Goa in the monsoon: what is open, what closes, and is it worth it

The rains reach Goa in June and mostly clear by late September, and more than 90 per cent of the state's rain falls in those four months. Goa gets around 3,000 mm a year, so the monsoon is not a few showers. It is days of heavy, steady rain with breaks of bright sun between them. Prices for stays fall sharply, the state turns a green it never is in December, and the beaches belong to almost nobody.

Whether that is a good holiday depends on what you came for. If it is the sea, the shacks and the nightlife, come between November and March. If it is the green, the food, the old villages and quiet, the monsoon is worth considering.

Do not go into the sea in the monsoon. Swimming is prohibited on Goa's beaches from June to September, red flags mark it, and the lifeguards advise staying at least 10 metres back from the waterline. People drown every year who ignored them.

What closes in the monsoon

Most of what makes Goa a beach holiday stops for the rains. The list is longer than many visitors expect:

• Beach shacks. They close before the rains and most are taken down, then rebuilt from around late September and October.
• Water sports on the beaches, including parasailing and jet skis, which are suspended for the monsoon.
• Swimming in the sea, which is prohibited on patrolled beaches.
• The Dudhsagar jeep safari from Kulem, which is suspended and usually reopens around October.
• Anjuna's Wednesday flea market and the other seasonal markets.
• Many North Goa restaurants, which take their annual break somewhere between June and September.
• Mechanised fishing, which is banned from 1 June to 31 July, so the catch on menus is smaller.

Established restaurants in Panjim and the larger villages are more likely to stay open than beach places. Check a restaurant's own page or call before you ride out; our list of restaurants to try in Goa notes which are seasonal.

What is better in the rains

The paddy fields, first. In the rains the fields behind the coast and along the rivers are a bright, even green, and the countryside looks entirely different from the dry season. A slow ride or a walk through the villages behind Assagao, or across to the island of Divar, is the best of the monsoon.

The old towns are much pleasanter without the heat. The churches of Old Goa and the lanes of Panjim's Latin quarter are good in the rain, and there are no queues. The government ferries are meant to run through the monsoon, though it is worth checking the last crossing before you go over.

The food is better in a particular way. The restaurants that stay open are cooking for locals rather than for a season, and a long lunch while the rain comes down is one of the pleasures of the monsoon. And the waterfalls inland run at full strength, though most of the famous ones are harder to reach.

Dudhsagar: fullest when it is closed

Dudhsagar is at its most dramatic in the rains, and it is also closed. The only permitted way in is the forest department jeep from Kulem; private vehicles are not allowed beyond it, and the jeep safari is suspended for the monsoon. It usually reopens around October, when the falls are still full.

In the rains you see it from the train or not at all. The Belagavi to Vasco da Gama railway line passes right in front of the falls, and trains that use that line give a view from the window. Do not try to walk to the falls along the tracks. The Goa forest department prohibits that route, trains do not stop there for passengers, and people are fined for it. Our page on Dudhsagar Falls has the details for visiting in season.

Monsoon festivals

Two festivals make the monsoon worth timing a trip around. São João, on 24 June, marks the feast of St John the Baptist. Young men wear crowns of leaves and flowers called kopels and jump into wells, ponds and streams, and in Siolim decorated boats parade on the river in front of the church. It is loud, wet and very local.

Bonderam, the festival of flags, is on the fourth Saturday of August on Divar island. It starts in the afternoon with a parade of floats, brass bands and fancy dress, and ends in dancing in the street. It is a good reason to take the ferry across.

Staying safe in the monsoon

The sea is the main danger. Waves are high and surges come without warning, even when the water looks calm. The state's lifeguard agency puts up red flags on beaches under its watch and asks people not even to wade in. Stay off the rocks, cliffs and headlands too, which become very slippery, and a wave can reach further up them than it looks.

On land, roads flood in heavy rain, potholes open up quickly and visibility drops, so riding a scooter in a downpour is miserable and unsafe. If you have rented one, read our scooter guide and plan rides for the dry spells. Power cuts are common in Goa at any time of year, and storms bring down lines, so ask your host whether the house has an inverter or a generator.

When to come, and what to pack

Late September is the sweet spot: the green of the monsoon, most things reopening, and none of the December crowd or the December prices. Earlier in the season, expect days when it barely stops raining, and plan each day around the weather rather than the other way round.

• A proper rain jacket or a large umbrella, rather than a light cagoule.
• Sandals or shoes that can get wet, and quick-drying clothes.
• Zip bags or a dry bag for your phone and documents.
• Insect repellent, since the rains bring mosquitoes.
• A power bank, for when the electricity goes.

Choose where you stay with the weather in mind. A house with covered outdoor space, good drainage and a road a car can reach in the rain is worth more in July than a sea view. Our guide to what to ask your host before you arrive covers the questions that matter most in the monsoon.