What should I avoid in Goa?

Before you land, check which airport is on your ticket, because Goa now has two: Manohar International at Mopa, in the far north of Pernem taluka, and Dabolim, near Vasco da Gama in the south. The drive from Mopa to Palolem takes about three hours, so a cheap fare into the wrong airport can cost you your first afternoon. Uber and Ola do not operate in Goa, because the state's taxi unions have kept them out for years, and the drivers waiting outside both terminals know this and set their prices to match. Walk past them to the GoaMiles or prepaid taxi counter inside arrivals. Mopa to Anjuna usually costs around ₹1,500 to ₹2,000, about $16 to $21 at 95.06 rupees to the dollar. Pay the printed fare on the GoaMiles slip, not the number someone shouts at you in the car park.

Skip Tito's Lane in Baga. A cocktail there costs ₹800 or more, promoters steer you toward table charges you never agreed to, and by 11pm the lane smells of spilled Kingfisher and frying oil, the bass from three clubs blurring into one dull thud. Calangute, the beach next door, is the most crowded stretch of sand in the state, with jet-ski and parasailing touts every 20 metres. In any packed club, find the exits first: in December 2025 a fire at a nightclub in Arpora killed 25 people, and plenty of Goa venues are still built from thatch and fairy lights with one narrow door. For a good night out, try Thalassa in Siolim at sunset, or the Saturday Night Market in Arpora between November and April.

The sea is the bigger danger. From June to September, the Drishti lifeguards plant red flags at Baga, Calangute, Vagator and Arambol and swimming is banned because the rip currents are strong; most drownings involve visitors who had a few drinks and ignored the flags. Even in mid-October the air was still 29.7°C at 10:30pm with 76% humidity, so the warm water looks calm while the post-monsoon swell is still running. Skip the Grand Island dolphin-and-snorkelling cruises sold in Candolim: the water around the island is usually murky green, and you spend most of the day on a crowded deck listening to a Bollywood playlist. A one-hour boat from Coco Beach in Nerul costs far less, and you have a good chance of seeing the same humpback dolphins.

Rent a scooter with a black number plate and yellow letters, which marks a licensed self-drive rental. Bikes with white plates are private vehicles rented out illegally, and police at the Porvorim checkpoint and on the Mapusa road stop tourists riding them all season. Carry your home licence and an International Driving Permit, and wear the helmet, because fines start around ₹1,000. Drinking alcohol on beaches and in open public places can get you fined up to ₹2,000 each, or ₹10,000 for a group. Stay away from drugs at the Vagator and Anjuna trance parties: India's NDPS Act punishes even small amounts harshly, and plain-clothes police run regular stings around Hilltop in Vagator. Goa scores 6.8/10 for solo-traveler safety (see the TTDI Solo-Safety Index), and the lit road from Candolim to Calangute is the easiest place to base yourself on the first night.

At the beach shacks, we'd skip the menus that run from pizza to 'Chinese' to chicken tikka: the fish is often frozen and priced by a weight you never see. Ask for the catch by name, kingfish (visvan) or pomfret, and get the price per piece before it goes on the grill. A better plan is the fish thali at Ritz Classic in Panaji, where about ₹400 gets you rice, a sour coconut fish curry, a fried kingfish or mackerel slice and a glass of pink sol kadhi. In Old Goa, cover your shoulders and knees for the Basilica of Bom Jesus and Se Cathedral, and turn down the unlicensed guides at the gates. The Archaeological Survey of India museum next to the Church of St. Francis of Assisi covers the same history in about 40 minutes.