'G',

Very interesting hearing views from someone on location.

There is ABSOLUTELY no excuse for litter on the beach. Aren't the beaches Goa's main selling point?, and yet there appears to be total disregard.

Have you heard views of other tourists out there?

Spot on gramps!! And it's not only the Baga/Calangute/Candolim stretch that is being spoiled, just look at Palolem. OK it's still a beautiful beach resort but for how much longer? There are already too many shacks down there and the same thing is happening up at aswem. Such a sorry state of affairs. Yes I stay here long term, so ok maybe I'm just getting a bit fed up with my surroundings, but as FTV says, something just doesn't feel right!! I haven't been to the beach (except to have 1 drink at sunset) in Calangute/Baga at all this season because I feel it has truly lost what it had. I now go further up north for my "beach days" but that too is changing and in time I can see the whole BCC scenario taking effect.
GFF xx

GFF,

Yes, I spent one afternoon at Calangute last year. Spent my time at Morjim but could see that big development was underway in that area. I don't know if Papa Jolly has started on their major excavation of the hills behind his resort, I saw the plans.... very sad.... it was like something out of Beverly Hills... a very BIG complex aimed at big spenders. And this area would appeat to me to be a conservation area, but not to those who accept backsheesh.

It didn't take long for 'Sur La Mer' to go up (9months) last year. Looks like this area is looking for the big spenders and luxury Indian tour operators. At least there are a few years left of peace and quiet.

I certainly noticed the state of the pavements but might not have been so shocked as someone who has been there before. (We found in our summer holiday in Ubud, Bali that you had to walk with your head down all the time incase you fell down a hole, or head up watching traffic if we couldn't get on the pavement)
I didn't see dirty beaches though and we did walk a fair way along. However, as there were no shacks really and the season hadn't officially started then the tourists weren't around to leave the mess. I'm beginning to wonder what I'm going to in March.

This is all making me so depressed. I have been wanting to holiday in Goa for years and finally got around to it for the first time this year. I fell in love with the place almost immediately and thought i had found somewhere so magical and unique that i could return to time and time again, and possibly even move there to live eventually. Think my dream could now be shattered.Really sad situation, especially for the Goan people themselves.

"This is all making me so depressed."

Me too... my partner bought into a timeshare 7 years ago (payed a very reduced price as it was just after 9/11) and hoped to use it for years to come, but all we seem to do is bank the weeks and not use them in Goa. 7 years ago it was about right for us regarding numbers of tourists vs sustainability.

While she took a chance and knew the consequences I don't think we/she would have made that decision today. I really feel sorry for those who invested into property in the Baga/Calangute area. I managed to persuade a friend of mine who was there 2 years ago NOT to buy but rent for 6 months. He has since told me that he made the right decision not to buy and has met a lot of people who did and are now regreting it.

LisawithanS I am in the same situation as you, this year was my first visit and we loved it... I'm going back next March for 3 weeks

Hi Lozza07 nice to meet you Where did you stay? I was in Baga and also going back in March I really so wish i had been there years ago and seen it before this c**k up! I am sure there are parts of Goa that remain the same. I plan to get away from the chaos of Baga/ Calangute next year, though even these places have their own appeal dont they?

Lisa and Lozza, you don't remember Goa of the past as some of us others do so you fell in love with a different Goa to us. Your love for the place and its people will last for several years yet so don't get too depressed about what you are reading here and go enjoy yourselves in March. The only difference is you are now more aware of the issues and will notice things more. This is not a bad thing. I wish I had seen the Goa of 1989 instead of 1999 - it would have been the most beautiful of places I'm sure. It still has beauty and it still has some magic - you just have to go further afield and look harder for it thats all.

I have also noticed that us tourists seem to be blamed for all the rubbish/litter. Have you seen local children just throwing sweet wrappers/tissues etc on the ground, we have. There doesn't seem to be any pride instilled in these children. They need to be educated about the impact there actions/attitudes have on their own environment/future and then maybe as they grow into adults, things might improve. From little acorns........etc etc. I think the locals have to take some responsibility
as do the hoteliers, government, local panch etc etc. People have to work together to change things but at the moment corruption and who can make the biggest and fastest buck is what rules and historically this has been how it works in India so I don't suppose anything will change......not for the better anyway. Sorry for the doom and gloom

I have been to Goa many times since 1995. At first we used to stay in Calangute (also at the Alphaville) and then in Baga. Our last time to Baga was 2001 and after that holiday we felt that things had changed too much and it just wasn't the same for us anymore so as much as we had loved it we stopped going. For the next few years we holidayed all over the world and lived for a couple of years in Spain. Last year our holiday to Mexico was cancelled by the tour op as a result of a hurricane which flattened our hotel so we booked a last minute cheapo deal and went back to Goa for the 1st time in 5 years. We chose Candolim for a change and absolutely loved it. Things had changed a lot in 5 years and we couldn't believe the amount of shacks, bars and hotels that had sprung up but the old magic was there for us again and it was like going back for the first time. We're now off again in 3 days and really looking forward to it. Hope we enjoy it as much this time.

