Goa has always been one of my most favourite weekend escapes! Literally, a 45-minute hop, skip and snap on a plane and you’re cruising down summer breezy streets, lined with palm trees and the promise of epic meals, naps and the tan I’ve needed all lockdown!
Here are just 12 of the many things I loved about this fam jam trip away, where I decided to pack as much into our itinerary as humanly possible. And didn’t even stop to Instagram about it all weekend. Proud of me? I am!
Nowhere near done with you though Goa, so imma be back asap. Till then, enjoy my weekend shenanigans and feel free to add to this list for my next visit!
12 Things To Do On A Pre-Season Weekend In Goa
Day 1
- Pose with trees (or on branches).
- Hop onto Candolim beach and surrender your toes to the sand!
3. Airbnb at Aalia Villas for the comforts of home with an attached pool no less! Also, I was literally tripping on the fact that nearly everything was just a 7-15 minute ride from our villa!
Pro Tip: Hire a car for the weekend. It’s usually 2500 per day for 8 hours and 80 km. Totally worth it!
4. Dance the night away at Casa Playa to a mix of Bollywood and English Retro with a live band and a sweetheart photo opp!
5. Come home and marvel at mom’s mini basketball skills as she mostly pelts Nowshad in the face with a ping pong ball for a delightfully long time! Okay, this one was a clear bonus for me.
6. Wake up in a paradise and do an absolute lazy day at the villa. Including a delicious breakfast prepared by the villa staff on request!
Pro Tip: Ask the staff to organise a makeshift spa at the villa and get some local masseuses over to do foot massages for everyone.
7. Game night at the villa! This time learning how to play Code Names offline. Which is much harder than you think! Remember when apps were confusing and real-life wasn’t? Forget about it!
Day 2
8. Head for lunch to Jamun. Enjoy another delightful meal at a gorgeous old villa surrounded by lush trees and happy travellers.
9. Waste no time at all and do a quick change to head to the first-of-its-kind #MagicHour Sundowner at The Westin Goa. Hosted by Shveta Salve, Acquin Pais and Hermit Sethi. Witness some legendary DJ skills over sunset and cocktails too!
10. The next stop will be dinner at Favela, where the food is absolutely BEYOND. (Also, you’re basically sitting inside a plant nursery and feeling massively connected to nature in your own leafy jumpsuit.
Day 3
11. Wake up to a breakfast delivery from The Westin Goa complete with croissants and Avocado toast.
Pro Tip: Must revisit The Westin to discover what other delights they have. A major one is the fact that you step out of your balcony into the pool! Remember, ‘Ghar, ghar ke aage balcony, balcony ke aage garden, garden ke aage samundar!’
12. Order and pickup burgers from Burger Factory for lunch and be a really great friend and bring some back for your buddy Bunty who believes this is the best burger in the world!
Pro Tip: Always book one more foot massage before your flight. Because you’ll never forget how good it felt and it’ll always be totally worth it.
13. BONUS: Rinse and repeat this every 4-6 months for best results!
P.S. If you’re looking for something fun to do with friends and fam, involve them in all your silly reel ideas, they’ll get a definite kick out of it I swear!
For more such travel stories and recommendations, don’t forget to follow @missmalinilifestyle!