We will briefly describe the 5-point system: Hotel 5 * Food 5 * Animation all 4 * Beach 5 * From the airport 4 * Service and staff 5 * We will not say the budget), because it was a gift for winning the Mister Travel 2019 contest.
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We will briefly describe the 5-point system:
Hotel 5 *
Food 5 *
Animation all 4 *
Beach 5 *
From the airport 4 *
Service and staff 5 *
We will not say the budget), because it was a gift for winning the Mister Travel 2019 contest.
Hotel 5 *
Food 5 *
Animation all 4 *
Beach 5 *
From the airport 4 *
Service and staff 5 *
We will not say the budget), because it was a gift for winning the Mister Travel 2019 contest.
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The hotel is located on the beach, but walk to the sea on the territory of 200 meters. Old, but very solid. Green landscaped area. Simple rooms but with everything you need. There are many tourists who repeatedly return to the hotel. Both Russians and foreigners have a rest. For families with children. Quiet decent hotel.
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The hotel is located on the beach, but walk to the sea on the territory of 200 meters. Old, but very solid. Green landscaped area. Simple rooms but with everything you need. There are many tourists who repeatedly return to the hotel. Both Russians and foreigners have a rest. For families with children. Quiet decent hotel.
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The departure from Novosibirsk and the flight this time passed without incident, Transaero even somewhat rehabilitated in my eyes. We arrived at the Goa Dabolim airport at 5-30 in the morning, and the flight to Delhi was scheduled for 15-30. At the airport, there are not even chairs in the check-in hall, so, on the advice of knowledgeable people, we took a taxi for 200 rupees to the nearest hotel - Bogmalo, where there were large sofas with pillows in the lobby.
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The departure from Novosibirsk and the flight this time passed without incident, Transaero even somewhat rehabilitated in my eyes. We arrived at the Goa Dabolim airport at 5-30 in the morning, and the flight to Delhi was scheduled for 15-30. At the airport, there are not even chairs in the check-in hall, so, on the advice of knowledgeable people, we took a taxi for 200 rupees to the nearest hotel - Bogmalo, where there were large sofas with pillows in the lobby. On one such sofa I slept for four hours, after which we went to the beach. A few practical recommendations: Currency exchange at the airport and in hotels is very unprofitable, it is better to change it in shops on the street. But about arrival, you still have to either exchange $ 100 (they don’t change less at the airport), or use an ATM - but it turns out about the same thing. Cellular communication - I advise you to take a SIM card from a local company, right opposite the exit from the airport there is an Airtel kiosk. Tariffs are low - a call to Russia is 10 rupees for mobile and 7 rupees for landlines per minute, SMS to Russia - 5 rupees. (A rupee is about 75 kopecks). The flight to Delhi was unexpectedly pleasant. Indian airlines have brand new airbuses, unlike ours. True, free of charge in flight you will be poured only water from a jug. Everything else is pretty expensive. The flight attendants are busy trading the whole flight. I bought a swiss army universal adapter that the instructions say will fit all sockets in the world. He rescued me several times - not in all hotels our plugs stuck into their sockets. Part one is the tour. I don’t even know what to write… One big AH!!! ! It was worth going to India for this. Photos certainly do not betray all the beauty. At the same time, the contrasts were sometimes shocking - the dirt and poverty are indescribable, and are closely adjacent to this splendor. Delhi is a tough city. Qutab Minar, India Gate and Presidential Palace, Secretariat Building; Jama Masjid & Raj Ghat, where the Mahatma Gandhi memorial, Red Fort was located. In general, there is not enough time to explore Delhi, besides, we were kept in a hotel outside the city for almost a day, without offering any additional program for this time. The second city visited was Jaipur. The fabulous weaving of the Palace of Winds enchants. And the palace of the Maharaja amazes with its monumentality and splendor. The observatory of the early 19th century - very interesting, we looked at the world's largest sundial - as tall as a 9-story building. Agra. The jewel of India, the Taj Mahal, is located here. However, when I got to know his story in more detail, the touch of romance was thoroughly asleep - it turns out that he loved her so much that she died giving birth to his 14th child. When the children grew up, they overthrew dad and imprisoned him in the tower of the Red Fort overlooking the Taj, where he spent 8 years and either fell or threw himself from the balcony, and buried him next to his beloved... The Red Fort is also a majestic and impressive building, Indians are generally prone to grandiosity. On the last day we returned to Delhi and from there flew to Goa. By the way, one more piece of advice - it is better to buy souvenirs on the excursion part, there is more choice and better deals, in Goa the choice is poorer and prices are higher. Part two - beach. Beach holidays in Goa are very specific. Due to the gently sloping coast and strong monsoons in summer, hotels are located far from the coast, and you will have to stomp from 500 meters to a kilometer to the beach. Our hotel - Holiday Inn, located almost in the very south of Goa, on Cavelossim beach, is the most successful in this sense - the minimum distance to the beach, and the hotel has its own beach. There are no complaints about the hotel - it fully corresponds to the declared 4 stars. Breakfast is varied, although the menu has not changed much. What upset - very little fruit, and in the hotel and in the markets they sell almost nothing, only tangerines