Where to go in Goa depends very much of what you are looking for. If it is beaches, then you’re good: they are all along the Goan coast;-).
If we take Panjim, the capital, as the centre of coastal line, then it is said that the north, all above Panjim, is very developed and thus more touristy. And the south is less developed and quiter.
More developed has its perks, like facilities in abundance. And its downside of course: lots of other tourists, less peaceful, noisy, etcetera.
Undeveloped has its good sides, like more unspoiled and more quiet. But the downside can be that there is nothing: no infrastructure, no beach shacks for food and drinks, no sun beds on the beach, or parasols…
So it really depends on what you prefer.
Then there is also the more land inward part of the state, and there are some nice cities like Old Goa and Panjim.
In fact there is a lot of diversity!
We only had 5 days, so we stayed mostly in our paradise hotel and on it’s private beach.
In fact, we really had to push ourselves to go out there and explore a bit of Goa. So that’s when we visited Old Goa, the Shigmo Festival and Panjim.
Panjim is the capital of Goa and it is a lovely town. Here are some pictures of it:
If we take Panjim, the capital, as the centre of coastal line, then it is said that the north, all above Panjim, is very developed and thus more touristy. And the south is less developed and quiter.
More developed has its perks, like facilities in abundance. And its downside of course: lots of other tourists, less peaceful, noisy, etcetera.
Undeveloped has its good sides, like more unspoiled and more quiet. But the downside can be that there is nothing: no infrastructure, no beach shacks for food and drinks, no sun beds on the beach, or parasols…
So it really depends on what you prefer.
Then there is also the more land inward part of the state, and there are some nice cities like Old Goa and Panjim.
In fact there is a lot of diversity!
We only had 5 days, so we stayed mostly in our paradise hotel and on it’s private beach.
In fact, we really had to push ourselves to go out there and explore a bit of Goa. So that’s when we visited Old Goa, the Shigmo Festival and Panjim.
Panjim is the capital of Goa and it is a lovely town. Here are some pictures of it:
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| 31st January Road |
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| Entrance of Hospederia Venite. The food was so-so, but the mosaics and interior decorations were cool! |
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| Statue of Jose Custodio Faria, stretching out his arms over a hypnotized woman. He was an 18th century hypnotist. |
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| Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception |
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| Then you have this majestic church. You climb all those stairs in the bloody heat…to discover that the doors are closed. Bummer! |
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| The view was nice. The decorations along the road were for the Shigmo Parade that would pass there later that day. |
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| Fountainas is one of two cute neighborhoods with here and there a charming shop or restaurant. |
I definitely would love to go back to Goa, but then a bit longer, like for two weeks or so.
On my Goan bucket list are:
1. rent a scooter for a day and explore the area
2. spend another day at Panjim
3. take the free ferry to Betim and watch the sunset from the ferry
4. go to a nature reserve
5. visit more temples
6. stay 3 nights at the Leela
7. visit the saturday night market at Arpora
8. have lunch at Martin’s Corner (at Betalbatim), recommended by several friends
9. visit South Goa
10. go dolphin spotting
Despite being crowded and touristy in several parts, Goa is still very much worthwhile, in my opinion!
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