Goa-food, transport and nightlife!

bloreGhooma

Hi all,

The fiance and I are planning a 4-5 visit to Goa at the end of August. The trouble is that we have absolutely no idea about where to go and where to stay, so i am looking for advice on all aspects.

We were told that Aug end/ Sept begin is in the middle of the monsoon season...so the rains might make all our 'lounging on the beach' plans go for a toss. Is this correct?

The main idea of this visit is rest and relaxation - as well as lots of Goan cuisine

So what would be the best place to stay in? Should be near a beach, and not too commercialized/noisy.If the monsoon is going to play spoilsport, we are open to staying at a resort/or a higher end hotel with a pool so that we get atleast some swimming done! So any good place you can recommend in the Rs 2-5K range?

Also what is the transport scene like in Goa? Are the various beaches/sightseeing spots well connected by autos/taxis? How about in the night time? Or Would you recommend that we rent a car for the day?

Now for the most important part..Food!! What are the must have dishes and must visit resteraunts??

And finally, water sport, nightlife suggestions?

Thanks!

GoanCanuck

Water sports are not available in the month of August because the sea is very rough. Don't think of even going for a swim in the sea.
Other than Tito's and Mambos in Baga there is not much as far as nightlife is concerned.

bloreGhooma

Well, due to our time constraints we have no choice but to depend on the mercy of the rain gods. We will be in Goa from Aug 29 to Sept 3, so maybe the monsoon would have abated enough to give us a couple of sunny days?

Either ways, i assume that since this is the off season not all beaches will be populated (have beach shacks open). But surely some would be?

I was evaluating some of the available resorts for our stay. The idea was to select a resort near the city. 'Lemon Tree Amarante Beach Resort' looks promising since its located near Calangute beach. Does any one have any experience of this resort? Are there any other comparable options? Others like 'Cidade De Goa' appear to be too far away from a center of population.

Also, keeping in mind that this is the monsoon, what would you recommend as the must see experiences of Goa?

Thanks!

Honey Bee

Do you mean the Lemon Tree in Candolim. It is a beautiful new hotel, which is open all year around. Friends have just returned and said their stay was far superior than the Taj.

GoanCanuck

Beach shacks will not be open.

patti123

When i was there for a monsoon there was beach shacks open in the monsoon . From Baga to Calangute there was about 6 and that was 3 years ago. I remember Goan waves being open, something to do with private land .Britos has its beach shack open as well .

GoanCanuck

The "shacks" that you refer to are no longer shacks but full fledged restaurants on private land and not on the beach proper but on the edge of the beach close to the main road.

St. Anthony's bar and restaurant and Brittos fall in this category. These two restaurants for example used to be fairly small places 15-20 years ago but now they have expanded and upgraded and can seat almost 100-125 people. I was shocked to find a few months ago that St. Anthony's bar had even opened a small disco room on the premises.

The shacks that I mentioned in my previous post are the ones right on the beach and which are licenced by the Tourism Department from October to May.

patti123

GoanCanuck . Must have changed since i was there but Goan Waves was right on the beach in the monsoon, and he was really busy .

GoanCanuck

Goan waves is a shack on private land.