

At Tarakpur Ahmednagar Bus Stand, platforms are given at two places. In this city there are two bus stands at two places. The first is Maliwada Bus Stand from where buses leave to go to Beed, Gevrai and Jamkhed and the second is Tarakpur Bus Stand from where buses for Pune and Karad are parked here. At Tarakpur Bus Stand, paver blocks are installed on the ground. The third Pune Bus Stand is located in Ahmednagar city.

From here now my bus starts again to travel via Pune Swargate Shirur route. Ahmednagar to Pune was almost 124 kilometers distance. To cover this distance, it took almost three and a half hours.

While coming out of Ahmednagar city from Maliwada Ahmednagar Bus Stand and also ahead at Ahmednagar there is a separate Bus Stand named Pune Bus Stand, my bus took a small halt there for some time and then again left for its journey.

From Varde Chowk and further while running on the highway via Supa and after crossing the toll naka, the hotel that is located on the highway is Hotel Virat Garden where it takes a halt for food at 10:00 AM in the morning. In front of Hotel Virat Garden, there is Hotel Gangasagar.

From here onwards now my bus started running towards Shirur. Shirur is at a distance of almost 20 to 25 kilometers from this place.

While running on the highway and traveling on the bridge of Ghod River and after taking a small halt at Shirur Bus Stand for some time, my ST started running again for further journey. I liked the new construction of Shirur Bus Stand very much. It is a very big bus stand. The inner roads are made of concrete.

After coming out of the crowded Shirur city via Shikrapur and also ahead via Pabal Phata and traveling via the bridge of Velu River and also via Koregaon Bhima.

My ST travels at Koregaon via the bridge of Bhima River and ahead after Wagholi and then near Pune via the bridge of Mula Mutha River and then after Wakdewadi and also after crossing Sangam Bridge, it reached Pune Swargate Bus Stand at 1:30 PM in the afternoon. At this place, you always get to see a huge crowd of buses and passengers.

After a 6 hour journey from Shirdi, it comes out from here the most crowded and busy Pune Swargate Bus Stand and comes out via Katraj and also ahead via Mangdewadi and after crossing Katraj Ghat and after traveling for a long time ahead via old Katraj tunnel at Shindewadi and from here running on the highway now my ST at Kikwi which is one and a half hours journey from Pune takes a halt for food at Hotel Surya at 3:00 PM in the afternoon.

After taking a halt of almost 20 minutes, my bus now starts running again on the highway towards Satara and Karad.

While running, at Shindewadi it travels on the bridge of Neera River and ahead at Bengrutwadi it crosses Khambatki Ghat and after a long time via Vele, now my ST starts entering Satara city.

At Satara Bus Stand on platform number 11 at 4:30 PM in the afternoon, my ST starts running from here towards Ichalkaranji which is at a distance of 132 kilometers. At this bus stand, there is always a crowd. This city is famous for Kandi Peda.

From Satara Bus Stand now via Shendre and ahead via Atit and then via Umbraj and also via Taswade where there is a small toll naka and after crossing it and then after Varunji and ahead near Karad via the bridge of Koyna River, my bus reached Karad Bus Stand which comes under Satara district on platform number 20 at 5:45 PM in the evening.

Shirdi To Ichalkaranji Final Destination

From Karad Bus Stand, the distance to Ichalkaranji is about 75 kilometers. My bus went via Malkapur, Shenoli, and then via Nandi and finally it reached Ichalkaranji Bus Stand at around 7:30 PM to 8:00 PM at night. So the total journey from 7:00 AM morning to 8:00 PM night took almost 12 to 13 hours including all halts for 435 kilometers.

Ichalkaranji is a big textile city. It is famous for powerlooms. The bus stand is medium sized and it is crowded.