and pineapples. There is no mango at all, although in Tai it was heaped up at that time. We dined in restaurants on the shore or above the river - we liked Indian cuisine. If you say “know spicy” to the waiter, then the sharpness will be acceptable. The guide introduced us to the main dishes during the tour. Their wines are sour, but I liked the Old Monk rum. There are several souvenir shops opposite the hotel. If you walk along the beach 2 km to the village or take a taxi for 150 rupees, then there are much more shops there. The set is standard - crafts made of wood and stone, scarves, carpets, T-shirts. Jewelery personally I had doubts. Especially after one story. They demonstrate to everyone a certain mysterious device - a diamond checker. Like if you press it against a stone, then a light will light up on a diamond, but not on a fianite. The wife took off her fianite earring and offered to check her diamond. The light bulb lit up, and when we laughed and said that it was fianite, it immediately went out, and the seller did not even blush. And a 2 cm ruby or emerald cannot cost $200. We took another tour - a sightseeing tour of Goa and a spice plantation. I liked the tour, Goa is very different from the rest of India - it was a Portuguese colony. The Temple of St. Catherine, which was built by the Portuguese in honor of the capture of Goa - the largest Catholic church in Asia, is famous for the fact that in the 17th century lightning destroyed one tower and since then the facade has become asymmetric. In the capital of Goa, there is good shopping, there are branded stores, the prices are reasonable. Conclusion. Did I like India? Undoubtedly yes. Do I regret something? Not at all. Will I go to Goa again? Most likely no. If you just need a beach holiday, then you are in Thailand. There and the service is better, and the beaches. India is worth a trip in two cases. Or look at it, as I did, but then you need to take the combined tour. Or, if you are attracted to esotericism, if you are open to the perception of something unknown, to touch the secrets of Hinduism and Ayurveda. But it's definitely not for me. In general, I was satisfied with the tour, but I would like to draw the attention of the tour operator to some miscalculations in the planning of the tour, which somewhat spoiled the impression. 1. We arrived at the airport in Goa at 5-30 in the morning, and the flight to Delhi was scheduled for a flight at 15-30. Why such a time period was needed and how we had to spend this time, if check-in for the flight starts 3 hours before, and there are not even seats in the check-in hall - the question remains open. Well, knowledgeable people advised about the nearest hotel. 2. On the excursion part of the tour, our group consisted of 3 people - my wife and I and another girl. At the same time, in all cities we were placed in hotels, the travel time between which was 20-30 minutes. Thus, every day we lost an hour for check-in and check-out. 3. On the last day of the excursion part of the tour, the excursion ended at 14:00. We were brought to a hotel located 30 kilometers outside the city of Delhi and left there. The hotel was located between two freeways, we had absolutely nowhere to go. The flight to Goa was scheduled for the next day at 15-30. What were we supposed to do these days in the suburbs? Why was it impossible to organize a flight to Goa in the evening on the day the tour ended? If this free time was necessary, why weren't we offered options on how to spend it? For example, additional excursions (even if for an additional fee). Because of these miscalculations, the rating of the tour operator is 3.
Review from — vOtpusk.ru
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January 16.2011 just returned from Goa from India. They flew away on the second of January and for 14 days. The hotel was taken by 4 * Holiday Inn Resort, although they say it has already been given 5 *. I chose for a very long time, read reviews, thought about Coconut and Majorda Beach, but it’s good that I didn’t choose them, because they are more modest (when we were driving tourists from excursions, we delivered a bus.
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January 16.2011 just returned from Goa from India. They flew away on the second of January and for 14 days. The hotel was taken by 4 * Holiday Inn Resort, although they say it has already been given 5 *. I chose for a very long time, read reviews, thought about Coconut and Majorda Beach, but it’s good that I didn’t choose them, because they are more modest (when we were driving tourists from excursions, we delivered a bus. We drove into the territory of the aforementioned hotels, ours was much better, judging by even at the reception and the entrance to the hotel). The Holiday Inn is excellent, I liked it, beautiful, big, not worse than the fives that we saw in other countries. The sea is very close, the area is green, large well-groomed, little white herons walked along the grass, crows fly a lot, they try to steal something from tourists at breakfast, but there is a specially transparent net hanging there so that the crows could not fly up. We took only BB breakfasts and it’s good, there are 5 shakes on the beach, local cafes where they have everything, they feed normally, you won’t get poisoned, fresh juices, grilled seafood, whatever you want and whatever you want, Indian cuisine is very diverse, better than Thai, not tired even for 2 weeks of stay. Breakfast at the hotel got tired at the end of the holiday, it seemed a bit poor compared to breakfast in hotels in Egypt and Thailand, everything seems to be there, but somehow there was not enough variety and the choice was small. Delicious tortillas in the tandoor with garlic and butter are cooked in necks on the beach, I even helped to record a video of how they cook. Now it is winter there, ripe fruits, very tasty, juicy pineapples, small bananas, some other exotic fruits, strawberries, not ripe mangoes, the season of oranges, tangerines and apples. On the first day