GOA or ANDAMAN?

sumit123

dear all,

i am planning to visit either of two places in december.

what are pros and cons? has anyone been to both of these places?

thanks in advance for your comments..

cheers

puchoo

I would go for the Andaman's. Given my lifestyle during vacations Goa is too crowded and the former is cleaner and prettier....but then of course there is a substantial cost factor involved which can affect decisions such as these..

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camelgirl

I've never been to the Andamans but Goa is very big and still has lovely and uncrowded beaches. Here is a map link to give you some idea. The south has the less crowded beaches. Goa is a State and also has interesting inland things to see, like spice farms, etc..

http://www.mapsofindia.com/maps/goa/goa-beaches-map.htm

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Radjesh

Go for Andamans, its far better than crowded and dirty Goa. But it might cost more because you'll have to take planes. Check out the link

Andaman Trip report & photos

faustus77

not necessary to take planes.
Since u are in Chennai u can take a ship.
Pl read my 2 e-mails on kolkatta-portblair and port blair chennai thread
rgds

puchoo

nice pictures Radjesh...

snooks

It would depend on what sort of trip you want....

BUT if you do go to Goa and you do not want the sea to beachhut sunloungers full of package deal tourists and bars holding quiz nights and selling lots of english food, stay away from Candolim and Calangute. I ended up there last year (a friend paid for me to have a break from Tamil Nadu - rude to say no) and it was horrid! (Though I appreciate that it is just what some people want)

sumit123

thanks lot guys..
so, it seems that:

GOA: crowded, but may be more activities. less costly
Andaman&Nic: no crowded. expensive.
how about things like food, general ambience, sporting activities?

and also, i believe south GOA is not crowded..for ex: Palolem beach...any comments?

snooks

I went to palolem last year...

Beautiful beach but busy (NOTHING compared to Candolim!) - and surprisingly 'expensive'. I live near Mamallapuram and found prices considerably higher (but that is all relative). We wanted to stay in one of the beach huts/tents compounds but couldn't afford them (one charged over Rps 1500 a night) - admittedly, it was very early in the season so some were not open and we were on a meagre-ish budget (which went out the window fairly quickly). I think we ended up paying more than we wanted at about Rps 400 for a fairly basic but comfortable room just off the beachfront (sorry, I forget the name).

As for restaurants, most were more 'upmarket' from your usual backpacker scene - we did have some fantastic food, particularly fish on the beach, though we found it nigh on impossible to find anything Indian prices - no idli or dosa breakfasts (but we were only there 2 nights and didn't explore fully). New 'boutiques' selling funky traveller wear were just opening though there was still the ubiquitous Kashmiri shops.

Other friends swear by Agonda and a smaller village just south of Palolem (again, i forget the name). They have been many times and found cheap rooms to stay in family houses in the village (Rps 150 a night or something) though spend what they save on drinking!

What sort of thing are you wanting? Backpacker budget, traveller chic or tourist upmarket? Isolation or lively? Beach flopping or activities/places to see?

I have not been to Andamans. Yet! But I have a feeling I will not want to leave when I do get there - from what I have heard and seen it looks idyllic!

navinkurian2002

There is no night life in the andamans (there are some private parties).So if you love a nice quiet night then andamans is the way to go. If you wanna party till the next day.A good choice of food and accommodation then its goa. The andamans(havelock) has limited places to eat.Streets are deserted by 9 pm.

If it is scuba diving you are going for then the andaman wins hands down. though it is costlier than thailand or indonesia

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SueJ

I've been to both, and the decision comes down to what you are looking for from your visit. Can you tell us a bit more about what you are interested in doing/seeing?

sumit123

yeah sure,
getting married in November..so it is a honeymoon trip...

SueJ

I guess that gives me some idea! How long do you plan on staying and what budget will you be on?

For me, the big draw in Andamans was the snorkelling. This is a huge assumption to make, but I'm guessing that you may be Indian, which probably means that your new wife will not be into swimming in a serious way???

If that is the case, much of 'the Andamans is for snorkelling and diving' side becomes less relevant, and it comes down to other factors.

If I didn't plan on diving or snorkelling, I would think very hard about whether the cost/time of getting to Andamans is actually worth it. Yes, beach #7 on Havelock is very beautiful, but accommodation on Havelock is generally either fairly basic or fairly expensive - there isn't the same level of competition as you would find in Goa to keep prices down. You could stay in Port Blair, but then life is not as exotic there.

If you go to Goa, you would have a much wider range of options generally. I hate touristy places, so everyone is always surprised when I say that I like Goa....but that is because the part of Goa they think is best is not necessarily the one I think of (Agonda).

Not sure where you will be travelling to your honeymoon from, but it may be that you could combine Goa with either Maharashtra (beautiful unspoilt beaches that I think are nicer than those in the Andamans), or Coorg (wonderful scenery).

sumit123

thanks SueJ for great info...it seems need to connect to you more often...will bug you more

few more info: that will make discussion more relevant..
exact dates may be 20-27 December. we don't know swimming, but would love to do some water sports (with life jackets) if there is any. Budget: being subject to value. so should not be an issue.

ananda2193

I've only been to Goa, but I met people who've been to both and they said they like the beaches in Goa better.