India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) (94 page)

TOUR OPERATORS & TRAVEL AGENTS

MGM International Travels
has offices in Panjim (Navelcar Trade Centre, opposite Azad Maidan;
0832/222-0972
or 0832/242-1865;
www.mgmtravels.com
), Calangute (Simplex Chambers, Umtavaddo;
0832/227-6073
) and Anjuna (Cabin Disco, Soranto Vaddo;
0832/227-4317
). Other reliable travel agents include
Trade Wings
(1st floor, Naik Building, opposite Don Bosco School, Panjim;
0832/243-2430
) and
Footprints Tours & Travels,
run by Angeline Lobo (Shelter Guest House, Vaddi Candolim;
98-5047-1639
or 0832/309-0594;
www.goafootprints.com
). The
Goa Tourism Development Corporation
(Trionara Apartments, Dr. Alvares Costa Rd., Panjim;
0832/242-7972
or -0779;
www.goacom.com/goatourism
; daily 9:30am–5:30pm) has full-day tours of the north and the south aimed primarily at domestic tourists.

Staying Active Above & Below the Water

Barracuda Diving India
(Sun Village Resort, Baga-Arpora;
0832/227-9409
through -9414, or 98-2218-2402;
www.barracudadiving.com
; [email protected]) is a PADI–recognized dive center where you can rent equipment or take diving courses and get certified (from beginner to advanced levels). Venkatesh Charloo and Karen Gregory, both master diver-trainers, offer a wide range of dive safaris across the entire south Indian coast, including Karnataka, where visibility can reach up to 30m (100 ft.). In south Goa you can not only escape the crowds, but start a new hobby:
catamaran sailing.
Consistent weather conditions makes Goa an idea spot to sail. Based on beautiful, still-secluded Patnem Beach,
Goa Sailing & Water Sports
(
98-5045-8865;
www.goasailing.com
) is a highly recommended operation. You can hire a catamaran with or without an instructor (Rs 2,000/Rs 3,000 per half-day; Rs 3,000/Rs 4,500 full day), and even take a short course during which you’ll learn to sail. With enough time, you can learn to sail, or take a water-borne trip to other remote pockets of paradise—like Agonda, Honeymoon and Butterfly beaches.
Atlantis Water Sports
(
98-9004-7272;
www.goa-cruise.com
) operates an Indian dhow built in 1924; on offer are a range of regular cruises, including breakfast with the dolphins and a sunset cruise, and you can hire the boat on a private basis, too. Most of the upmarket resorts offer a range of watersports facilities, and you’ll find jet-skiing, parasailing, windsurfing, wakeboarding, scuba diving, and other ocean-going pastimes available from various makeshift structures on the beaches, particularly along the beach between Baga and Aguada (look at the foot of Vila Goesa Rd., Cobra Vaddo, Calangute).
Goan Bananas
(
0832/227-6362
or -6739, near the Silver Sands Beach Shack, Baga Beach)
organizes jet-skiing (Rs 1,300) and parasailing (Rs 800–Rs 1,000). Offering similar services on Sinquerim Beach, is
Thunder Wave Water Sports
(
0832/247-9779
), based near the Taj Aguada resort complex.