they ate pineapples! Breakfast is as usual omelettes, fried eggs, bacon, pastries, fruits, juices, tea and coffee, local dishes are not spicy. In the necks, if you ask them not to cook spicy, they cook normally. We ate at Sam's (there is a very friendly atmosphere, sincerely, on the first day the owner of the cafe came to meet us, everyone speaks Russian, the menu is also in Russian), then we went to the Betty Shake to the right of the hotel at the exit to the beach (there is also good cook). Everywhere there is a menu in Russian, in the evening they went there for dinner, in the evening they put tables in the necks right on the sand near the sea, they put a candle on the table, well, romance, you sit and dine by the sea itself. The dishes in the necks are clean, although I constantly took antibacterial wet wipes for hands with me (I bought a lot at home) and antibacterial hand gel, although I noticed that they don’t change rag tablecloths on the table during the day. Chilled drinks are available. I really liked the shark meat, grilled large shrimp, vegetable salads, grilled royal fish with lemon. By the way, my favorite mojito is prepared perfectly! Arriving at the Goa Dabolim airport, we were a little upset when we saw a shabby little airport, this is the Goa military airport. Then, along the way, the surroundings were not entirely clear, because they arrived at night, their roads are like our 1.5 lanes in total, very narrow, continuous serpentine, a bunch of turns. I almost got sick, the hotel made me happy, very good, brightened up the poor of India. But then, having come to the sea, having walked, looking, we were amazed by the latitude and length of the beach strip, after a week of stay, we realized what the charm of Goa is, it is the beaches that are huge in length and breadth, where there is practically no one, complete solitude and unity with nature. Great! You can go for a walk along the beaches and meet all 3-4 people, but this is exactly the south of Goa, I don’t know how in the north and in the center, the beaches in the south are clean, we have Mobor beach, the sand is white, creaky, like on Karon beach in Thailand. Beauty !! ! We took a taxi from the hotel, the two of us went to the vaunted Palolem beach, arrived and realized that we were almost on the beach, like in Thailand, full of people, all the sunbeds are occupied, nothing special. In general, we did not appreciate the “beauty” of this beach, there is nothing like that there, our beach near the Mobor hotel is even better. And Palolem is built up entirely in cafes, in mini-hotel houses, some plywood houses 2 * 2 meters are rented somewhere for 2000 rubles. per day with breakfast, cleaning and a shared toilet, young people apparently like to live and hang out there. But it's definitely not for us. . Then we met two couples, also from Russia, and together we booked an excursion from Pegas Touristik for the whole day: Dudsagar Waterfall, where there were cute monkeys that you can feed from your hands, Spice Plantation, where we bought cinnamon, vanilla sticks, black pepper, turmeric, "laughing nuts" that grow on a palm tree, they can be chewed = 50 mg of whiskey, Elephant riding, Indian temples, Catholic temples are very ancient, on the way back we stopped in the capital of Goa, Panaji, there is a little shopping for an hour. The guide, who was from Pegasus, told so little and everything, nothing about the history and traditions of India, in general, the guide was uninteresting. But the trip will go for a change, and for a change of scenery, we looked around a bit how and what is in Goa. I didn’t say right away, but I’ll write that when you leave the hotel, across the road there is a minimarket where you can buy water, alcoholic drinks, and so on little things, there are jewelry stores where you can change money. From the hotel, about 15 minutes walk along the beach is the village of Cavelossim. Everything is there: pharmacies, shops, souvenir shops, cafes and restaurants. But we never ate there. . They didn’t dare to buy jewelry either, because they started asking the seller of one such shop specifically about the composition of gold, and he doesn’t really know chemistry at all, although he says that he creates his own jewelry. He names the sample, we ask him to decipher the percentage of metals, he really does not know. In this scenario, we did not buy. It is not known what they sell there, and what kind of gold, and whether it is gold! Money was changed in the same village in the D'mello pharmacy at a good rate of 1 dollar = 44.4 rupees (as I think), the best rate than in the hotel and in the shops opposite the hotel, it will be lower there. They also bought fruits: pineapples and bananas. And I also bought Lays chips in the store, they are different there, not the same as in Russia, very tasty. In the pharmacy there I bought coconut oil, hair oil. The water there in the hotel is very hard, so the first days I just didn’t know how to comb my hair, then I bought local oils, started using it and everything became fine. We also bought after-sun products, they are good there. Protective sunscreen 30-ku was brought from home, but it was not used. In Goa, the sun doesn’t bake much, it’s so gentle and warm. You can, of course, burn out if you lie under the sun all day, and then you won’t notice it right away, the sun is very gentle. All other days we spent on the beach enjoying the sun, the sea, the beach and excellent Indian cuisine. The sea there is not turquoise, dark blue-gray, but transparent, because of the sand it is suspended, because it’s shallow and shallow right away, you will go a little later already deep. The rescue group is very well organized there, every 100 m the rescuers sit and watch, a helicopter flies over the beach - they look, the "Guard of tourists" drives away the beggars. And so on our huge beach, only 2 hotels were Leela 5 * and ours, few people, 5 sheiks. The pool at the hotel may have swum a couple of times, the pool did not have enough sunbeds from time to time, and the sunbeds