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| state: Goa |
location: North Goa, 12 km from
Panaji |
| info date: Jan 2002 |
size: beach resort (mainly package
tourism) |
| season: Oct - Mar |
transport: bus, taxi |
| hotels: plenty |
good for: anyone who isn't on a
tight budget |
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| Candolim is just north of
the Mandovi river, on the strip of beach in the Bardez district
that is home to Goa's most popular and well known resorts.
Its less of a backpacker destination than neighbouring beaches
such as Anjuna and Baga, and tends to cater mainly to Europeans
on the package tours that arrive at Dabolim airport from November
to February.
As a beach resort, Candolim leaves something to be desired
unless all you want is to lie on a sunlounger and take an
occasional dip. The sand close to the main part of Candolim
is coarse, and gets far too hot to lie on comfortably with
a lungi or walk on without chappals unless you have a masochistic
streak. The only option left is the perfect line of sunloungers
that stretches unbroken across the beach on a small peak of
sand a few metres from the water. The sight of this strip
of white painted uniformity is a little unnerving for anyone
expecting the usual ad hoc arrangements common in India, and
while such precision might appeal to those with a well developed
Teutonic sense of order, it reminded us more of all the reasons
we prefer India to Europe. Better - if no less busy - beaches
(for lying on at least) are a reasonable walk away towards
Calangute and Baga, or south towards Fort Aguada.
One of the more interesting sights from Candolim beach is
the bulk carrier "River Princess" which ran aground
100 metres offshore (Sinquierim beach) in June 2000 in an
incident involving a monsoon storm and (reputedly) large amounts
of alcohol, and which now dominates the view out to sea. Its
quite a surreal image from Candolim, with a foreground of
brightly coloured sun umbrellas and the long line of loungers,
with this vast rusting bulk towering over them. Since 2000
the ship has slipped into the mire of local Goan party politics,
with accusations and counter accusations flying between the
BJP and Congress over the tenders for the ships removal, and
a court battle to wrest control of the ship from the owners,
who typically did not want to foot the bill for salvage. As
of Jan 2005, a British salvage company has been appointed
to refloat the ship and remove it, so it may not be a tourist
attraction much longer. This
site has some great black and white images of the ship.
Candolim has a wide choice of places to eat and drink, with
plenty of shacks on the beach, and many restaurants on the
main road and side roads leading to the beach. Prices tend
to be more expensive (roughly double) than those in South
Goa, both for food and accommodation. |
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guest house
/ hotel: |
Most of the less expensive (as opposed
to budget) places tend to be slightly away from the major
side roads, especially at the northern end of Candolim. Take
the side turning immediately after the sports ground (heading
North from the "centre" of Candolim) and follow
the road / footpath and you will come across Anthony
Cottage (Isabel D'souza Tel: 281855), the only place
we stayed, and the best value of those we checked out. Its
a friendly, family run place with really nice, clean rooms
with attached bath and a small balcony for 400 Rs (after a
lot of bargaining!!!) - although this was immediately pre
christmas and prices should be a bit lower away from peak
season. The area close by is probably the best bet for cheaper
rooms, as the main part of Candolim tends to be larger resort
hotels. |
restaurant
/ dhaba: |
You're spoilt for choice here, as there
seems to be little else other than restaurants and bars. The
best meal we had was at the Moonlight Restaurant
(on the side road leading to the Palm resort), which seemed
to have a solid grip on the contents of its menu, and in particular
served excellent deep fried garlic mushrooms, and the most
tender steak I've had in Goa. |
local interest: |
Fort Aguada, built by the Portuguese,
is a short walk to the south |
| transport: |
Bus: Regular
local buses run from Panaji or Mapusa to Candolim, and can
be used to reach the other beaches further up this stretch
of the coast. A better way to get around the local area is
to hire a scooter for the day, a longer rent should get you
a substantial discount. |
| related: |
On this site: Goa
photo gallery External site: John
the Map has produced an outstanding set of maps on Goa,
including a detailed map of the state and a selection of individual
maps for the most popular destinations showing hotels, restaurants
and places of interest. |
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