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Goa Information
BusesBuses are most popular mode of transport in Goa, cheap, frequent and just about everywhere, and you are bound at some point to catch one, if only to get into town or to the next resort. Privately run buses operate the vast majority of routes are not punctual. Private buses are particularly notorious for overloading. If you're lucky or catch the bus near the beginning of its route, you might get a seat, otherwise be prepared for an uncomfortable crush as more and more passengers squeeze in with bags of shopping, up the centre aisle. Tickets are generally sold by conductors on the bus itself. The fares are low, one and a-half-hour journey from Panjim to Margao for example, costs lest than Rs. 10/-, keep some small change handy for this. KTC buses are marginally mere expensive but punctual, quick and normally, less crowded. Kadamba, sells them from hatches in the main bus stands. Buses to major cities and Hampi start from Margao, Panjim, Mapusa. Sleeper buses to Hampi Rs. 350 and Bombay Rs. 450 from will start also from Calangute West Tours. Motorbikes, mopeds and cyclesOn a rented bike you can reach the state's remote beaches and cover long distances with relative ease. It can be dangerous at times if driven recklessly, on average one person dies per day on the Goan roads. Before driving away, ensure the lights and brakes are in good shape, and specially if you are traveling at night, many roads are poor and unlit and stray cows and bullock carts can appear from nowhere. Motorbikes are available at most of the coastal resorts on hire. Enfields, Yamaha 100's gearless Kinetic Honda scooter are available for intra-city traveling. You need an international driver's license to rent and ride anything more powerful than a 50cc moped. Ensure you have all the necessary paper work, license, registration and insurance before heading off. Rates vary according to both season and vehicle. Usually passport or deposit is asked before renting out. While some places just ask the hotel you are staying in. The cheapest bike is 50cc moped, costs Rs. 70-100 per day. Enfield Bullet, 350cc is good if you want to travel long distance, costs Rs 250/- per day. Kinetic Honda which has automatic gears and costs Rs. 100/150 per day. Yamaha 100cc, economical on fuel, well suited to the windy Goan roads cost Rs. 125-200 per day. Two stroke fuel is sold at service stations. In some places where there are no service stations fuel is sold in Bisleri bottle in general stores. You should avoid them whenever possible as some lace their petrol with low-grade kerosene, which make s two-stroke engine misfire and smoke badly. Damage to the bike incurred during a road traffic accident, has to be paid for by you. It is important you agree on such details with the owner before driving away. Do not forget Your international license and copy’s of the bike insurance. CyclingCycling can be fun. Bicycle may be rented in most towns and resorts. Charges are Rs. 30/- to 50/- per day. You could be asked to leave a deposit or even your passport, as security. Hourly rates are also available It can be rented at all towns and coastal stretches. It can be rented out at standard Indian rates of Rs. 2-3 per hour. You may, have to find the capital's anarchic traffic a little too nerve-wracking for comfort, make sure the back wheel lock works. You can bring bike from abroad, it requires no special paperwork, and most airlines allow you to take cycles at no extra cost. You will have get basic spares and tools, as accessories are invariably of different sizes and standards in Goa. Taxis and Car RentalTaxis are available at cheap daily rates. Japanese six-seater Maruti mini-vans are the most common type of taxi nowadays, there are plenty of Hindustan ambassadors, you'll find them outside the up market hotels, or taxi stands. Rates for even short journeys are always negotiable. So ask a member of staff in your hotel reception what the correct fare should be before setting of. You can hire a taxi for sightseeing trips. Self drive car rental is available and expensive in Goa. You can try at Dabolim airport. Hertz, Sai Services and Wheels. Rates are for 24hr/150km range from Rs. 800/- for a no frills Maruti to Rs. 1300 for an air-conditioned ambassador. Remember that you need a valid international driver's license to drive in Goa. Motorcycle taxis and auto-rickshawsIf you are solo, a convenient means of traveling is the unique