Hey everyone - Dr Ambert is the dentist I am going to see! He has already been really helpful, but it's nice to get as much info as possible from other people going to visit at this time of year. Also useful to get tips on where to eat! See you on 9th Ambert - I arrive at Goa 7.30am. Hahahaha!

You guys are most welcome !

P.s: Note to smokers : You Cannot smoke at the airports ..sneak out and ask the Policeman for a light , trust me he was the only chap i found with a lighter there early morning.

hiya i stayed at the csm over xmas and new year last year, for 3 weeks and its brilliant!!, good choice:-))
sanjay is the manager he has a smile on his face permantly! he is such a lovely man,
the hotel is on the beach, and its a lovely clean freindly hotel the staff are just brilliant, they will do whatever you ask,
the food at the csm is brilliant i loved the shark and the fried dhal and the prawns and the king fish and the hot sweet and sour and!! and!! and!!and!!!! i could go on!!!!!! i didnt have one complaint about it we hired a tele and thers a lot of english programs on, we used to go back to the room sometimes if it got to hot in the afternoons and watch a film or have a snooze!! if you want to know anything else just pm and i,ll post back lucky you!! maggieomx

Hey Maggie, thanks for the info. It's very reassuring to know you stayed there recently and loved it. Did you have sea or pool view - and which is best? I assumed sea was best, but gathered it's sea facing - which isn't quite the same thing. I'm booked in room 121 but can change if I don't like the view!! Good to know about the food too.
How far were you from Calagute or Baga in terms of walking distance? Did you get lots of taxis, or were you close enough to walk?
Can't believe I was lucky enough to find someone who stayed there so recently. I'm beginning to look a bit more forward to it now, as I'll have at least a week in between dental stuff to enjoy myself.
Thanks thanks and thanks!

Katz, just out of interest have you been to goa before

Lin

Hi Lin, I went to Goa once in 1993, just for a week, and I remember very little about it. I vaguely recall staying in a hotel in Calangute where the boiler exploded and blew the tiles off the wall - twice. And a really lazy waiter who took over an hour to bring tea to the room. Half of it sloshed out on the way up - and the other half was cold. When we complained, he would shrug and say 'drink drink'!! My partner remembers Goa very well - for me it just a blur - apart from Anjuna Market, I remember going there. He even tells me we had dinner once at CSM, and I said how lovely the place was!
Can't think why I remember nothing about it. I'm hoping to 'jog' my memory this time round. Oh, and I remember a tiny restaurant in Calangute where the waitress didn't understand 'mashed' potato, and when she brought them to the table, she proceeded to 'smash' them with her fists!
Oh, pillows!!! Is it true they're all like bricks? Should I bring one???
And was it easy to get hold of bottled water?

Had to laugh at your last post, things have moved on quite a bit, the food really is excellent almost everywhere, pillows are like bricks, you can buy soft ones in mapsua, or take one with you they don't weigh much, anjuna market is a place, once been never forgotten, and once is really enough, that probably is the one thing that hasn't improved, in my opinion has got worse. Bottled water is sold everywhere, it will be cheaper outside of the hotel,, just make sure that the seal is intact.
Have a great time.

Lin

I don't believe what I've done! Because of the time difference, I've booked a Jet flight from Goa to Bombay on the 25th August, without thinking that the BA one back to Heathrow leaves Bombay on 25th also - but 12 hours earlier!
Does anyone know if it's easy to make alterations to flights booked with Jet Air???

Katz
BA will give you a time local time for flight return. Are you sure you have the correct times?

Confusion set in because the BA flight leaves at 2am on 25th, and I had booked a Jet flight to arrive at Bombay on 25th also, but 11 hours after the BA flight left! BA wanted £100 to change the booking, but have just changed tickets with Jet to a day earlier, and there was no charge at all. Phew!

Glad you got it sorted Katz!

I will be in Goa all of May. What will the weather be like? Is there much open? Are there many tourists? Any info would be great

Last flight out of Goa is the last weekend in April so for you most things will be closed or still winding down.
Will be very few shacks still open and the same with restaurants and shops but most of the hotels will still be doing business as there will be Indian tourists and other Europeans about.
As for the weather as soon as it hits April it just gets hotter and hotter but there should be no sign of the monsoon until June (maybe the odd 5 min shower).

Thanks Spike,

I kind of just assumed that the rainy part started in May as soon as the season ended! Silly Me! Looks like it we be a very sweaty month in May!!

In 2004 the first rainfall was on May 6th, this year the monsoon started much later... May is a hard month to come here (from England) as the difference in temperature and humidity is a killer! - It's not so bad if you're outside near the coast but if you're in a hotel room with AC you might find it very difficult. The rain is actually quite good as while it is raining it cools everything down, but afterwards it soon warms up again. The rain falls in burts at the start/end of the monsoon. Even during the monsoon it's not constant rain, no more really than England, although the amount of rain that falls is much more. You'll have to go Via Mumbai so you've got the added joy of traveling down to Goa... Plane, Train?

I love the monsoon but May is really sticky! - So be warned....

i think we have just had one (a monsoon)

well ill be in Goa from begining of April but will be travelling upto Mumbai end of May by?? I dont know! Probably the train because when we arrive in December were flying from Mumbai to Goa. I'll decide when I get the train from kerela to Goa see how the journey goes
Ever taken the train

Take the train!! take the train!! (thats what Rob would say, right Rob? )

Hi - been reading this forum for a year now (learn't so much!) and finally got round to registering.

Anyone know of anywhere to stay that is a/c, self-catering, clean etc and charges non-tourist prices for the monsoon season. One bedroom or two bedroom is fine.

Two of us are staying through till September and are sorted from July on. We stayed last year till the end of May without A/C and realise that A/C will really help through hot sweaty months. Looking for mid-April to July, maybe longer. Don't want to pay any silly prices though and are happy to go inland a bit. If anybody needs caretakers for their properties please pm us. Needs to be commutable(!) to Calangute though.

Also have any of the long stayers tried to buy a vehicle - the RTO assistant director at Mapusa is not letting us buy one. Taken all the correct paperwork as per the poster in the entrance (ie company documents, panchyat residence forms, notorised visa and passport forms, minutes/resolution). He wants a lease document for our office address (bought a plot of land so no address yet) and although we have Form 18 with our registered address (a guest house) from company house at Panijim its not enough. The owners of where we stay can't give a lease document as they are running the guest house and it could change their status. How do you get round this. Any help very welcome!