can be seen that they are no longer new. Towels fresh every day by the pool were taken by calling the room number. January 13-14 flew on a tour of the Taj Mahal. From Goa they flew to Mumbai, then to the capital of India, Delhi, from Delhi 5 hours to the city of Agra 250 km, but the bus was driving slowly due to their traffic jams. At first, when I read the reviews of other tourists on the sites, I didn’t understand why people were so negative about Pegas Touristik in India, we rested with them in Thailand and everything was fine. But in India, indeed, their vacation is not very well organized, I would rate it as satisfactory. Firstly, on the first big tour, no one warned us that we need to take swimsuits, because you can swim at the waterfall. Secondly, when traveling to the Taj Mahal, no one warned us that we were flying there through Mumbai yet, for us it was news only at the airport; no one said that Agra is the north of Goa and the temperature there is only 10 degrees in the evening, but we went in shorts and T-shirts, we just froze there, my husband caught a cold, we were in flip flops, it was so cold, the locals go in jackets there and hats and here we are half naked ; thirdly, the Pegasus manager assured us back at our hotel when he told us about the Taj Mahal tour that you can spend the night there in one of two hotels 3 * and 4 * and they are absolutely no different, only the price is 3 * -615 dollars per person trip , 4* - $640. The price includes air tickets, excursions, guide, meals, overnight stay at the hotel, entrance fees. We thought, well, since hotels are no different, then we went to 3 *. There is a 3 * Taj resort hotel in Agra (then we had something to compare with, our hotel and this one, there is no window in this three-ruble note, floor -1, everything is not very good, the water is hot only from 4 in the morning-tin), It’s good that good our tourists found pants for me, it's good that we had 2 warm sweaters. On the morning of the 14th, we arrived at the Taj Mahal complex, built in the name of love by one of the rulers of India in memory of his beloved wife, who died while giving birth to her 14th child. A very beautiful building, it fascinates, it is unimaginable how it was possible to cut out all this decoration from a layer of marble, the building is made of marble and semiprecious stones. Great! The Taj Mahal is one of the 7 new wonders of the world and is a UNESCO heritage. The control there at the entrance is very serious, you can only take a camera and money, water, food, paper, batteries, matches, lighters with you, inside only in shoe covers. We stayed there for 2 hours and flew back to Goa. All other days we spent at sea. We didn’t rent a moped, the traffic there is creepy and incomprehensible, very narrow roads, dangerous. The prices there are low, because the exchange rate of 1 rupee is approximately equal to 0.7 rubles. With seafood, it also seemed to us easier there than, for example, in Thailand, it’s not so expensive and everything is there. From drinks, very tasty freshly squeezed juices, in packs in stores, are also very tasty, not like ours. The rest was a success, great, we got the sea and the beach, fruits and seafood too, knowledge of history and the expansion of the worldview too, and a lot of impressions !! ! If you have any questions, write, I will definitely answer. Have a good holiday everyone!! !
Review from — vOtpusk.ru
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We rested at the end of the season, at the end of April-beginning of May 2010. The time was chosen specifically so that there were empty beaches - and it happened. We got to Goa after a week-long trip to central India - the "Golden Triangle", so we were already prepared for the Indian service. The hotel is good.
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We rested at the end of the season, at the end of April-beginning of May 2010. The time was chosen specifically so that there were empty beaches - and it happened. We got to Goa after a week-long trip to central India - the "Golden Triangle", so we were already prepared for the Indian service.
The hotel is good. Large landscaped area. Polite staff - constantly "good morning, ma'am", "good morning, sir", smiling.
ROOM. At the check-in, they asked for a room on the second floor, so that it would not be so damp, they invested $ 20 - they settled not in a standard, but in a deluxe. The room is large, balcony, large double bed (which is important for us). Safe, bar (but locked, we never asked to open it). Fresh flowers are nice. Tea, coffee bags, sugar, kettle. Water was brought not in bottles, but in a thermos. Powerful air conditioning (but the weakest mode was too cold for us, so as soon as the room cooled down, they turned off the air conditioner and turned on the big fan above the bed). Nice bathroom, all plumbing is new, working. Hot water - no interruptions. Fen. Constantly reported and good quality soap, shower gel, etc. According to the Golden Ring, they lived in 5-star Tridens - almost ideal hotels. In comparison, the Holiday Inn lives up to its 4 stars. BUT: the floors were constantly dirty. The room was constantly cleaned, the floors were washed every day, but they remained somehow dusty, unwashed. Walk barefoot - black heels. Already having an idea of Indian cleanliness, they themselves washed glasses, cups, etc. Constantly expecting some kind of impurity - it was very annoying. The bed linen is new - pleasant, but several times the linen was laid in lumps.
The TERRITORY is large, beautiful, good lawns, on which some birds walk, similar to small herons and, of course, crows. At first we fed them - they even eat with hands, it's cool, but they fight over food, they kill small ones, and it's unpleasant to watch. The pool is small, and at 6 pm (or 8 - I don’t remember anymore) it stops working. Cleanly. There were no mosquitoes and other insects, periodically the entire territory is fumigated with insecticides. Towels are provided near the pool, which can also be used on the beach.
