India Tourism » Travel to Goan Holiday Resort

For Any Inquiry Please Mail Us at: spectrumtour@gmail.com

GAON HOLIDAY
Exotic, enchanting, relaxing: it is the delightful mix of Mediterranean and Asian cultures that draws both Westerners and Indians alike to this unique enclave on the Arabian Sea. Goan Holiday Resort offers the unbeatable combination of miles and miles of sandy beaches, picturesque villages dotted with white-washed churches and a friendly, laid-back atmosphere. It is a place to unwind, relax, soak in the sun all day and party all night.

North of the capital city, Panaji, are the best known beaches of Candolim, Calangute and Baga. During the day, the sands are lined with rows of tanning bodies on deck chairs in various stages of undress, soaking in the sun like there’s no tomorrow. Many of the shacks that line the beach have their own deck chairs and umbrellas which can be rented at Rs 150 a shot, and many of them are quite happy to serve you right by the water. If you intend spending a fair bit of time by the sea, it’s best to scout around for a shack with the right sort of atmosphere and adopt it for the duration of your stay. Service is helpful and friendly especially if you are a regular.

Weekly markets are held at Mapusa and Anjuna, but stalls selling clothes and jewelry are almost everywhere. The Mapusa market, held in the market square on Fridays, has the atmosphere of a typical Indian bazaar with hundreds of stalls hawking a variety of wares. You’ll find utensils, plastics, bolts of cloth, fruits, vegetables and little old ladies selling strings of Goan Holiday Resort sausages. The Anjuna flea market, held on Wednesdays from end-October to mid-April, is a sprawling conglomeration of stalls selling everything from colorful crocheted juggling balls to Japanese sushi! While the friendly, informal atmosphere of the past has given way to hard-core commercialism, the flea market is still a popular hangout for freaks and ageing hippies whose tales of the early ‘70s make one long for the time when Goan Holiday Resort was still unspoiled and undiscovered.

In the section of stalls owned by Tibetans selling silver jewelry and artifacts, one can still find some amazing woven silver belts and bracelets. Clothes stalls display a range of merchandise from freaky lycra tights and swim wear to T-shirts and sarongs from Bali. One place does special edition T-shirts of Tintin in Goan Holiday Resort.

For those who want to get away from the madding crowd, Goan Holiday Resort has three wildlife sanctuaries that are well worth a visit. Along the Panaji Belgaum National Highway, about an hour and a half from Panaji, lies Goan Holiday Resort’s largest sanctuary, the Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife sanctuary at Molem. Comprising 240 sq kms of thick forest-clad slopes of the Western Ghats, it holds the Devil’s Canyon and the famous Dudhsagar Falls, both lovely picnic spots. A government-run tourist lodge on the fringe of the sanctuary provides comfortable lodging at reasonable prices but the restaurant attached to the complex is dismal, so it’s best to take your own food along. Isolated deep in the jungle 13 km from Molem is the Tambdi Surla Temple. This wonderful old temple has an aura of peace and tranquillity.The Bondla Sanctuary is smaller and more touristy with a deer park, botanical garden and rose garden. Cottages are available for overnight stays. The 105 sq km Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary is located about 60 km from Panaji, 3 kms off the Panaji-Mangalore Highway in South Goan Holiday Resort.

Cheap charters for western tourists have been part of the Goan Holiday Resort tourism scene for some time now. But whereas in the past there was a definite preference on the part of locals in favor of Western tourists, most restaurateurs today welcome Indian tourists, as they spend a lot more than their average Western counterparts. On the flip side, many nightclubs in the past year have had to put up with rowdy gangs of youngsters who come to Goan Holiday Resort for cheap booze and a “good time” which often translates into brawls and street fights. Many discotheques have been forced to employ bouncers and charge an entrance fee in a bid to keep out lumpen elements that spoil the fun for everybody.

However, the charters, notoriously fickle, have started moving towards Kerala, leaving in their wake an ugly rash of guest houses, hotels and resorts. The number of half built structures abandoned to the elements bears testimony to the fact that many local developers over-estimated the demand for rooms in the wake of the charter boom of the mid-90s.

Considering that tourism is one of the main revenue earners for thestate, Goan Holiday Resort is surprisingly poor on infrastructure. The roads are badly lit and pitted with potholes that are a real hazard, especially for two-wheelers. Power and telephones are temperamental, at best. The fact that the local municipalities have no provision for collecting, recycling or disposing off garbage is appalling. The beaches and roads are littered with empty mineral water bottles and plastic bags and the field between Baga beach and the creek is one big garbage dump.

To end on a lighter note, a chat with the solitary “lifeguard” on the 7 km beach stretch between Aguada and Baga revealed that he was only authorised to swim out to a distance of 50 m to save a swimmer in distress. “What happens if the person is 51 m out?” we asked in jest. “Then what can I do?” came the pat reply.

How he could judge from a point on the shore the difference between 50m and 51m remains a mystery. The only reasonable thing to do is head for the closest beach shack and laugh at the absurdity of it all, over a glass of feni and a plate of prawns!

Climate and Clothing:
The monthly mean maximum temperature ranges between 29°C in July-August to 33°C in November-December. The mean minimum temperature is between 20°C in January-February and 27°C in May. Light tropical clothing is appropriate throughout the year. The mosquito menace has been steadily increasing over the years and it is advisable to carry a tube of insect repellent at all times. The sun can be scorching especially in April, May and October and wearing a sunscreen when outdoors is a good idea.

Getting There:
Goan Holiday Resort is linked to the rest of India by sea, air, road and rail. Indian Airlines operates flights to Goan Holiday Resort from a number of cities including Agati (two a week), Delhi (daily), Cochin (daily), Mumbai (daily), Bangalore (four a week) and Chennai (four a week); Jet Airways has two flights daily to Mumbai; Sahara has one flight daily to Mumbai and Delhi; and Gujarat Airways has three flights a week to Pune.

By road, Panaji is 600 km from Mumbai, 540 from Bangalore and 520 from Pune. There are a number of buses plying the Goan Holiday Resort-Mumbai sector and the journey takes between 14-16 hours. Air-conditioned, air-suspension coaches and sleeper coaches also available.