In short
Goa was Portuguese until 1961 — four and a half centuries of colonisation that left baroque churches, a Catholic minority, a distinctive cuisine and a relationship with alcohol unlike anywhere else in India.
The north — Anjuna, Vagator, Arambol, Baga — is the party half, heir to the hippie period of the 1960s and 70s. The south — Palolem, Agonda, Patnem — is markedly quieter and more family-oriented. Panjim, the capital, and Old Goa, with its World Heritage listed basilicas, are inland.
Choosing north or south entirely decides the trip.
Arriving and getting around
Two airports: Dabolim, the historic one, and Mopa (Manohar International), opened in early 2023 to the north. Check which is on the ticket, they are far apart.
The train links Goa to Mumbai on the Konkan line, spectacular in the monsoon.
The scooter is the local means of transport, and the beaches are too scattered to do without one. An international driving permit is required and checks do happen.
What it really costs
Goa is affordable out of season and markedly more expensive from December to February.
Alcohol is far less taxed than in neighbouring states, which explains part of its domestic popularity.
When to come
November–March is the dry season, and the only genuinely workable one.
From June to September the monsoon closes most things: the beach shacks are dismantled each year and rebuilt after the rains, swimming is banned along much of the coast, and many establishments shut.
What nobody tells you
The beach shacks are seasonal by legal obligation: the structures must be taken down at the end of the season. A place found online may therefore not exist at the time of the trip.
Currents are dangerous on several beaches and visitor drownings are a recurring problem. Lifeguard posts mark the permitted zones; respecting them is not optional.
The Basilica of Bom Jesus, in Old Goa, holds the remains of Saint Francis Xavier. They are displayed only at expositions several years apart.
Susegad, a word of Portuguese origin describing a contented unhurriedness, is a claimed local notion — and it applies to opening times.