North Goa, full of sun, sea and good food

Our Goa tour started from North Goa.

  On reaching Panaji we crossed the Mondovi river and drove staright to Calangute. The distance from Panaji to Calangute is almost 15 kms and the road condition is also good. Also driving to any beach in North Goa is relatively easy as you have direction markers everywhere on the road and also
people are very friendly and helpful.

  We reached Calangute around 3:30 PM. The road near the beach is bubbling with tourists and various shops that sell everything from fancy beach wear, beach accessories like sunglasses, hats and all.... to goan handicrafts, readymade seafood(yummy), tattoo shops and lots more. The road is also crowded with tourist buses and cars.There are plenty of budget hotels and homestays in Calangute.

  Since we did not book any hotel in advance so we first went for hotel searching. The best hotel in Calangute is undoubtedly Calangute Residency owned by GTDC. It is located nearest to the beach and from the cottages you can have a slice of the sea anytime. Though it was not the season but still there were no rooms available in that hotel. The hotel manager directed us to another hotel, very near to Calangute Residency, also owned by GTDC. It was Calangute Residency(annex). This time we were lucky. There was only one room available and that too only for that day. Since we had planned to stay in Calangute for one night, this was okay for us.The room charge was Rs 1040 per night in off season (I hope I remember correctly)

  It is good to know that the checkout time in hotels across Calangute is 10 AM. Only for hotels owned by GTDC the checkout time is 12 noon. 

  After getting some rest in the hotel we went to the beach. The beach is very popular among tourists and so is a little crowded even during off season. The beach has life guards like most beaches in Goa and if you walk along the beach for some 1 kilometres you will reach Baga beach which is a much less crowded beach.

Calangute beach. Sunset.

  We saw people roaming around in Goa in rented bikes and cars. Bikes can be rented for as little as Rs 200 a day (depend on your bargin) but the person taking the rent must have a valid driving licence. In Calangute sea food is damn cheap and tasty. The food prepared in the small roadside shops are tasty and very easy on the pockets. We enjoyed a medium sized pomfret fry for as little as Rs 80 and the food quality was really good. The roadside shops sells various seafish, crab, prawn, chicken fries.

  In Calangute, there is a 200% chance that you encounter people trying to lure you with attractive offers like free resort stays, complimentary dinner etc. By luring with the offers they will later try to sell time shares and we would definitely recommend not to fall into their trap. Its always better to ignore them from the very beginning.

  The first half of the next day was reserved for seeing the other major beaches in North Goa namely Anjuna and Vagator. We started pretty early; at around 7 am.

  Anjuna beach is some roughly 9 kilometres from Calangute and to reach there you have to go through Anjuna village. There are plenty of homestays near Anjuna beach. Anjuna is a beautiful red rocky beach. The beach is made of big red colour stones and coconut trees line the entire beachline. Though very beautiful, it is not a beach for sea bathing or strolling.

Anjuna Beach

Anjuna Beach

Texure of the rocks in Anjuna Beach.

Anjuna Beach

  From Anjuna we went to Vagator beach which is very nearby, approximately 4 to 5 kilometres. This beach has yellow sand and black rocks. There are also many water sport facilities available.

Vagator Beach

Vagator Beach

Vagator Beach

Vagator Beach

  From Vagator we went to see the Aguada Fort. For that we had to come back to Calangute and from there take the road that leads to Aguada Fort. Anjuna/Vagator beach and Aguada Fort are on either sides of Calangute. Fort Aguada was a Portuguese fort and is now protected by the Archaeological Society of India. A nice view of the Arabian sea can be obtained from here.
Next to Aguada fort is a lighthouse which can also be visited. The Sinquerim Beach is also located near to Aguada Fort. It is an upcoming beach.

Aguada fort. Entrance.

Aguada fort. Stairway.

Description written on the top of the fort.

Aguada fort. Top.

Agauda fort. Top.

Entrance to light house at Aguada fort.

View of the sea from the top of Aguada fort.

  It was almost 10 am when we reached our hotel. The check out time was 12 noon so we hurriedly packed our bags and went for a heavy breakfast.
We booked two advance tickets for the sunset cruise on river Mondovi from the hotel reception. The price for each ticket is Rs 150 but for guests staying at any GTDC hotel the price is Rs 100.

  We bid adieu to Calangute and proceeeded towards Old Goa. Our next mission will be to see the churches in Old Goa.