Colva Beach

Colva is a beach located in south goa. Goa is easily accessible from Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore, but the easiest way to reach Colva is to either take a train or bus to Margao. The Station code for Margao is MAO. A few of the popular trains from Mumbai to Margao are the Konkan Kanya Express, The Mandovi Express, The Matsyagandha Express or the Janshatabdi. For a detailed list of trains and schedules to Margao check the Indian Railways website or indiarailinfo.com. You can book tickets on the IRCTC website or through makemytrip.com apart from railway stations directly.

There are plenty of bus services running from Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore. Neeta Volvo and Paulo Travels are the more popular ones. For a detailed list of bus services check, makemytrip.com/redbus.in. Neeta and Paulo have their own websites as well. The bus journey is approximately 12 hours from Mumbai and its recommended you opt for the sleeper, the seater's are really uncomfortable especially if you need leg space. Most of the buses leave Mumbai in the evening or at night and reach Goa the next day morning. Their first destination on entering Goa is Mapusa in North Goa, followed by Panjim and lastly Margao.

Colva beach is the closest beach to Margao at a distance of approximately 7 kms. You can take an auto rickshaw or a taxi to reach the beach. While the railway station has a prepaid taxi stand, there is no such facility at the bus stand, so once you get off the bus avoid the touts and head towards the exit which is on the main road itself, you will find a number of autos and taxis. It can cost anywhere between Rs 150-250 to reach Colva from the bus stand or railway station. It is recommended to avail of the prepaid stand at the railway station. Taxis and auto rickshaws in Goa do not charge by the meter, so you will have to bargain hard especially if you're a foreigner. The above mentioned rate is a standard charge and anything over Rs 250 is considered being overcharged.