Vasco-da-Gama came under the Portuguese influence in 1543 AD. Soon, it developed into one of the busiest port of the Western India.

Travel to Vasco-da-Gama to the see the Fort at Sada built by the Portuguese on the tip of the land protruding out on the Arabian Sea to control the movement of ships on the River Zuari.

Some of the places of tourist interest are the Pilot Point at Headland Sada, this place offers a magnificent view of the port and the mouth of the Zuari river as well as the Arabian Ocean. Another place at the Headland is the Japanese Garden. Baina Beach is just a walk away from the city. Considered as one of the safest beach in Goa. Bogmalo Beach is a mere 7 km from Vasco City and is one of the best that Goa has to offer. It has numerous shacks offering the local cuisine.

Vasco is rich in eating out choices, from classy top-end restaurants to modest ones. The variety of cuisine offered includes Goan, Konkanese, European, and Japanese and Chinese food and of course, seafood is the speciality. You can eat out at the restaurants in town around Swatantra Path or at the nearby beaches that have some superb gourmet restaurants and equally impressive beach shacks.

Thanks to its business city status, Vasco boasts a better than average batch of hotels. Most are plush mid-range places, although there are several no-frills lodges near the railway station. Best of the budget bunch is available on the Dattatreya Deshpande Road.

One can also try the GTDC Tourist Hostel, off Swatantra Path near the station, or the hotels situated east of the main square on FL Gomes Road.

Moving upscale hotels situated at Pe Jose Vaz Road, currently offers the best value for money among Vasco’s many modern mid-range places. Finally, for fully air-conditioned comfort, complete with plush bars, restaurants and a gym, check in to the hotels on Swatantra Path.

Pilot Point: A little ahead of the Mormugao port, an open space uphill is wonderful if you wish to catch glimpses of the port actions.

Mormugao Port: The port is a natural harbour and immensely important from commercial point of view. However, you can also pay a visit to the port because a number of cruise ship sail in every morning. These cruise ships take you round on a trip to Goa, passing through beaches, churches and temples. These trips are basically for few hours since the ship sail out of Goa in the evening.

The Naval Aviation Museum: This one is probably the only one of its kind in entire India and one amongst the few in the continent of Asia. With Bogmalo beach providing a wonderful backdrop, the museum exhibits the various types of aircraft and weapon system utilized by Indian naval air arm. A guide will accompany you on your visit and lead to the various sections of the museum. Simultaneously, this person will also provide information on various exhibits. While in the museum, make sure that you visit the armament room, the safety room and the archive hall. The first one of the three houses numerous bombs and torpedoes while the second one display complete pilot safety equipments. In this section you will also find photographs rare photographs of the liberation of Bangladesh in the year 1971. The last one, the archive hall, has a huge model of the ship, INS Virat along with photographs of Bangladesh liberation.

Other interesting exhibits of the museum include a Super Constellation and a Sea Hawk. The museum is open from 10 in the morning to 5 in the evening. (more…)

By Air: Dabolim, Goa’s airport, lies on top of a rocky plateau, 4-km southeast of Vasco da Gama.

By Rail: Vasco is laid out in a grid, bordered by Marmagao bay to the north, and by the railway line on its southern side. Apart from the cluster of oil storage tanks, the town’s most prominent landmark is the railway station at the south end of the main Dr. Rajendra Prasad Avenue.

By Road: Arriving by bus from Panjim or Margao, you’ll be dropped off at the Interstate Kadamba Terminus, 3-km east of the town centre. Local minibuses ferry passengers from here to the more central market bus stand.

Ponda can be described as the Hindu heart of Goa. It is famous for the five important temples that are situated around the town, and also has the largest mosque in Goa. Most of restored after being these temples look relatively new as they have been destroyed by the Portuguese. That explains why there are no temples around the coast, which was the prime territory of the Portuguese. Ponda is also an important transport link.

The city of Ponda lies about 28kms south-east of Panaji and 17kms north-east of Margao and is also the capital of Ponda Taluka.

The town was born after the Portuguese took over the area in 1791 from the Raja of Sonda and annexed it along with Quepem, Canacona and Sanguem forming the New Conquests.

It began as an administrative center with the establishment of administrative offices and court and soon became a commercial center. Most of the area known as Ponda today was a part of “Quela” village. It lies strategically along the main Panaji-Margao highway and is also connected to the neighboring state of Karnataka via the Ponda-Belgaum highway or the NH-4.

Today it is an industrial city with many large factories and industrial estates nearby. Goa’s only engineering college; the Goa College of Engineering is located at nearby Farmagudi. (more…)

This is one of Goa’s largest industrial and commercial cities located about 39kms southwest of Panaji. Vasco da Gama is a very neat & clean coastal town. Popularly known as Vasco, this town was originally called Sambhaji.

Imposing huge buildings and a church dominates the city centre here. Close to Marmagoa Harbour and 3 km from Dabolim airport, Vasco-Da-Gama is the junction of the railway lines into Goa. The town was named after the legendary Portuguese explorer and Goa’s former Viceroy, Dom Vasco da Gama. It lies on the western tip of the Mormugao peninsula overlooking the mouth of the Zuari River. This area came under Portuguese rule in 1543 and for a long time was a very busy port. The main town of Vasco is well laid out pretty much in a straight line along parallel roads interlinked by small bylanes.

There is hardly any landmark worth making a visit to Vasco, except for the 400-year old St. Andrews Church which lies at the entrance to the city. In recent times, the city has been attracting local visitors, to what is easily the best cinema theatre in the whole of Goa. (more…)

Canacona is located in Southern part of Goa. Canacona is one of the five talukas that constitute the South Goa district. It is bounded on the north by the taluka of Quepem, on the northeast by Sanguem, on the south by the state of Karnataka, and on the west by the Arabian Sea. The town of Chaudi is the administrative headquarters of the taluka of Canacona.

The name Canacona is a corruption of the name Konkan. The area was one of the districts of the former Kingdom of Soonda, itself a remnant of the former Vijayanagara Empire. When Soonda was invaded and partially occupied by Hyder Ali of Mysore, the heirless Raja ceded the remaining parts to Portugal and these were incorporated into Goa as the districts of Quepem, Sanguem and Canacona.

Canacona was incorporated into Goa in 1794. Like most of Goa, the culture of the district reflects an Indo-Portuguese fusion, yet Canacona experienced less Lusitanisation than the central Velhas Conquistas. (more…)

The name Canacona is a distorted version of Konkan which itself derives from Sanskrit word Konvapuram. According to a legend, the Canacona region, in the ancient times, was covered with thick forests and provided a perfect setting for meditating sages.

Once, a renowned sage by the name of Konovmuni made himself a shack here and stayed. The land thus became pure by his presence and came to be known as Konvapuram.

As a tourist destination, Canacona came into limelight in the 1990’s, which is pretty recent. As far as attractions of Canacona are considered, there are a quiet a decent number attractions to bind you during your trip to Goa.