If you’re looking for a perfect beach vacation, Calangute in Goa is the place to be. Located in North Goa, Calangute is known for its pristine beaches, vibrant nightlife, and water sports activities. The beach is a long stretch of golden sand with crystal clear waters that are perfect for swimming and sunbathing. The beach is surrounded by shacks and restaurants that serve delicious seafood and refreshing drinks. You can also indulge in water sports activities like parasailing, jet skiing, and banana boat rides.

It was planned to visit Goa from Mumbai along with families of a couple of relatives and friends. We assembled at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) for the Goa bound Konkankanya Express. CSMT is formerly known as Victoria Terminus. It is a historic railway station and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It’s an overnight journey from here to Goa.

The Train Journey via the Western Ghat

The train journey was good but this train seems to stop almost at every station. The Mumbai-Goa sector is a single line track and hence it stops at some small stations for the coming train to pass by. The stretch has got a large number of bridges and tunnels, much more than any other part of the country. My dad and I woke up early at around 5.30 a.m. It was still dark. After dawn, the train stopped at Sangameshwar Road railway station. It’s a beautiful station and was looking romantic in the morning light, wet with dew.

We stood at the gate for the almost entire journey since then to enjoy the natural beauty. The train passes through very beautiful Western Ghats filled with full of hills, mountains, rivers, paddy fields, tunnels, bridges, etc.

The Western Ghats, also, known as Sahyadri (Benevolent Mountains) is a mountain range that runs parallel to the western coast of the Indian peninsula. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the eight “hottest hotspots” of biological diversity in the world.

The Western Ghats are the mountainous faulted and eroded edge of the Deccan Plateau. Geologic evidence indicates that they were formed during the break-up of the supercontinent of Gondwana some 150 million years ago.

There is a beautiful waterfall – Ranpat Waterfall – near Ukshi station. We wanted to see the waterfall. The train came out from the tunnel at high speed and before we could aim our camera, it entered into another tunnel. We weren’t sure of the actual location. The eye-catching Ranpat Waterfall in Ratnagiri is one which travellers and tourists can clearly catch a glimpse of when one is travelling on the famed Konkan Railway.

In the peak rainy season, these vertical streams crawling through the ranges of the velvety looking Sahyadri comes gushing down on the background of the lush green cover.

We reached Goa

Our train reached Thivim railway station 45 minutes late at around 11.35 a.m.

A minibus was waiting for us outside the station. It was arranged by the hotel that we booked in Calangute. We checked in and quickly went to the beach.

The Beach

We lazily had beer and lunch in a beach shack until the Sun started dipping at the dipping horizon. Calangute Beach is one of the most popular beaches in North Goa.

Termed as the Queen of Beaches, Calangute is the first choice for every tourist that lands on the soil of Goa. It is a haven for sunbathers. The cool sea breeze from the sea is sure to lull any tired soul to sleep. Endless shacks to lay around with the exotic seafood and drinks sounds like an apt getaway. The Calangute beach is also famous for the wide range of street food and seafood that is available in plenty at the multiple shacks, stores and beach restaurants located along the shoreline.

As the sun goes down, a mystic and electrifying breeze scatter around on the Calangute provoking the tourists to party all night.

Calangute Beach is one of the busiest and one of the most commercialized beaches in Goa. All the more reason behind the popularity of the Calangute Beach is its location between the Candolim and Baga beaches. It’s practically an 8-km long beach.

The Calangute Beach, over the years, has become a hub for tourists and backpackers, both domestic and international. This is the very reason why this place is known to have a unique charm of its own. There are two distinct parts of the beach. The place closer to the Baga beach is home to the constant sound of pop and rock music, which sort of stays in the air of this place at all times. The other part of Candolim is a quieter part. The music is played in much lower volume and gives an air of tranquility to the beach.

The History Behind the Name of Calangute

Calangute was earlier called as Kolongutt but the Portuguese changed it to Calangute. The word ‘Cal’ refers to goddess Kali, who was worshiped by local fishermen. Some believe the town got its name from the word ‘Kalyan Gutti’, which means a village of art. Some others believe the name Calangute emanated from its earlier name ‘Konvallo-Ghott’, a reference to the coconut palms which abound in the village.

The sunset by the sea

Another spectacular feature of Calangute Beach is its sunsets. My dad and I walked from the Baga beach to Calangute beach while watching the sunset on the western horizon.

Never waste any amount of time doing anything important when there is a sunset outside that you should be sitting under!

As it became dark, we found some people trying to catch fish there with small nets and with angles, rods, and lines. It was a nice 5 km walk over the sands watching people taking funny photographs – eating the sun or trying to place the sun within a heart-like shape made with fingers.

Some kids were playing on the sand and making sandcastles and structures on the beach

The Nightlife

Calangute is also known for its vibrant nightlife. There are several nightclubs, bars, and pubs that offer a great party atmosphere. You can dance the night away to the latest music and enjoy some delicious cocktails.

So be it insane celebrating with individuals from various continents playing your fortunes at the club or having a shoreline side blaze grill night, Goa has everything that you can consider under nightlife. Feel the thrill as you hit the nightclubs or just enjoy the tunes at the beach you will have the best of time here.

One night, we went to the SinQ nightclub, opposite Taj Holiday Village in Candolim. The SinQ is an upbeat, and trendy night club with an exciting dance floor as well as private curtained cabanas near the pool area for smaller groups.

It offers an attractive party scene with a good crowd and some great music being played by the best DJs in town. The entry ticket gets you unlimited drinks (limited range of basic brands) from a separate open bar, food is not covered. Besides dancing, we had beer, sandwiches, and hookah there.

We were at the club until it was closed at 3.00 a.m.

All this makes Calangute the favourite place to be in Goa

Whether you’re looking for a relaxing beach vacation or an adventurous water sports experience, Calangute has it all. So, pack your bags and head to Calangute for an unforgettable vacation. Calangute Beach is a perfect tourist retreat, filled with souvenir stalls, shacks and other stalls selling everything from beer to trinkets. Calangute beach is a perfect destination for nature freaks and the glorious view of locales enfolding serene ambiance, mark the place as a dream destination for beach bums.