Goa Beyond the Beaches: 8 Hidden Gems Most Visitors Skip

Fontainhas, Panjim's old quarter

A neighbourhood of ochre and mustard-yellow Portuguese houses, narrow lanes and family-run cafés — it's the Goa most beach-only visitors never see, best explored on foot in the early morning light.

"A neighbourhood of ochre and mustard-yellow Portuguese houses, narrow lanes and family-run cafés — it's the Goa most beach-only visitors never see, best explored on foot in the early morning light.."

The southern beaches

Agonda, Patnem and Galgibaga trade Baga's crowds for near-empty stretches of sand backed by casuarina trees. They're a 90-minute drive from the northern strip but feel like a different state altogether.

Spice plantations and Old Goa's churches

A guided walk through a working spice plantation near Ponda, followed by the Baroque interiors of the Basilica of Bom Jesus, rounds out a side of Goa that's centuries older than its party reputation.