2.47/5
274 reviews
Photo by Claudia Altamimi via Unsplash

Goa

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beaches

party

streets

driving

scooter

police

daily

money

working

monsoon

season

great

food

good

restaurants

roads

road

night

Goa receives mixed reviews depending on what you're seeking. The weather is warm year-round, and many visitors find the locals friendly and welcoming. During the off-season like the monsoon, locations are less crowded and some restaurants close, but many still offer excellent food. Alcohol is cheap and widely available, and mobile service like JIO works well. However, the area is very rural and underdeveloped in parts, so it's essential to have Google Maps and some patience navigating the unmarked, chaotic roads—all types of vehicles and animals share the road, and it's especially risky at night. Driving a scooter is not for the faint-hearted.

For digital nomads, Goa may be disappointing. Internet reliability is a major issue, even in coworking spaces, making it difficult for remote work. Unlike other Indian cities, English isn't as widely spoken, and a strong professional or nomad community is lacking, replaced instead by a party and backpacker scene. The cost of accommodation can be surprisingly high relative to quality, and tourists may face police targeting with checks and fines. Overall, Goa might be a good casual getaway but not ideal for remote work or long-term stays focused on productivity.

AI-generated summary of reviews
4 months ago

I was in Anjuna, Goa for Feb 23 and I can only discourage you from going there.

We were recommended the place as an upcoming nomad place but it just doesnt work for nomads at all.

Internet is plain terrible. Even in the coworking (NomadGao, Clay etc) and a back up sim, you cant make calls reliably to save your life.

Next to no community there, but strong hippie and party crowd there.

The streets are very stressful and you have to be comfortable driving a scooter in hectic streets in bad conditions. The police will stop you daily if you look like a tourist to shake you down for money, driving license or helmet.

The value for money was the worst I ever saw. Accommodation was a real pain as no place would divert much at all from their daily rate, even with local friends making the negotiations for us. After a frustrating weel long search, we ended up spending 940$ for a month in a loud apartment by the street (lots of honking) just because the bathroom didnt reek.

Overall, if you are considering working from Goa. Just don't.

3 years ago

Goa, September 3 -8, 2019- Yes, I was in Goa during monsoon season... still it was great for me. Stayed at a lovely little place [Vivenda Dos Palhacos] and the food was fabulous. The internet speed is good enough for research and streaming, and my Tunnel worked at this site. At this time of the year, the beaches were vacant, but still beautiful. Some restaurants aren't open as much during monsoon season, but visited several that were, and the food was great. Alcohol is VERY available in Goa (and I got a bottle of Old Monk Rum for 300 INR). Roads are nuts- I would never drive here except during the day on a scooter, and even then you are taking your life in your hands (in the road are buses, pedestrians, animals of all descriptions, cars, scooters, bicycles, farm tractors, donkey carts, motorcycles... and more.... Now imagine it at night, very busy, with only half the headlights/tailights working... on a barely 2 lane road). People are friendly, but English does not seem to be as prevalent as, say, in Mumbai or Bangalore or Kolkata, and there are a whole other mix of languages here. This is VERY RURAL. I did not go to the party houses or entertainment districts. You WILL need Google maps as the roads are not well marked. JIO phone service is good here. Cash is important here, as with all rural areas of India, but sit-down restaurants took plastic just fine. I never felt unsafe here, but that's just me, YMMV. I will return to Goa again.

5 years ago

dirty beaches, you can´t swim when police is there they don´t allow it. doesn´t make sense...
dangerous at night, my girlfriends almost is raped... don´t recommend.

5 years ago

Don`t get fooled by the apparently "small size" of the state. Cities and beaches are so spreaded-out and transport can be tricky - although dirty cheap. You will probably spend a huge amount of time looking for the best place to settle, be it in South or North.

Most of foreigners are hippie-alike, so don`t expect an entrepreneurial environment. Beaches actually aren`t so nice as I was expecting, neither the so-called "Portuguese heritage".

Have in mind that this is India, with problems of India. If you`re looking for something really different and in the middle of nature, better going to Kerala. Staying in Goa (IMHO) is for those who really need a personal reason to stay in the region. Besides, there are better places to go.

