Immediately to the south of the airport, the Mormugao peninsula's sun parched central plateau tumbles to a flat-bottomed valley lined with coconut trees and redbrick huts. The sandy beach at the end of the cove would be even more picturesque. Until Oberoi erected a huge five star hotel here, Bogmalo was just another small fishing village, hemmed in by a pair of palm fringed headlands at the northern end of Colva bay.

A Former Fishing Village, Today's Tourist Hangout

The village is still present at Bogmalo, with a complete tiny-whitewashed Chapel and gangs of hogs nosing through the rubbish, but its environs have been transformed. Pricey café-bars blaring Western music have crept up the beach, while the clearing below the hotel is prowled by assiduous Kashmiri handicraft vendors.

Even so, compared with Calangute or Colva, Bogmalo is still a small-scale resort. The beach is clean and not too crowded, the water reasonably safe for swimming, and there are plenty of places to eat, drink and shop. If, on the other hand, one is looking for somewhere not yet, on the package tourist map, one'll be better off further south, at the far end of Colva Beach or beyond.

DIVING AT BOGMALO

A small dive school recently opened up in Bogmalo and is one of the few places in India where one can do PADI-approved Open water diving courses. Operating out of Joet's guesthouse, at the far end of the beach, the British run outift also offers half day "Try Dives" for novices, guided dives to shipwreck sites and coral beds off the coast and tuition for more advanced qualifications.

For More Information: Contact - Goa Diving, House No. 145P, Chapel Bhat, Chicalim, Near Bogmalo.

HOW TO GET THERE

Road: Bogmalo can be reached by bus or taxi from Vasco da Gama, 8-km northwest. It's also near enough to the airport for a last minute dip before catching a plane.

PLACES TO STAY