BEACH. White gentle sand, very gentle and long entrance to the sea. The sea is a warm soup. How many degrees - did not find out, but when you go into the water, you do not feel the temperature difference. I take a bath at home. Since it was the end of the season, we didn’t manage to swim calmly (we knew this): big waves, but floundering in them is the best attraction, we didn’t want to leave the sea at all. The sand is hot, it’s difficult to run to the sunbed without shoes (in the morning they came to the beach, climbed into the water, floundered for an hour and a half or two, went out - and it already hurts to walk, like in a frying pan). Sunbeds are normal, under large canopies woven from hay. On the beach - a hotel cafe. Of the shakes, there was only one left (the rest had already closed for the monsoon season) - on the left, if you look at the sea - ugly and dirty. The hotel is on the first line, but you need to walk 200 meters through the territory. Two old fishing boats look very picturesque (if you don’t get close and don’t look inside, there is garbage). In the evening they are illuminated, and the bar arranges dinners right on the beach.
BUT: there are black stripes on the white-smooth sand. At first they did not pay attention to them, then they looked closely - oil. Whether there was a one-time release or a permanent source somewhere, I don’t know, but it’s somehow not very good to walk along the oil sand. + Along the entire coast, a few meters later - dead fish. Stray dogs eat it, then crows, of which there are innumerable. One of our friends had a camera stolen by a bird like that. Crabs eat up the rest at night, and everything repeats again. On the penultimate day, they saw a dead rat thrown out, which was pecked by crows. The magnificent sea has ceased to be attractive. I no longer dabbled in it.
There are many vendors on the beach. After Jaipur and Agra, they are very shy and not annoying, but the Arabs are resting. They are not allowed to sunbeds, tourists are caught in the gap between the beach and sunbeds. If you buy something from one, others cry and ask you to buy from them too. Russian has already been mastered. You need to either not buy anything, or buy on the last day, or buy from several (so that later they stick less). You need to bargain, knocking down the price several times. You can buy bracelets from them (silver or silver, I don't know, but they look good). More out of pity I bought several sets (300-350 rupees each) - they turned out wonderful gifts. And I regret that I didn't buy enough.
CONTINGENT. The British and French have already left. There were some Russians. Everywhere is empty and free, which was a big plus for us. But from May 4-5, Indians began to appear - more and more. Normal middle class. Lots of Sikhs. They didn't stress. With families or delegations. What jarred a little - women do not swim in the sea, and most of them are in saris or punjabi, so somehow I didn’t feel very good in a bikini. But no one looked askance, these are already my cockroaches. + Pissing boys appeared (in Central India, Indians generally relieve all their needs in public).
NUTRITION. The hotel has a restaurant and two bars. We only had breakfast. Buffet, but not China, and not Turkey. We love exotic, and even more so spicy cuisine, but most of the Indian dishes that we tried did not like at all. Small pieces of chicken or some legumes in a liquid spicy vegetable puree are not for everyone, especially if you are not sure that some muck has not got into this puree. But, of course, you can eat: eggs, omelettes, sausages or chicken liver, cheese, some pastries, toast, jams. The best part is their cakes. Juices - packaged or watermelon, papaya, etc. for an amateur. But wonderful tea, which is poured by the waiters. Do not give up milk - a good black tea with milk is very tasty! Fruits - mangoes, bananas, watermelons, pineapples. And that's it. We did not see lychee and other tropical fruits at all. Nowhere. Vegetables are a whole other story. In all restaurants - vegetable salad - this is coarsely chopped and separately placed on plates of carrots, rough cucumbers, hard unripe tomatoes and red onions without any sauce. This is in Trident in Agra and Jaipur, this is in several restaurants in Delhi and this is in Goa. It may not be the season, but such a scarcity in vegetables (and fruits too) was simply not expected.
We dined in Cavelossim and mostly - in the restaurant "Fishterman`s Wharf" (if you stand at the exit, on the street with your back to the hotel, then go right 150-200 meters). The restaurant stands on the river, on the opposite bank - a fishing pier, beautiful and not dirty. We ordered fish and seafood - they are difficult to spoil, everything was delicious. Once they took a kebab and vowed to try meat dishes in India. As a side dish, you could order something from Chinese cuisine. By the way, only here they found a salad from the actual salad. Dinner for two came out at about 800-1200 rupees (with a little rum). The waiters do not speak Russian, but there is a Russian menu. Everything is more expensive in a hotel. Why not eat in the neck? Immediately on the first day we went to have lunch in a shake. Dirty. Very dirty. The food, in principle, was delicious, so we decided not to pay attention to the dirty oilcloth. But a large insect was found in a glass of mango juice. Considering that in India it is quite normal to sell food while sitting on the counter with dirty feet and even clean toenails (I personally saw how the seller cleaned them for bananas, and this did not cause any rejection in anyone), we decided to find a place where at least outwardly everything is fine.
ENTERTAINMENT. In the hotel - there are none, except for themed dinners on the beach, which suited my husband and I. Outside the hotel - everything is written in other reviews. Opposite the hotel is a shop where the seller "Marco Polo" sells weed.
