40 Best Hotels in Goa, India

This boutique resort along the lively Calangute strip offers rooms with white and purple tones, vintage furnishings, eclectic Goan artwork, and refreshing rain showers. There's also a bar with views, an all-day beach restaurant that excels in presentation as well as global flavors, and a gorgeous purple pool (a better swimming option than the sea) flanked by cabanas and sunbeds.

For the old-world charm of an aristocratic family home, stay at this elegant Portuguese villa on the south bank of the Chapora River, now converted into an all-suites boutique hotel. Bought in 1996 and beautifully restored, this old mansion has huge airy bedrooms impeccably furnished with antiques, and spacious bathrooms, ornately decorated common areas, and a lovely courtyard at its center. A new bridge across the Chapora makes it easy to get to the beaches north of the river in Pernem, as long as you have a car or bicycle—it's about 6 to 7 km (4 miles) from Siolim House to the Pernem beaches.

Set in a Portuguese family home in one of North Goa's most charming villages, Sunbeam is owned by Indian stylist Jivi Sethi, whose lively, unabashed approach to design is seen throughout the property. Unexpected elements include a mirror-lined massage parlor, Goan antiques alongside modern Indian accents, and a colorful swimming pool featuring a not-at-all-subtle phallic fountain. Sethi's staff is attentive and the kitchen sends out wonderful food, from complex European fare and Thai food to homey Goan and simple breakfasts, all to be savored in the fuchsia-papered dining room.

Beside tranquil Benaulim Beach, well away from the mass-tourist clutter of Colva, is one of the most attractive places to stay in South Goa---and where the staff is kind and the rooms are spacious, too. You can opt for a villa with an outdoor private pool or one with a hot tub overlooking the Arabian Sea; all have shady verandas looking out onto the golf course and sea. The lobby has gleaming marble floors and spotless white sofas. The spa offers ayurvedic treatments as well as Western massage therapies. In addition to a fine-dining Goan restaurant and a more casual all-day restaurant with an Italian bent, there's a lobster shack just above the beach.

Housed in charming Goan village–style cottages and villas that face lush gardens or the broad expanse of Sinquerim Beach, all guest rooms at this Taj resort include private terraces, luxurious bedding, marble bathrooms, and flat-screen TVs. The freeform pool affords both views of and access to the beach, and it's adjacent to the children's program facility. The three full-service restaurants specialize in Thai, Goan, and continental cuisine. Myriad recreational activities are offered for adults and children, and a world-class spa has ayurvedic treatments, yoga, and therapeutic massage in a serene setting.

This chain property is more business-oriented than the average Panaji hotel, with the added oomph of high-tech features such as surround-sound home-theater systems, multimedia panels, and LCD screens in all rooms. The aesthetically pleasing rooms are styled in contemporary fashion, and the top-notch facilities are kept in great repair.

A pair of outdoor pools (one carved into the hillside with views across the Arabian Sea), along with contemporary Indian artworks and well-groomed grounds make this beachfront resort a joy at every turn. Rooms and suites come in various categories—all have wonderful outdoor spaces (either a balcony or garden patio), and most offer a nightly turndown service. Extend the experience by heading to the cavernous spa center for a massage or the Vagator beach-facing bar for live DJ beats and drinks.

Travelers who appreciate a sense of place love the warmth of the WelcomHeritage Panjim Inn, a unique hotel in the center of historic Fontainhas that was built in the late 1800s. Nearly half of the rooms are in the older wing, while the remainders are in the newly added extension. Each room comes with a blend of period furnishings and modern art. In addition to a quiet restaurant on the veranda, there's an airy breakfast and dining area inside that's decorated in sleek black and white; it's the perfect place to enjoy the hotel's Goan seafood specials, read the paper, or simply escape from the chaos of Panaji's traffic. There's a small jacuzzi on the rooftop available for in-house guests.

The four spacious and beautiful antiques-furnished rooms in this historic annex of the Panjim Inn, with their four-poster beds, carved rosewood dressers, and plenty of windows, are a reminder of the times when colonial homes stood along the banks of the river. The mosaic tile floors and walls of the bathrooms resemble a crazy quilt and were designed by local artists. There's an art gallery on the ground floor. Guests use the restaurant and public rooms of the Panjim Inn, just across the street.

Several blocks from the street noise of Rua de Ourem, this vintage and stylish property built around a central garden courtyard is noted for being one of the few Hindu homes in a predominantly Catholic neighborhood. It is furnished with elegant antique cupboards and teak and rosewood four-poster beds. Guests can dine and take advantage of the services of the Panjim Inn, which is a two-minute walk away.