Why you should swap beach for boat in Goa

Sarfraz Manzoor had been visiting Goa for more than 20 years. This time, he wanted to see it from a different perspective

Goa houseboat (Goa Experience)

I thought I knew Goa. I had been visiting for more than 20 years – first as a twentysomething backpacker and, more recently, as a fortysomething dad – and in that time I came to associate Goa solely with golden sands. The hippy bazaars were all well and good, but those beaches were the reason I would flee the British cold for Indian winter sun.

This visit to Goa was a different beast altogether though: we’d be swapping beach for boat and taking an overnight river cruise. Such cruises are more often associated with the neighbouring state of Kerala, which has 800km of rivers to Goa’s measly-sounding 45km. But having spent a few days relaxing by the poolside and building sandcastles on the beach at the Alila Diwa hotel, we were picked up and driven to the banks of the Chapora river.

A motorboat ferried us to Laid Back Waters, the oldest houseboat operating in Goa and our home for the night. There are only four wooden houseboats operating on the Chapora and so, unlike in Kerala, a cruise means having the river practically to yourself. Captain Ramesh introduced us to the crew before taking us on a tour of the houseboat: its nut-brown complexion was constructed from wood, bamboo and plaited palm fronds. The three bedrooms each came with a double bed, en suite shower and toilet and a window with views overlooking the river.

Luggage stowed in the bedroom, we headed to the upper deck to soak in the mid-afternoon sunshine as Ramesh took the wheel. The Chapora river is located in North Goa and flows westward to the Arabian Sea – for the first leg of our journey the boat sailed sedately for 8km, only pausing once we reached Morjim Beach. We disembarked for Bridget, my wife, and my daughter Laila to have a swim while I played in the shallows with her brother Ezra. Almost deserted with no restaurants, bars or loud music blaring, the beach was the antithesis of what you might find at the foot of a large hotel. We returned to the boat to watch the sunset from the top deck: an extraordinarily serene sight.

Goa has 45km of backwaters to cruise around (Goa Experience)

The change in scale from hotel to houseboat took some getting used to, especially when it came to our fellow shipmates. In a hotel it’s generally easy to ignore the other guests – but when there are only six adults onboard? Interacting is less easily avoided. There were two other couples – one from the Midlands, the other from East Anglia – and being brutally honest, they weren’t necessarily people I would have chosen to be trapped on a boat with.

Then again, they probably wouldn’t have signed up for a trip accompanied by a rowdy two year old or an excited seven year old. I’d been nervous about taking Laila and Ezra on the houseboat – what if they had a meltdown and spoilt everyone else’s holiday? Fortunately Ramesh was utterly brilliant with the kids, showing them how to take control of the steering wheel and even allowing them to briefly take over as “acting captain” of the boat.

Sarfraz and his family on the houseboat (Sarfraz Manzoor)

The Laid Back Waters sailed at a stately pace – five knots an hour – for 8km before Ramesh dropped anchor. The children had been put to bed; the other guests had retired early. Just Bridget and I were left at the front of the houseboat, sitting under a canopy of stars. It was gorgeously romantic to be surrounded by a silence only punctured by a flurry of fruit bats and the plop of catfish leaping out of the water.

Watching the sunset from the houseboat is an extraordinary sight (Sarfraz Manzoor)

Sarfraz on the houseboat (Sarfraz Manzoor)

Next morning after breakfast, we continued along the river and found ourselves transfixed by the sights, sounds and smells of an entirely different Goa to the one we knew: the blue flash of kingfishers in flight, lapwings and bee eaters in the air and silvery shoals of sardines in the water. There were water buffalo on the riverside; the smell of rice paddies burning ready for new planting wafted across the river. Here on Laid Back Waters we were a world away from hectic bazaars and beeping rickshaws. Instead, we glided past villages, churches and palm trees on banks of vivid green. The overriding sensation was one of calm amid the beauty.

As our time on the boat drew to a close and we said our goodbyes to Ramesh, heading on to the Taj Garden Village hotel for a few beautiful days by the pool and beach, I felt sure we’d be back. This whole new Goa was too good to see just once.

Travel essentials

Sarfraz Manzoor was a guest of specialist tour operator Goa Experience, which offers river cruises, tours and excursions in Goa. Seven night holiday packages at Alila Diwa Goa in the South and Taj Holiday Village Resort & Spa in the North start from £1,084pp and £1,169pp including direct flights and private transfers.