PHONE. Roaming is available from MTS. Expensive. There are vending machines in the village. In front of the hotel - too.
PURCHASES. Small elephants in a shop opposite the hotel are very useful for souvenirs, they are well made. For 5 dollars - 3-5 elephants. Bargain! Shawls in Cavelossim. There are also jeans (without bargaining, you can pick up good ones). Bracelets on the beach - very useful. Silver jewelry with 2-4 different stones in Indian/Oriental style in jewelry stores: $35-45 for a ring and pendant (even if the fake is complete - how the jewelry goes - looks amazing at home). It is better to buy expensive jewelry for those who understand them. Tea is expensive and it cannot be said that it is very tasty. You can have a little Darjeeling - at least it smells. A set of spices or tea in wooden caskets - the caskets themselves are amazing, it will be nice to admire them later. Goan rum really goes to Goa itself, it is hardly necessary to drag it home - it is not drunk at all like that.
In GENERAL, you can go see. But my husband and I had previously been on a similar trip to China: also a combined tour: first Beijing, Shanghai, then a vacation in Hainan. We fell in love with China right away. And they weren't disappointed. In India, involuntarily, everyone was compared with China, and everything was not in favor of India. In all respects (architectural monuments and airports, sea and beach, people, cuisine, attitude towards tourists, safety and general atmosphere), China is superior to India. At the end of the trip, we really wanted to go home. It is difficult to rest when there are hungry and beggars nearby. It is difficult to relax when dirt and poverty are everywhere. And yet, almost everyone who feeds next to tourists, by all means strive to breed them. India needs to be loved very much to be accepted as it is. And if you have a choice between China and India - go to China, do not hesitate, you will like it.
The hotel is good. Large landscaped area. Polite staff - constantly "good morning, ma'am", "good morning, sir", smiling.
ROOM. At the check-in, they asked for a room on the second floor, so that it would not be so damp, they invested $ 20 - they settled not in a standard, but in a deluxe. The room is large, balcony, large double bed (which is important for us). Safe, bar (but locked, we never asked to open it). Fresh flowers are nice. Tea, coffee bags, sugar, kettle. Water was brought not in bottles, but in a thermos. Powerful air conditioning (but the weakest mode was too cold for us, so as soon as the room cooled down, they turned off the air conditioner and turned on the big fan above the bed). Nice bathroom, all plumbing is new, working. Hot water - no interruptions. Fen. Constantly reported and good quality soap, shower gel, etc. According to the Golden Ring, they lived in 5-star Tridens - almost ideal hotels. In comparison, the Holiday Inn lives up to its 4 stars. BUT: the floors were constantly dirty. The room was constantly cleaned, the floors were washed every day, but they remained somehow dusty, unwashed. Walk barefoot - black heels. Already having an idea of Indian cleanliness, they themselves washed glasses, cups, etc. Constantly expecting some kind of impurity - it was very annoying. The bed linen is new - pleasant, but several times the linen was laid in lumps.
The TERRITORY is large, beautiful, good lawns, on which some birds walk, similar to small herons and, of course, crows. At first we fed them - they even eat with hands, it's cool, but they fight over food, they kill small ones, and it's unpleasant to watch. The pool is small, and at 6 pm (or 8 - I don’t remember anymore) it stops working. Cleanly. There were no mosquitoes and other insects, periodically the entire territory is fumigated with insecticides. Towels are provided near the pool, which can also be used on the beach.
BEACH. White gentle sand, very gentle and long entrance to the sea. The sea is a warm soup. How many degrees - did not find out, but when you go into the water, you do not feel the temperature difference. I take a bath at home. Since it was the end of the season, we didn’t manage to swim calmly (we knew this): big waves, but floundering in them is the best attraction, we didn’t want to leave the sea at all. The sand is hot, it’s difficult to run to the sunbed without shoes (in the morning they came to the beach, climbed into the water, floundered for an hour and a half or two, went out - and it already hurts to walk, like in a frying pan). Sunbeds are normal, under large canopies woven from hay. On the beach - a hotel cafe. Of the shakes, there was only one left (the rest had already closed for the monsoon season) - on the left, if you look at the sea - ugly and dirty. The hotel is on the first line, but you need to walk 200 meters through the territory. Two old fishing boats look very picturesque (if you don’t get close and don’t look inside, there is garbage). In the evening they are illuminated, and the bar arranges dinners right on the beach.
BUT: there are black stripes on the white-smooth sand. At first they did not pay attention to them, then they looked closely - oil. Whether there was a one-time release or a permanent source somewhere, I don’t know, but it’s somehow not very good to walk along the oil sand. + Along the entire coast, a few meters later - dead fish. Stray dogs eat it, then crows, of which there are innumerable. One of our friends had a camera stolen by a bird like that. Crabs eat up the rest at night, and everything repeats again. On the penultimate day, they saw a dead rat thrown out, which was pecked by crows. The magnificent sea has ceased to be attractive. I no longer dabbled in it.