Motorcycle taxi. Backpacks are no problem. You can recognize these motorcycle taxis by a yellow front Mudguard. Fares should be settled in advance and rarely amount to Rs. 6/- to first km. Apart from buses, this is the cheapest form of public transport in Goa The auto-rickshaw is the front half of a motor scooter with a couple of seats mounted on the back. Cheaper than taxi. Auto-rickshaws are painted black and yellow and licensed driver wear a khaki colored jacket. It carries not more than 3 persons run as per meter. The minimum rate is Rs. 6/- for first Km. FerriesFlat bottomed ferries, crammed with cars, buses commuters on scooters, fisherwomen and clumps of bewildered tourists, these rusting blue painted hulks provide an essential service, crossing the coastal backwaters where bridges have not yet been built. Among the most frequented river crossings in Goa are: Panjim to Betim across the Mandovi (every 15min), Old Goa to Divar island (every 15min), Divar to Naroa (every 20-30min) Siolim to Chopdem, across the Chapora River for Arambol and Pernem (every 30 min.) and Cavelossim in southern Salcete to Assolna (every 20-30 min) for Cape Rama and Quepem. A launch also chugs across Mormugao bay between Vasco da Gama's harbor and Dona Paula (four daily). However this and most other services are frequently disrupted during the monsoons, between July and September, when the rivers flood. TrainsJourneying to Goa by train was well near impossible due to two major engineering projects. The first one, converting the meter gauge to broad gauge is complete. The second one, Konkan Railway is also recently completed. A 760 km long line that travels with the coast, connecting Mumbai and Goa, and further south up to Ernaculam. Goa's main stations are Pernem, Karmali, Thivim, Margao & Vasco da Gama. The most useful are Thivim for Mapusa. Karmali for Panjim and Margao. Train Reservation for Konkani and Trains to Bombay can be done at the Panjim Bus station 1.th floor Tours and CruisesGTDC operates guided tours out of Panjim and major coastal resorts to sights around the state. Those offered as optional excursions by package tour companies and large hotels, on the other hand, tend to be conducted at a more civilized pace. Backwater cruises along the Mandovi River from Panjim are a kind of aquatic equivalent of GTDC's bus tours. Once again these tend to be more popular among domestic than foreign tourists, although the only `sights' to speak of given that most takes place after are the troupes of dancers and musicians who accompany the cruises with Konkani folk tunes and hits from Hindi films. A more detailed rundown of launch trips from Panjim. Mail ServicesGovernment Owned Department of Posts offers complete domestic and international mailing Mail can take anything from six days to three weeks to get to, depending on where you are mailing, ten days is about the norm. Post offices are open Monday to Saturday from 9.30 to 1.30 and 2-5.00. Stamps are sold in post offices or at some big hotels. Aerogrammes and postcards cost the same to anywhere in the world. Parcel facilities at reasonable tariffs. As in Britain, North America and Australia books and magazine can be sent more cheaply, unsealed or wrapped around the middle, as printed papers. PhonesPrivately run phones offices with STD/ISD/Local facilities are very widespread. Direct international calls cost around Rs. 70 per minute depending on the country you are calling. Home country direct services are now available from any STD/ISD phone to the UK, USA Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and a growing number of the other countries. These allow you to make a collect or telephone credit card call to that country via an operator there. If you can't find a phone with home country direct buttons, you can use any phone toll-free, by dialing 000, your country code, and 17 (except Canada which is 000-167) To call Goa (India) from abroad, dial the international access code, followed by 91 for India, the local code minus the initial zero then the number you want. Fax rates at the telegraph offices vary from Rs. 60/- to Rs. 110/- depending on the country you are sending it to. Internet and EmailInternet and Email facilities are accessible to the general public, usually at special cyber cafés, though many hotels and STD booths offer this services as well. Charges are high, ranging from Rs, 60-90/- per hour for browsing and mail reading and extra for printing and sending mail. The MediaGoa has three