North GoaTourist Places & Beaches in North GoaLocationThe North Goa District has an area of 1736 Sq. Km. Its geographical position is marked by 15o 48’ 00” N to 14o 53’ 54” N latitudes and 73o E to 75o E longitudes.North Goa shares its boundaries with the Sawantwadi & Dodamarg, of Ratnagiri District and Kolhapur District of Maharastra state and with South Goa District shares the southern boundary More about Northern GoaYou'll find most of the party beaches (and most of the foreigners) in the northern part of Goa. Expect a variety of accommodations, however, from shacks to fancy, secluded resorts. The same goes for food here, largely divided between dining on the beach in open-air restaurants and dining in far more elaborate restaurants in hotels - with more elaborate cuisine.There's not much to see besides beaches, of course, but you will find a few beautiful old forts built of the local red pitted stone called laterite and overlooking the sea. You may also want to take an excursion to one of the popular markets. The region is divided into several districts; Pernem at the far north, Bardez just below it, Bicholim directly east, and Satari still farther inland - to the mountains of the Western Ghats and the state of Karnataka. The Bardez district, where you'll find the beaches and most towns and hotels, is the most populated. Beach Shacks & Rooms for RentGoa has lots of luxury resorts and hotels, both in the north and south, but there are many who vow that you haven't seen the real Goa unless you rough it out in one of the dozens of beach shacks that spring up during the tourist season. These can be fun and really inexpensive to stay.LakesLakes constitute a scenic feature in Goa, though most of them have a limited and local use for irrigation. Most of them owe their origins to the bunds across stream valleys, large and small, and also on plateau margins and in alluvial flats.The important lakes here are Mayem, Chimbel, Carambolim & Calapur. North Goa BeachesArambol BeachVagator Beach Anjuna Beach Baga Beach Calangute Beach Sinquerim Beach Ashwem Beach Candolim Beach Dona Paula Beach Keri Beach Mandrem Beach Morjim Beach Miramar Beach Siridao Beach Vainguinim Beach Tourist Attraction in North GoaTiracol FortChapora Fort Fort Aguada The Chapel of St Anthony The Church of St Alex Chapel of Saint Lawrence The Cabo Chapel Anjuna Flea Market Mapusa Friday Market Restaurants in North GoaDouble Dutch Little Italy Eyes of Buddha Oasis Relax Inn 21 Coconuts Outrigger Oasis D'Souza's Sand Dune Montego Bay Olive Ridley Rock Cafe Planet Hollywood Lobo's Paradise Goan Cafe Nine Bar Alcove Le Bluebird Bean Me Up China Town Mango Tree Tin Tin Disco Valley Shore Bar Sea Breeze Cafe Martha's Breakfast Home German Bakery The Jam Connection Tin Tin Tibet Souza Lobo Kerkar Retreat Emma's Kitchen A Reverie Utopia After Eight Lloyd's Infantaria Bakery Tibetan Kitchen Aquamarine St. Anthony's Shack Britto's Fiesta Casa Portuguesa Starlight Banyan Tree Caravela Oriental Royal Thai Cuisine Peacock Pub La Fenice Rustler Bob's Inn J-29 Moonlight Stone House Viva Goa Martin's Beach Corner Sea View Foodland Sea Pebble Menino's White Rock Cafe Goan Delicacies Hawaii Restaurant In Brief About North GoaBeyond the mouth of the Mandovi estuary, the Goan coast sweeps north in a near-continuous string of beaches, broken only by the odd saltwater creek, rocky headland and three tidal rivers - the northernmost of which, the Arondem, still has to be crossed by ferry. The most developed resorts in this district, known as Bardez taluka, all lie within a half-hour drive of Panjim. Spread behind a seven-kilometre strip of golden sand, Candolim, Calangute and Baga are the centres of the tourist boom. Formerly infamous for the colonies of hippies who gathered there during their annual winter migration from the Himalayas, these three villages now heave during high season with British charter tourists, busloads of day-trippers from out of state and Kashmiri handicraft merchants.The "scene", meanwhile, has drifted further north to Anjuna, the next sizeable village up the coast from Baga, where most of the Christmas-New Year full-moon parties take place. Scattered around paddy fields behind a whitesand beach, this picturesque settlement is also renowned for its Wednesday flea market, where you can buy anything from Tibetan prayer wheels to cutting edge techno tapes. Further north still, Vagator and Chapora are the preserve of long-stay travellers who hole up in simple houses and huts until the onset of summer. Accommodation of any kind is thinner on the ground once you cross the Chapora River from Bardez into the mainly Hindu taluka of Pernem. The only place with anything resembling a tourist scene this far north is the fishing community of Arambol, which hosts a small contingent of mostly long-staying budget travellers. The interior of north Goa - through Bardez and Pernem to Bicholim and Satari talukas - harbours few sights likely to entice you from the coast, although the colourful Friday market at Mapusa. Bardez's largest town, is definitely worth a visit. Further off the beaten track but of historical interest are the Saptakoteshwar temple near Naroa and the Maharatha fort at Terekol, at the northernmost tip of the state. Neither of these monuments ranks as unmissable, but getting to them via the winding back roads of the lush hinterland can be fun. If you are staying in one of the resorts around Calangute, the Portuguese fort at Aguada, whose imposing laterite battlements afford stunning views up the coast, also warrants an excursion, while nearby Reis Magos boasts a sixteenth-century bastion and chrush dating from the earliest days of the Portuguese colony. Most of the tourist traffic arriving in north Goa is siphoned off towards the coast through Mapusa. For short trips between towns and resorts, motorcycle taxis are the quickest and most convenient way to get around, although buses also run to all the villages along the coast. However, much the best way to travel to the quieter corners of the area is by rented motorcycle, available at all the main resorts.
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