There are many vendors on the beach. After Jaipur and Agra, they are very shy and not annoying, but the Arabs are resting. They are not allowed to sunbeds, tourists are caught in the gap between the beach and sunbeds. If you buy something from one, others cry and ask you to buy from them too. Russian has already been mastered. You need to either not buy anything, or buy on the last day, or buy from several (so that later they stick less). You need to bargain, knocking down the price several times. You can buy bracelets from them (silver or silver, I don't know, but they look good). More out of pity I bought several sets (300-350 rupees each) - they turned out wonderful gifts. And I regret that I didn't buy enough.
CONTINGENT. The British and French have already left. There were some Russians. Everywhere is empty and free, which was a big plus for us. But from May 4-5, Indians began to appear - more and more. Normal middle class. Lots of Sikhs. They didn't stress. With families or delegations. What jarred a little - women do not swim in the sea, and most of them are in saris or punjabi, so somehow I didn’t feel very good in a bikini. But no one looked askance, these are already my cockroaches. + Pissing boys appeared (in Central India, Indians generally relieve all their needs in public).
NUTRITION. The hotel has a restaurant and two bars. We only had breakfast. Buffet, but not China, and not Turkey. We love exotic, and even more so spicy cuisine, but most of the Indian dishes that we tried did not like at all. Small pieces of chicken or some legumes in a liquid spicy vegetable puree are not for everyone, especially if you are not sure that some muck has not got into this puree. But, of course, you can eat: eggs, omelettes, sausages or chicken liver, cheese, some pastries, toast, jams. The best part is their cakes. Juices - packaged or watermelon, papaya, etc. for an amateur. But wonderful tea, which is poured by the waiters. Do not give up milk - a good black tea with milk is very tasty! Fruits - mangoes, bananas, watermelons, pineapples. And that's it. We did not see lychee and other tropical fruits at all. Nowhere. Vegetables are a whole other story. In all restaurants - vegetable salad - this is coarsely chopped and separately placed on plates of carrots, rough cucumbers, hard unripe tomatoes and red onions without any sauce. This is in Trident in Agra and Jaipur, this is in several restaurants in Delhi and this is in Goa. It may not be the season, but such a scarcity in vegetables (and fruits too) was simply not expected.
We dined in Cavelossim and mostly - in the restaurant "Fishterman`s Wharf" (if you stand at the exit, on the street with your back to the hotel, then go right 150-200 meters). The restaurant stands on the river, on the opposite bank - a fishing pier, beautiful and not dirty. We ordered fish and seafood - they are difficult to spoil, everything was delicious. Once they took a kebab and vowed to try meat dishes in India. As a side dish, you could order something from Chinese cuisine. By the way, only here they found a salad from the actual salad. Dinner for two came out at about 800-1200 rupees (with a little rum). The waiters do not speak Russian, but there is a Russian menu. Everything is more expensive in a hotel. Why not eat in the neck? Immediately on the first day we went to have lunch in a shake. Dirty. Very dirty. The food, in principle, was delicious, so we decided not to pay attention to the dirty oilcloth. But a large insect was found in a glass of mango juice. Considering that in India it is quite normal to sell food while sitting on the counter with dirty feet and even clean toenails (I personally saw how the seller cleaned them for bananas, and this did not cause any rejection in anyone), we decided to find a place where at least outwardly everything is fine.
ENTERTAINMENT. In the hotel - there are none, except for themed dinners on the beach, which suited my husband and I. Outside the hotel - everything is written in other reviews. Opposite the hotel is a shop where the seller "Marco Polo" sells weed.
PHONE. Roaming is available from MTS. Expensive. There are vending machines in the village. In front of the hotel - too.
PURCHASES. Small elephants in a shop opposite the hotel are very useful for souvenirs, they are well made. For 5 dollars - 3-5 elephants. Bargain! Shawls in Cavelossim. There are also jeans (without bargaining, you can pick up good ones). Bracelets on the beach - very useful. Silver jewelry with 2-4 different stones in Indian/Oriental style in jewelry stores: $35-45 for a ring and pendant (even if the fake is complete - how the jewelry goes - looks amazing at home). It is better to buy expensive jewelry for those who understand them. Tea is expensive and it cannot be said that it is very tasty. You can have a little Darjeeling - at least it smells. A set of spices or tea in wooden caskets - the caskets themselves are amazing, it will be nice to admire them later. Goan rum really goes to Goa itself, it is hardly necessary to drag it home - it is not drunk at all like that.
In GENERAL, you can go see. But my husband and I had previously been on a similar trip to China: also a combined tour: first Beijing, Shanghai, then a vacation in Hainan. We fell in love with China right away. And they weren't disappointed. In India, involuntarily, everyone was compared with China, and everything was not in favor of India. In all respects (architectural monuments and airports, sea and beach, people, cuisine, attitude towards tourists, safety and general atmosphere), China is superior to India. At the end of the trip, we really wanted to go home. It is difficult to rest when there are hungry and beggars nearby. It is difficult to relax when dirt and poverty are everywhere. And yet, almost everyone who feeds next to tourists, by all means strive to breed them. India needs to be loved very much to be accepted as it is. And if you have a choice between China and India - go to China, do not hesitate, you will like it.