English-language daily newspapers, the Navhind Times, Herald and Gomantak Times. These locally published newspapers all dish up a uniformly regional and national news, with limited coverage of foreign affairs. The Times of India, Indian Express and Independent gives more news on what's happening in the rest of the world. You can also get foreign paper or magazine, the Herald Tribune, Time, Newsweek, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, the Guardian and a range of British tabloids are sold in Panjim's two bookshops and at tourist shops in the major resorts and several days after publication, or at bookshops along the coast. For Goan current affairs, you can get a monthly magazine known as Goa Today. BBC World Service Radio can be picked up on short wave. The Indian Government run TV company Doordarshan. Most of the people has a satellite dish, which can serve dozens of homes at an affordable price. The main broadcaster in English is Rupert Murdoch's Star TV network which incorporates the BBC World Service, and a couple of American soap and chat channels. Theft is most common problem, usually of article s left unattended on the beach. Don't assume your valuables are safe in a padlocked house or hotel room, either break-ins, particularly on party nights, are on the increase in the main resorts. It is advisable to leave your valuables, passports and travelers cheque´s in the guest house safe-deposit. It's also good idea to always keep a record of the your travelers cheque´s, specially the ones you have cashed, and the papers and telephone numbers necessary for replacing them if they are stolen. Festivals and HolidaysGoa abound with all kinds of festivals and holidays, Hindu and Christian, national and local. Religious celebrations range from exuberant Zatras, to modest fiestas. Hindu FestivalsThe date of Hindu celebrations vary from year to year according to the lunar cycle with key rituals reserved for full moon (purnima) new moon (ama) periods Shigmotsav - A Colorful moon festival celebrated mainly by Hindus, it falls in the month of the Phalgun (March) coinciding with Holi. Shigmo is at its best in the Shirgaon Temple. The highlights of this festival are the large number of colorful floats that join in procession on the city streets. The most colorful floats win prizes. Mahashivratri is celebrated with great pomp and fervor in February at Harwalem, Shrigao, Panjim and Fatorda. Ganesh Chaturthi in the month of August/September all over Goa. Saitah as the name suggests it is a 7 days festival celebrated at Vasco in August with much fun-fare and festivity the highlight is the big fair, that extends right across Swatantra Path. Dasrotsav celebrated all over Goa Deepawali festival of lights celebrated all over Goa Christian FestivalsThe Catholics have a number of festivals. The most popular one are: Feast of the Three Kings At Reis Magos on 6th Jan large crowds of people go to a hillock in Cansaulim where the arrival of the three Kings who bear gifts to Infant Jesus is depicted in a colorful manner. It is followed by a grand feast. It is also celebrated in a smaller scale at Chandor (Salcette) and Reis Magos (Bardez). The Three days Festival Of Carnival is celebrated at the end of February. To the Catholics, these 3 days were meant to be days feasting preceding the 40 days of abstinence. Colorful floats, processions, street dances and fancy dress competitions are held. Easter is celebrated the world over in April. On 24th June is the feast of St. John the Baptist. On this day there's an interesting ritual when village folks throw prizes into a deep well and young men jump into them to retrieve it. Boderam celebrated on the 4th Saturday of August, the island of Divar explodes into a riot of color and fun called `Bonderam' meaning the festival of flag's colorful processions and mock battles are staged. The Feast of Francis Xavier Goa's most popular feast is celebrated on 3rd December. The miraculously preserved body of the Saint, resting in the Basilica of Bom Jesus was first exposed to public in 1994 after a gap of 0 year. The next viewing is on 3rd December, 2004. Feast of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception falling on 8th December is the feast of whom the Panjim church is dedicated. This feast is celebrated simultaneously at Margao's drawing huge crowds. Christmas Goa comes onto its own on 25th December. Its party time and everybody is invited. |
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