Thanks Jude, I know that i will still have a great time.

Hey Lisa! We are staying at Silver Sands (Candolim) for 3 weeks from 2nd March. We hope to spend some time in Palolem as we loved it down there. I will try to remain positive about my holiday next year, as you once said to me before Fizzy that it can't of changed that much since last season (fingers crossed), and the bright colours, lovely sunshine, massive beaches, happy people and great food will still be there!!

To be honest it is likely that this will be our last holiday to Goa (for now) as we want to see and experience a lot more of the world together.

I agree with your comments Gramps on the beaches , they are dirty, but they made an effort to clean them up while I was there?

The local round table or rotary,I think , hired some workers to clean the beaches from Candolim to Baga, but after cleaning up the rubbish they went behind the shacks and dumped it, much to the anger of the shack owners.

What I could not believe was that most of these workers were children, aged 8-16 years, they were'nt just hanging on to their parents because they had aprons with logos on. This was all in the press about cleaning up the beaches but child labour , I found this hard to believe .

Another point mentioned in the newspapers was lifeguards and some kind of flag system. There was nothing of this in Candolim , and a few days before I arrived a tourist drown. The sea was very dangerous after the monsoon but there were no warnings.

Sorry gramps and co

Maybe, as some have said, we need to take time out from Goa and then to come back down the line to appreciate it all over again. Perhaps it is just a case of familiarity breeds contempt. I really don't know the answer. All I know is I feel a definite sense of sadness. Hey guys, been back 3 weeks .......it's probably just the holiday blues

Lisa , I am with you on this one, totally fell for Goa , hook , line and sinker!!!

Booked to go twice next year, but I am a late comer on the Goa scene and I understand how some people must feel about the changes.

We spoke to a man on Baga beach and he remebered it when there only a couple of shacks, hard to imagine it now..

Hi shirleyV

Never felt this way about a place in my whole life! And like you i can understand how all the people here feel when they return and see how it is now to a few years ago.Change is inevitable, anywhere in the world,nothing stays the same forever, so i for one hope to return many times and still get that same feeling when i step out of that plane on to Goan soil.

well I am still looking forward to my holiday despite everything thats been said. We are staying near Anjuna and intend to spend more of our time in Vagator and surrounding area this time but we will still be visiting our friends in Baga and Calangute. Getting excited now, packing tonight.

Ive been thinking about everything people have said and you know no one likes change everyone if there honest would like things to stay as they remember them! and memories are funny things, they can be quite selective!

This may sound strange to some but I always remember what countries smell like when you get off the plane and Goa smells the same! (well it did in March!)

As a long term resident of Goa (more than 7 years now) i have to say that i agree with many of the concerns expressed by others.

I am lucky enough to live and work close to Calangute, but in areas which have yet to see any commercial development, though i wonder how much longer this can last.

There have been improvements over the years: a much greater choice of restaurants and goods in the shops, less power cuts, better connectivity to the rest of India.

Some things have stayed the same: the great weather, the friendly locals, the cheap prices (in some places at least)

But many things have indeed changed for the worse: the garbage, the commercialisation of the roads and the beaches, the traffic, the taxi drivers, the total lack of planning.

THere is no better example of the apathy and corruption endemic throughout the authorities here than the River Priness, which has been here for longer than i have, and contnues to pose a major threat to the beach. Where else in the world would such a threat to the livelihood of so many people be allowed to reamin for so long?

Also, when something positive and successful does come along, such as the Saturday night markets, the authorities, instead of promoting it, do all they can to prevent it.

What really concerns me now is the scale of the new development. All the new places coming up now are huge - for example the monstrosity that is the La Calypso complex in Baga, literally built on top of the old fishing village. Many people still come to Goa for the simple things - these are becoming harder to find.

Of course, as many have said, there are still quieter beaches and more unspoilt areas, but the development is reaching there too. Morjim and Ashvem are already beginning so show the signs of the unplanned over development that has tainited Baga, Canagute, and Candolim.

For now, i'm staying put as my job is here, but i do worry aboiut the future of Goa.