Goa now offers more than just shacks and lazing on sunbeds. For the thrill seekers, there are various adventure sports to choose from. We bring you five and where you can do them.
Scuba Diving, Rafting & More: Our Guide To Trying Adventure Sports In Goa
The information in this post might be outdated
Ten-Second Takeaway
Rafting
Come monsoons and the Mandovi up stream becomes a great river to raft on. The Goa tourism has started rafting here from Valpoi, and Goa Rafting conducts it. They can even arrange pick ups and drops from your hotels if required.
Check it out here: www.goarafting.com
Hot Air Ballooning
Goa tourism again organizes this and they have given the contract to Tiger Balloon Safaris to organise the Hot Air Balloon flights across Goa. They are a professional team and operate out of an office in Panjim. The rides are usually lasting 60 minutes and offer breathtaking views of the beaches, forests etc. Does not operate in the monsoon months.
Check it out here: http://hotairballooningingoa.com/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E?utm_source=LBB&ref=lbbpost
Beach Water Sports
Most beaches in Goa offer different water sporting activities like boogie boarding, paddle boarding, jet skis, parasailing, windsurfing, waterskiing etc. Some of the most popular ones are, The Taj Holiday Village & Dominic Water Sports in Sinquerim, Bogmallo Beach Resort at Bogmallo, Aqua Sports India & Dolphin Adventure Sports at Panjim Jetty and Hydro Sports at Dona Paula. These do not operate during the monsoon months from June till September.
Wildlife & Hiking/Trekking
If walking around in forests and looking for wild animals and birds is your passion, then Goa also offers multiple Wildlife Sanctuaries. These thick forests are very bio diverse and one can spot various wild animals like tigers, bison, wild boars, porcupines, foxes, elephants, crocodiles, etc. The forest department has a lot of marked trails and has guides available too.
They also conduct jeep safari trips in the day time. One can also use these groups to go for a trek or use as guides. Nature’s Nest, Offtrail Adventures, There is the Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary on Chorao Island which one takes a ferry to go to from Pomburpa and one can drive around or walk around the island to watch some amazing birds. For wildlife, there is Bhagwan Mahavir, the Cotigao, Bondla, Netravalli, Mhadei Sanctuaries to name to name a few.
Visit the Goa tourism website www.goatourism.gov.in for more details.
Scuba Diving
Goa offers multiple dive locations a few kilometres away from the coast. There are islands near which one can dive, one even with a sunken boat. There are various companies that offer PADI certified diving courses as well as just fun day diving trips. One can even just do snorkeling whilst the others are diving. These are not operational in the monsoon months from June till September.
Some of the well known ones are Barracuda diving in Baga www.barracudadiving.com , Dive Goa in Candolim www.divegoa.com and Goa Diving in Vasco www.goadiving.com.