I had been to Goa with my wife in November 2012. It was a package tour which included a one day site seeing, provided by resort Terra Paraiso where we stayed. We thoroughly enjoyed this crisp and neat site seeing trip which covered most of the major attractions. So, I thought to jot it down in order to help others plan something similar even if you were planning your trip on your own.
The tour started early in the morning around 9:30. Post breakfast from hotel, we started in a temp traveller in seat on coach basis. However, if planning on your own, you can as well rent a cab or self drive to places.
Fort Agonda
The tour started early in the morning around 9:30. Post breakfast from hotel, we started in a temp traveller in seat on coach basis. However, if planning on your own, you can as well rent a cab or self drive to places.
Fort Agonda
We first headed to Fort Aguada. We spent around an hour there.
River Cruise on Mandovi river
Then, around 11 we headed to a river cruise and dolphin spotting on Mandovi river. It was around a half an hour cruise and we had to wait a little for our turn as the boats were limited. But once on the river, we enjoyed the cruise throughly.
Anjuna Beach
From here, we headed for lunch at Anjuna beach in North Goa in a beach side open air restaurant, around 1 pm. We took a leisurely stroll on the beach for sometime post lunch, enjoying the serene and calm atmosphere, before heading back to our tour vehicle.
Post lunch, we were driven to the thriving market of Panjim where we had a time slot of around an hour (2:30-3:30 pm) for exploring the shops and the items on offer. We picked some items from spice and cashew merchants. [more details on shopping in Goa].
Bom Jesus Basilica
Post the shopping spree, we headed to Bom Jesus Basilica.
It is one of the most popular churches of Goa. We arrived here around 4pm and then spent almost an hour, part of it sitting inside the church in peace and offering our prayer, part of it taking a stroll around the massive architecture and admiring its details.
Cruise, Folk performance and dinner
From here, we headed to a cruise on river and for a small span of time, in the sea. On the top deck, we enjoyed folk performances, followed by dinner while on the lower deck there was a live disco for those interested. This concluded the tour around 7:30pm, from where we headed back to the resort.
River Cruise on Mandovi river
Then, around 11 we headed to a river cruise and dolphin spotting on Mandovi river. It was around a half an hour cruise and we had to wait a little for our turn as the boats were limited. But once on the river, we enjoyed the cruise throughly.
Anjuna Beach
From here, we headed for lunch at Anjuna beach in North Goa in a beach side open air restaurant, around 1 pm. We took a leisurely stroll on the beach for sometime post lunch, enjoying the serene and calm atmosphere, before heading back to our tour vehicle.
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| Beach side restaurant on Anjuna Beach |
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| Beach side restaurant on Anjuna Beach |
Post lunch, we were driven to the thriving market of Panjim where we had a time slot of around an hour (2:30-3:30 pm) for exploring the shops and the items on offer. We picked some items from spice and cashew merchants. [more details on shopping in Goa].
Bom Jesus Basilica
Post the shopping spree, we headed to Bom Jesus Basilica.
It is one of the most popular churches of Goa. We arrived here around 4pm and then spent almost an hour, part of it sitting inside the church in peace and offering our prayer, part of it taking a stroll around the massive architecture and admiring its details.
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| Bom Jesus Basilica |
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| Bom Jesus Basilica |
Cruise, Folk performance and dinner
From here, we headed to a cruise on river and for a small span of time, in the sea. On the top deck, we enjoyed folk performances, followed by dinner while on the lower deck there was a live disco for those interested. This concluded the tour around 7:30pm, from where we headed back to the resort.
It was a crisp trip but why I fell in love with it was because it gave us a glimpse of almost everything that Goa has got to offer - forts and ancient monuments, churches, river cruise, sea beach, sea cruise, shopping and dining!!
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