Sinquerim holidays
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Holidays to Sinquerim bring together all the best bits of North Goa – pristine sands, swaying palm groves, and an unhurried pace of life. So if it's a tropical retreat you're after, this place ticks all the boxes.
Paradise found
Sinquerim is a sleepy beachside village in North Goa. Located at the far end of a breathtaking beach, where the sea meets the Rio de Ourem River, it’s one of the most serene spots in the region, with just a handful of Portuguese-style villas and upmarket resorts set among its tropical palm groves.
Sinquerim Beach
South of Candolim and Calangute, Sinquerim Beach is the final stretch of an 8-kilometre beach that’s washed by the warm Arabian Sea. Its trademark pink sands are studded with bamboo beach shacks that hire out sunloungers and are renowned for their Goan fish dishes. And right at the end of the beach is a small stretch of sand sectioned off by the old ramparts of Fort Aguada where you can sign up for water-skiing, banana boats, and parasailing.
The village
Sinquerim’s tangle of palm-lined streets are dotted with Portuguese colonial mansions and traditional Goan houses – some of these have been converted in to the Calizz Museum that traces the history of the region. But the biggest local landmark is Fort Aguada – a stone fort constructed by the Portuguese in 1612 that once covered the entire headland. At the top is a 4-storey lighthouse – the first of its kind in Asia. At sea level, there’s a watering station, which is how the fort got its name – in Portuguese, agua means water.
Close to Panaji
A 20-minute drive from Sinquerim is Panaji, Goa’s capital, a place where opulent colonial buildings brush up against ornate Hindu temples. At the Goa State Museum, there’s an eclectic collection of local art, photography and sculpture. And you’ll find a platoon of pleasure boats cruising up and down the Mandovi River at sunset.