Sea, sands and sun.........if you love these the most, then Goa is the perfect destination for you. March end is almost summer there, but we got our leave at that time! Other than visiting any hill station again and again, we zeroed down on Goa only.Last time when we visited, the location of GTDC hotel, Colva Residency seemed to be excellent. We booked it almost one month back and got a rear-side A/C room for 1870 +taxes.The internet booking facility was prompt and effective, the back office at tourism also helped us a great deal. Only we had to pay a 5.15% tax on arrival, the rest of the amount is collected while booking.
Colva residency is situated just on the silvery Colva beach. From Margao it can be easily accessed by local bus or auto. However, it is cost-effective to travel by buses, and the service is very frequent. We reached almost 5 hours in advance. The receptionists were quite helpful. They advised us to leave our luggage with them as the room was not available till 12. Well, that’s the time for check-in and check -out, so people are advised to plan their arrival accordingly. We had to wait for some time, then around 11 am they announced that the room is ready now.We got the rear-side room, but a portion of sea was visible from the window.It overlooked a plush garden with small cottages at the other side and sun-beds. The room was neat and clean, bedsheets and towels were spotless, and the bathroom was just perfect! So much to expect from a Govt. property, most of the time our experience was otherwise, that’s why saying this.The TV and A/C worked properly, windows and doors also seemed fine! Whoa! Can’t imagine when for the last time we got all these altogether for such a price!
Now let me tell you what else is there in this hotel. They have an excellent restaurant named Little Goa, adjacent to the reception. This served tasty food, including authentic Goan cuisine. The waiters are cordial and helpful, food tastes great, and waiting time is really less. The food is cost-effective too. However, it’s advised not to try much sea-food. They provided us the complimentary breakfasts during our stay, and that tasted really well.Room service costs extra, so it’s better to have food in the restaurant itself.They serve liquors also......however, I didn’t like the taste of port wine there!
Colva residency has special discounts for its guests in North and South Goa tour, upto 50%. We took the south Goa trip with them. I have never met such helpful guides in any tourism, I would like to mention here. They were very efficient, and above all they knew what they were doing. In one place where we preferred to sit in the bus, they came to us and had a nice chat about the local life and culture. It’s really great for any tourism department to get such dedicated employees like Sachin and Dadapeer, the guide duo. During our backwater trip, also arranged by GTDC and booked from hotel, Mr. Sailesh (The guide) helped us a lot throughout the trip and the visit in spice plantation. The front office ladies were just remarkable, they took great care of all our needs and queries. The staff members of Colva Residency are real assets, one should visit this place at least once while in Goa, to know the real meaning of hospitality.
We spent three days there, exploring and relaxing. After dinner we used to take long strolls around the hotel and the beach, the area seemed quite peaceful and serene. The view from the hotel is really breathtaking, having dinner in the lawn is no doubt a wonderful experience. They used to play nice music in the evening.One requires the A/C all the time, during this period of the year Goa is hot and humid. There is an Ayurvedic massage centre inside the property, Bhargava Ayurvedic Massage Center. That’s another Jewel in GTDC’s crown. We experienced a nice massage with a very low cost. That was refreshing and rejuvenating after all those adventure-packed expeditions! At the day of departure, there was a gap of 8 hours between the check out and bus timings. We stowed our luggages again in the cloak room and spent time exploring around and sitting in the reception, watching soccer match in the LCD TV. When it was time to leave, the employees gathered around and wished us a safe journey, which I never expected, never even saw in any other place. These people know the true meaning of hospitality, they were enjoying their jobs as they told us. Not merely serving, but they were serving us with delight. We just loved the place and especially these people. Next time, whenever we re-visit Goa, this will be our destination........Colva Residency, it just rocks!