Central holidays - travel guide - activities & sights

It's hard to think of a better place to improve your Yoga and mediatation skills than Goa. You'll find plenty of Yoga retreats and plenty of expert tuition available for beginners and regular devotees alike.

Central Goa features Vainguinim Beach, which has low hills rising inland, with a good range of watersports and a diving centre. Arrossim Beach is near the town of Cansaulim, just south of Vasco de Gama. Bogmallo Beach is south facing, and the beach is fringed by a few market stalls.

Panjim, the state capital of Goa, is one of India's smallest and pleasantest state capitals. Located on the south bank of the wide Mandovi River and dominated by its large cathedral, it has preserved its Portuguese heritage remarkably well. Parts of it still comprise narrow winding streets, old houses with overhanging balconies, red-tiled roofs and numerous small bars and cafes. Many signs in Portuguese are still visible over shops, cafes and administrative buildings. One of the most charming things about Panaji is that it's very small and has little scope for growth as it is bordered by Altinho (a hillock), on one side, the Arabian sea on the other Mandovi River on the third side, and Ourem Creek on the fourth.

You can take a tour of one of the oldest and largest tropical spice plantations in Goa, and find out fascinating information and examples of how spices are grown.

Situated along the north eastern border of Goa, at Molem, about an hour and a half journey from Panjim, this sanctuary covers 240 sq kms of the dense forest clad slopes of the western Ghats. Believed to be the state's largest sanctuaries, it's rich in wildlife and is also a birdwatcher's paradise.