Hi Lindabrad
Well New Year is amazing!! and imo best spent on the beach where there is music & dancing at all the shacks and a most massive firework display that lights up the entire sky as far as the eye can see!! last year we went to the beach down Candolim Beach road after having a meal with friends and the shack (forgotten the name but on the right) had built a huge dancefloor with live music etc and it was just a terrific atmosphere....a lot of people also enjoy going to Calangute steps where most of the Indians congregate and it gets very busy... as for Christmas its a more quiet affair in Goa, lots of places in recent years though doing set christmas eve and christmas day menus... but (thankfully) there is none of the big hype we get here in the UK... we usually spend xmas day on the beach as we like getting awaty from the commercialism we experience in England and its great, infact last year we thought we had accidentally missed xmas day without realising!!! things do tend to double in price a bit at this time though as it is very time popular with tourists.... a very stress free time!! have a great holiday
chilly .... as for clothes you can dress up or down in Goa, either are acceptable... depends where you are going really...and on how you feel....also forgot to say Baga the traffic gets horrendous and extreemly congested and many taxi drivers from candolim/calangute wont drive there New Years eve and also the taxi prices go mad !!!

Yep, Chilly has just about summed it up. A great part atmosphere on New Year, but a devil to actually move around as there are so many people. But to see the New Year in in summer clothes watching fireworks is a must.

I think most people will bring something a little more dressy for the Christmas and New Year celebrations, you certainly see that folk have made an effort on those days, although as Chilly says, really anything goes.

Where are you staying, we are flying out on the 20th December and staying at the Marinha Dourada, and I really can't wait!

hi folks, we are flying out on xmas day so we dont arrive till boxing day but as long as im out of the uk i dont mind. Cant wait to see in the new year on the beach watching the fireworks. 5 of us booked into the Osborne but had to book a seperate flight for my son with Monarch as our First Choice flight was full. Times of both flights are very similar so heres hoping for no changes. Going to email the osborne to try and get another room but failing that i will just have to shop around. 143 sleeps

Hi there, we stayed at the osborne year before last for new year had a great time. it was our first time in goa and found the osbourne to be clean and in a great location. its easy enough to get out new year you can get a cab but i would reccomend getting out early as it can be difficult the later it gets.

we went to baga for new year and the only thing we found a bit unexpected (even though we where in india) was the lack of westerners there. down on the beach there just wern't any... not that it was a problem but when your in a strange country and for the first time with a couple of pretty girls (which the locals just stop and stare at whenever they feel like) can be a bit intimidating. we found out that a lot of people from mumbai holiday in goa over new year and by the 3rd or 4th of jan they had all gone and it was more of a mixture. we did find that as the night went on we got into it a bit more and headed down the beach and found a couple of shacks. if you head right when you first hit the beach at the end of the beach things where a bit more mixed and we had a great night and met lots of people that night.

cant really say what calengute and candolim are like as we stayed in baga new year then went to the hill top.

if your in the osbourne come an say hello, we are staying in the osbourne again we arrive on the 29th december and are staying for two weeks! you will no doubt see us there. 6 scousers you wont miss us just look to the bar, ha ha...

linda , we went in two couples and we derssed up and down depending on what we where doing... there are some amazing restaurants in goa we only went to a few of them but they are fantastic. cant think of the names of them right now but i will post then later when i as the missus. but i would definately take a few things of you like to dress up but the majority of the time its just beach gear and flip flops!!!

For those staying at the Osbourne - no need to get a cab anywhere on New Years Eve. Just walk down the road to Daytrippers office and then go down Holiday Street opposite and this goes to the beach.
Call in at the Nirvana bar just before you get to the beach - big open air bar with a fantastic atmosphere. (good place to be any night not just NYE) Lots of people go to Nirvana until about 11 and then go to the beach shacks or you can go to the shack for the evening - lots of them have music and dancing until the fireworks start then back to the dancing until whenever.
Brilliant atmosphere on this part of the beach on NYE.

spent christmas in Goa last year fantastic, bonfire beacons all along the beach as far as the eye could see at midnight the whole of the beach erupted with fireworks and carols started booming out of the sound systems, all the waiters wearing santa hats! just one big party lots of indian tourists as well as westerners, no trouble. We left our place at 7pm had dinner on the beach and arrived home at around 3am christmas morning, went to bed got up around midday and headed back down the beach. Some of the beach shacks take bookings for christmas eve for dinner as do the resturants, some dont and its business as usual, taxi fares go up alarmingly so agree a price first if you need one. Sadly we wont be there this year but my consulation prize is a trip to Eygpt instead and a month in Goa in Feb 09 ( I can live with that !) hope you have a fantastic time.