5 years ago

✅ Warm all year

✅ Friendly people

✅ Affordable to live

✅ Very safe

✅ Fast internet

✅ Lots of fun stuff to do

✅ Warm now

✅ Good air quality on average

✅ Many Nomads.com members have been

✅ Spacious and not crowded

✅ Easy to do business

✅ Democratic

✅ People can speak basic English

✅ Safe for women

✅ LGBTQ+ friendly

✅ Not many people smoke tobacco

✅ Not a lot of alcohol abuse

❌ Bad roads

❌ Internet issues

❌ Lack of nomad community

❌ Tourist-targeting police

❌ Poor value for money

❌ Freedom of speech is weak

❌ Very sweaty and humid now

❌ Nomads.com members didn't like going here

❌ Not many Nomads.com members right now

❌ Difficult to make friends

❌ Quality of education is low

❌ Hospitals are bad

❌ Roads can be dangerous

❌ Not family friendly

❌ Marijuana is illegal

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Feels (median)

34°C / 93°F hot

32°C / 90°F hot

35°C / 95°F hot

38°C / 100°F hot

33°C / 91°F hot

29°C / 84°F warm

33°C / 91°F hot

37°C / 99°F hot

35°C / 95°F hot

32°C / 90°F hot

Real (median)

31°C / 87°F
hot

30°C / 86°F
very warm

31°C / 88°F
hot

30°C / 86°F
very warm

27°C / 81°F
warm

26°C / 78°F
warm

27°C / 81°F
warm

29°C / 84°F
very warm

Humidity

nice
61%

nice
56%

nice
69%

sweaty
71%

sweaty
81%

sweaty
95%

nice
97%

sweaty
96%

sweaty
97%

sweaty
90%

sweaty
85%

nice
67%

Most common

☀️ Clear

☔️ Rain

☀️ Clear

Rain

dry
1mm

dry
0mm

dry
7mm

dry
10mm

rainy
82mm

rainy
740mm

rainy
1004mm

rainy
371mm

rainy
271mm

rainy
167mm

dry
15mm

dry
6mm

Cloud

pockets
22%

pockets
15%

pockets
16%

pockets
29%

pockets
49%

cloudy
62%

cloudy
69%

cloudy
60%

pockets
47%

cloudy
52%

pockets
14%

Sun

avoid sun
8 UVI

avoid sun
10 UVI

avoid sun
11 UVI

avoid sun
10 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

seek shade
6 UVI

seek shade
5 UVI

avoid sun
6 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

avoid sun
6 UVI

avoid sun
8 UVI

Remote workers

631 people

846 people

473 people

500 people

286 people

300 people

500 people

625 people

509 people

511 people

707 people

875 people

Green is good. Red is bad. Values shown are the medians of all daily highs in a month based on past few years, not necessarily current numbers. Remote worker count is estimated based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members.

If you'd like to filter destinations based on their climate, try Nomads.com's Climate Finder

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Help pick the best photos for Goa and improve this page's look by tappingclicking on them and the site saves your feedback Vote photos

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17pts

13pts

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10 Mbps

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked bad

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌦 Feels 18° 64° 18° 65° AQI 70 😷

✈️7h

$1,722 / mo

🌇 Also went here78 people

Canggu, Bali

Indonesia

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked mediocre

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 81° 🥵 AQI 177 😷

✈️7h

$1,984 / mo

🌇 Also went here79 people

Berlin

Germany

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 🧐 Very expensive

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked very bad

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 12° 54° 12° 53° AQI 65 😷

✈️9h

$4,052 / mo

🌇 Also went here79 people

Amsterdam

Netherlands

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😳 Extremely expensive

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked mediocre

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 14° 57° 14° 57° AQI 52 😷

✈️10h

$5,574 / mo

🌇 Also went here78 people

Barcelona

Spain

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 🧐 Very expensive

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked very bad

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌦 Feels 18° 64° 17° 63° AQI 34

✈️10h

$4,505 / mo

🌇 Also went here89 people

Paris

France

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😳 Extremely expensive

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked bad

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌤 Feels 15° 59° 15° 59° AQI 63 😷

✈️10h

$5,483 / mo

🌇 Also went here92 people

London

United Kingdom

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😳 Extremely expensive

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked mediocre

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌦 Feels 15° 59° 15° 59° AQI 53 😷

✈️10h

$5,715 / mo

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Lisbon

Portugal

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked bad

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 18° 64° 18° 65° AQI 26

✈️11h

$3,829 / mo

🌇 Also went here74 people

400 remote workers in Goa now, of which 2+ members checked in (some members are set to private)

Members who have been here

Values shown are estimated visits by traveling remote workers based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members. Visits to a place are only counted once per year per user, even if they visit more in that year. Visits are also normalized by overall trips added per month on the site, so if site usage goes up or down it does not affect trends. Not all digital nomads are on Nomads.com, and not all Nomads.com members log their trips. So the data is only indicative.