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The hotel is not bad... the only negative that spoiled all the sensations from the hotel was a rat that ran into the room... the wife and child were shocked. Take rooms on the 2nd floor and above : -)
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The hotel is not bad... the only negative that spoiled all the sensations from the hotel was a rat that ran into the room... the wife and child were shocked. Take rooms on the 2nd floor and above : -)
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Were with a young man at the end of February 2009. About the hotel. For 4 stars! everything is well-groomed, the territory is clean, birds are everywhere, greenery, the pool is pleasant. The staff is very friendly, but they only understand English! The food is normal, but check if it is not too spicy, otherwise they can bring a very spicy fish, and super-atomic sauce to it - and how is it ? ! We only had breakfast included, we often didn’t come to the cat, we slept) The prices are reasonable in the hotel restaurants, and it doesn’t hurt to eat in such weather! a separate conversation about the spa at the hotel - the prices are exorbitant, the quality is so-so! Across the road from the hotel is "Mantra" - the massages there are awesome!! ! I recommend to go at least 3 times, you will not regret it! Make two Indians) a separate line about the animation - it is not at all !!!!!!!!! In general, passive foreigners have a rest - they drink beer, warm lard in the sun and gobble up fast food.
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Were with a young man at the end of February 2009.
About the hotel. For 4 stars! everything is well-groomed, the territory is clean, birds are everywhere, greenery, the pool is pleasant. The staff is very friendly, but they only understand English! The food is normal, but check if it is not too spicy, otherwise they can bring a very spicy fish, and super-atomic sauce to it - and how is it ? ! We only had breakfast included, we often didn’t come to the cat, we slept) The prices are reasonable in the hotel restaurants, and it doesn’t hurt to eat in such weather! a separate conversation about the spa at the hotel - the prices are exorbitant, the quality is so-so! Across the road from the hotel is "Mantra" - the massages there are awesome!! ! I recommend to go at least 3 times, you will not regret it! Make two Indians)
a separate line about the animation - it is not at all !!!!!!!!!
In general, passive foreigners have a rest - they drink beer, warm lard in the sun and gobble up fast food. Even a water polo team could not be assembled! Pts a lot of those who are over 55! And we are young, we did not have much fun. Honestly, there is no one to even drink with. After 11 all around silence! There is no party! But for a change of scenery - what you need. and for those who are tired of work, nerves, Russians. not many Russians. Mostly those who came for excursions.
excursions. Be sure to go! listen to the guide - it's interesting! Were at 2x waterfall and secrets of India. One thing to remember - do not wear white! you will all be covered in dirt and dust. And take socks - they go to sacred places there without shoes)
The ocean is awesome. no poisonous creatures. We were lucky with the weather, although there were waves. For us it was a plus, riding the waves.
The general impression is that they were surprised at the local mentality, the country outside the hotel is very dirty, which often made me personally uncomfortable. super easy massage! Sunburn is what you need! Impressed. We even watched TV in the room, so there was nothing to do! Relaxed. we will come again in 70 years, not earlier! Suitable for not very active and elderly people or families. And a must for those who speak English at an intermediate level. Well, if you like drugs - North Goa was created especially for you! Were there one evening - a nightmare! Torches everywhere!
In a word, for a general outlook, it's worth a trip!
About the hotel. For 4 stars! everything is well-groomed, the territory is clean, birds are everywhere, greenery, the pool is pleasant. The staff is very friendly, but they only understand English! The food is normal, but check if it is not too spicy, otherwise they can bring a very spicy fish, and super-atomic sauce to it - and how is it ? ! We only had breakfast included, we often didn’t come to the cat, we slept) The prices are reasonable in the hotel restaurants, and it doesn’t hurt to eat in such weather! a separate conversation about the spa at the hotel - the prices are exorbitant, the quality is so-so! Across the road from the hotel is "Mantra" - the massages there are awesome!! ! I recommend to go at least 3 times, you will not regret it! Make two Indians)
a separate line about the animation - it is not at all !!!!!!!!!
In general, passive foreigners have a rest - they drink beer, warm lard in the sun and gobble up fast food. Even a water polo team could not be assembled! Pts a lot of those who are over 55! And we are young, we did not have much fun. Honestly, there is no one to even drink with. After 11 all around silence! There is no party! But for a change of scenery - what you need. and for those who are tired of work, nerves, Russians. not many Russians. Mostly those who came for excursions.
excursions. Be sure to go! listen to the guide - it's interesting! Were at 2x waterfall and secrets of India. One thing to remember - do not wear white! you will all be covered in dirt and dust. And take socks - they go to sacred places there without shoes)
The ocean is awesome. no poisonous creatures. We were lucky with the weather, although there were waves. For us it was a plus, riding the waves.
The general impression is that they were surprised at the local mentality, the country outside the hotel is very dirty, which often made me personally uncomfortable. super easy massage! Sunburn is what you need! Impressed. We even watched TV in the room, so there was nothing to do! Relaxed. we will come again in 70 years, not earlier! Suitable for not very active and elderly people or families. And a must for those who speak English at an intermediate level. Well, if you like drugs - North Goa was created especially for you! Were there one evening - a nightmare! Torches everywhere!
In a word, for a general outlook, it's worth a trip!
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