After This Journey I Took A Break And Went Home

After reaching Ichalkaranji Bus Stand at around 7:30 PM at night, I ended my long chain journey. Friends, if you calculate, I had traveled from Alibag to Pandharpur which was 450 kilometers, then Pandharpur to Buldhana which was 477 kilometers, then I reached Chikhli at 5:15 PM and next day I did Chikhli to Shirdi which was 270 kilometers and I reached Shirdi at 1:30 PM, and then I did Shirdi to Ichalkaranji which was 435 kilometers and I reached Ichalkaranji at 7:30 PM. So in total I had traveled almost 1632 kilometers in 4 days continuously. So I was very tired.

Ichalkaranji to my home in Chikkodi is only about 45 kilometers via Kolhapur. It is very close. So from Ichalkaranji Bus Stand, I took a direct bus to Chikkodi and I went home. I took a break for a few days at my home with my family and I took complete rest.

I did not do any bus journey for a few days. After taking this break and after getting fresh, I will start my next journey again and I will share my handwritten diary with you.

Thank you for reading my full chain journey from Alibag to Pandharpur to Buldhana to Chikhli to Shirdi and finally Shirdi to Ichalkaranji.

My Personal Observations

First, this is a full chain journey. Many people ask in Facebook groups how to go from Shirdi to Kolhapur side. I did Chikhli to Shirdi first, which was 270 kilometers and ticket was 250 rupees and I reached Shirdi at 1:30 PM. I stayed at Shirdi and next day at 5:30 AM I came to Shirdi Bus Stand and at 7:00 AM I took this Shirdi to Ichalkaranji bus. So if you want to go from Buldhana or Chikhli to Ichalkaranji, this is the best way – Chikhli to Shirdi and then Shirdi to Ichalkaranji.

Second, the ticket price for Shirdi to Ichalkaranji is 650 rupees for 435 kilometers. This is reasonable. In my previous journey from Chikhli to Shirdi it was 250 rupees for 270 kilometers. So the per kilometer cost is almost same.

Third, the bus has mobile charging point on every seat side, but the charging is very slow. So you should carry a power bank. Also there is no washroom inside the bus. You should use washrooms at Rahuri, Ahmednagar, Shirur, Swargate, Satara and Karad bus stands.

Fourth, the road condition from Shirdi to Rahuri is very good and it is a single road. From Rahuri to Ahmednagar via Mula and Sina river bridges, the road is also good. From Ahmednagar to Pune is 124 kilometers and it takes three and a half hours because of traffic near Pune. From Pune Swargate to Satara, the road is highway and it crosses Katraj Ghat and Khambatki Ghat. Both ghats are beautiful. The Neera River bridge at Shindewadi and Koyna River bridge near Karad are big bridges.

Fifth, the food halts are at Hotel Virat Garden at 10:00 AM near Supa after crossing the toll naka and at Hotel Surya at Kikwi at 3:00 PM after Pune. Both hotels are on the highway. Hotel Virat Garden has Hotel Gangasagar in front of it.

Sixth, Shirdi Bus Stand, Ahmednagar Tarakpur Bus Stand and Pune Swargate Bus Stand are the most crowded bus stands on this route. At Shirdi you see buses from Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat. At Tarakpur Ahmednagar there are two bus stands – Maliwada for Beed side and Tarakpur for Pune side, and there is also a separate Pune Bus Stand in Ahmednagar city. At Pune Swargate there is always a huge crowd.

My Final Advice For You

If you want to travel from Shirdi to Ichalkaranji, you should come to Shirdi Bus Stand at 5:30 AM in the morning because the bus leaves at 7:00 AM from there. The distance is 435 kilometers and ticket is 650 rupees. The bus goes via Rahuri at 8:15 AM, Tarakpur Ahmednagar at 9:00 AM on platform number 7, Hotel Virat Garden at 10:00 AM for breakfast, Shirur, Pune Swargate at 1:30 PM, Hotel Surya at Kikwi at 3:00 PM for lunch, Satara at 4:30 PM on platform number 11 and Karad at 5:45 PM on platform number 20 and finally Ichalkaranji. You should carry water bottle and power bank.

And if you are coming from my previous route Chikhli to Shirdi which was 270 kilometers and 250 rupees, you can stay at Shirdi at night and next day take this 7:00 AM bus to Ichalkaranji.

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