The chart below shows visitors by nationality normalized for population size. This means we take all trips logged on Nomads.com, check which country of origin the user is from, then divide that total visit count by the country of origin's population. If we didn't, it'd just show the big countries like US, Brazil and India always on top. Instead, this shows which nationalities worldwide proportionally visit more or less, which is more useful.

⭐️ Total score	2.47/5 (Rank #449) 274 reviews
❤️ Liked by members	👍5 liked it 👎3 disliked it
👍 Quality of life score	Okay
👶 Family score	Okay
🎒 Community score	Okay
💵 Cost	😙 Affordable: $1,171 / mo
📡 Internet	😡 Slow: 11 Mbps (avg)
😝 Fun	Great
⛅️ Temperature (now)	🥵 Hot: 28°C82°F (feels 32°C90°F)
💦 Humidity (now)	🥵 Sweaty: 84%
❄️ % of buildings with AC	🥵 Very low: 5%
👌 Safety	Good
👩 Safe for women	Okay
🌈 Safe for LGBTQ+	Okay
🤮 Food safety*	Good
👮‍♀️ Lack of crime*	Good
🤝 Lack of racism*	Good
🎓 Education level*	Low
⚡️ Power grid	Very bad
🌊 Vulnerability to climate change	Good
💰 Income level*	Very low: $142 / mo
🙊 English speaking*	Okay
🚶 Walkability	Bad
🚦 Traffic safety*	Bad
✈️ Airline scores*	Okay
🧳 Lost luggage*	Bad
😄 Happiness*	Bad
🍸 Nightlife	Great
📶 Free WiFi in city	Okay
🖥 Places to work from	Good
❄️ A/C or heating	Okay
😁 Friendly to foreigners	Okay
🗯 Freedom of speech*	Okay
🎅 Startup Score	Okay

🌍 Continent	Asia
🚩 Country	India
🗓️ Average trip length	13 days
📡 Internet speed (avg)	11 Mbps
⛅️ Weather (now)	🌦 28°C 82°F + 🥵 Sweaty (84%) = feels 32°C 90°F
🔌 Power	230V 50Hz
🚕 Best taxi app*	Ola
🚑 Travel medical insurance	Safetywing
💸 100 INR in USD	USD 1.13
🏧 Suggested ATM take out:	INR 10,000 = USD 113
💸 Tipping	Yes, 7%
💳 Cashless	💵 No, cash only (esp. for foreigners)
💻 Best coworking space	Coworking Goa
💻 Best alt. coworking space	Coworkable
☕️ Best coffee place	Dylan's Toasted & Roasted Coffee House
☕️ Best alt. coffee place	Cafe Goa
🏪 Best 24/7 coffee place	Hotel La Calypso
🚰 Tap water	🚫 No, not drinkable
♻️ Return rate	👍10% of visitors return
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Population	1,800,000 people
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 GDP per capita*	$1,706 / year
👫 Gender ratio (nomads)	👨 79% 👱‍♀️ 21%
🏞 Foreign land ownership allowed	Yes
⛪️ Religious government	Non-religious
💻 Online electronics shop	Amazon
🏠 Apartment listings	Goa Holiday Homes
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier	Air India
✈️ Best int'l air carrier	AirAsia
🏥 Best hospital	Vintage Hospital

💵 Cost of living for nomad	$1,171 / month
💵 Cost of living for expat	$702 / month
💵 Cost of living for family	$1,044 / month
💵 Cost of living for local	$298 / month
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$795 / month
🏡 Airbnb (median price)	$1,563 / month
🏠 1br studio rent in center	$178 / month
🏠 Median home price	$69,911
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$37 / night
🏠 Airbnb (median price)	$51 / night
🏢 Coworking hot desk	$110 / month
🍛 Dinner	$2
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L)	$0
🍺 Beer in cafe (0.5L)	$1
☕️ Coffee in cafe	$2
👩‍🏫 International school	$1,109 / year
📱 Mobile data (~10GB)	$2 / month
🚕 Taxi price (avg trip ~3km/2mi)	$1 / trip