India Guide
Goa
Vagator
Barely a couple of kilometres of clifftops and parched grassland separate Anjuna from the southern fringes of its nearest neighbour, VAGATOR. Spread around a tangle of winding back lanes, this is a more chilled, undeveloped resort that appeals, in the main, to Israeli and southern European beach bums who've been coming back for years.
With the red ramparts of Chapora fort looming above it, Vagator's broad sandy beach – known as "Big Vagator" – is undeniably beautiful. However, a peaceful swim or lie on the sand is out of the question here as it's a prime stop for bus parties of domestic tourists.
A much better option, though one that still sees more than its fair share of day-trippers, is the next beach south. Backed by a steep wall of crumbling palm-fringed laterite, Ozran (or "Little") Vagator beach is actually a string of three contiguous coves. To reach them you have to walk from where the bus parks above Big Vagator, or drive to the end of the lane running off the main Chapora– Anjuna road (towards the Nine Bar), from where footpaths drop sharply down to a wide stretch of level white sand (look for the mopeds and bikes parked at the top of the cliff). The Israeli- and Italian-dominated scene in the prettiest, southernmost cove here revolves around a string of large, well-established shacks, at the end of which a face carved out of the rocks – staring serenely skywards – is the most prominent landmark. Relentless racquetball, trance sound-systems and a particularly sizeable herd of stray cows are the other defining traits.