Doing Goa In A Big Group? Pick This Heritage Villa Close To Calangute Beach

OYO Home’s Portuguese Villa in Calangute is a huge house with three rooms that’s perfect for a family getaway. The property has ACs, a verandah, a self-service kitchen and space for up to eight guests. Needless to say, they rent out the entire villa, so it’s wise to go in a big group.

The biggest advantage of this heritage house is that it looks like it’s in a sleepy village but you’re only a few minutes away from the Calangute beach on one side and the busy bars and restaurants on the other. In case the plan is to vegetate or catch up with the gang, their living room space can keep you occupied with its chill communal seating, board games, TV and comic books. Of course, you can attack the well-stocked kitchen for reinforcements (they keep lots of snacks) when hunger strikes.

We also love the way the OYO folks have retained the character of this house from the 1930s. So you’ll see that the original structure and vibe is the same but there’s no compromise on the comfort either. They also ensure that the house is all spic and span (front yard done, verandah dusted) before you set foot here with your gang.

Little touches like keeping the dining room in the kitchen, having fairy lights strung on bed curtains and offering to arrange a tiny balcony bar, make this stay a better, cosier bet than most hotels (to us, they feel pretty impersonal, to be honest). And we say this because even the best of resorts don’t come close to this home-like feeling when you’re on a vacay.

Dominique, the owner of the villa stays behind the main house with his family and doggie Brownie. We met him on our way out and he was nice enough to linger around for chit chat about the history of the villa, his favourite bar on the beach and susegad Goan life. 

This might be too small to mention but because the bathrooms are traditional (in keeping with the whole theme), there are no shelves to rest your toiletries when you shower.

If you want to escape the tourists, Jan end and Feb are good months to plan a trip. The rates per night start at INR 4.5k a night and can go up to 25k for the last week of December. Now you know why we said Jan and Feb are good months?