Heritage Village Club Goa

27 readers found this review helpful

I just read Chrismarks review and although he said it was terrible, he never actually says what was terrible about it. My friend and i went in March and had to fly from glasgow to gatwick and gatwick to Goa. A really long journey and was soooo glad to get to the hotel. We were made to feel very welcome upon arrival and food was already prepared for us early as we arrived just before breakfast. Our bags were taken straight to our room while we checked in and we were shown how to use all the appliances etc. The rooms were cleaned daily with fresh towels and tea and coffee. We had a watercooler at the end of the hall that was always filled with ice cold bottled water for use at any time of the day. That first day we walked to the beach and Jack from the Shack came out to meet us and we said we were just for a nosey but will be back another time and away he went without any hassle. The bar opened at 11am so drinks were available and snacks were available too, these varied throughout our time there but their burgers were fantastic. The pool area was always clean and people would consistently clean throughout the day. The bar staff were really funny and entertaining. Once we went to the beach and a wave of water came over me and i hurt my back, because i couldnt get in the pool because of the pain, Clint would come over with a drink for me and to make sure i was alright. I was fine the next day but it was a nice gesture. On a trip to see the elephants and tigers (they call it a short train journey but it is 5 and a half hours long) my friend took an allergic reaction to mosquito bites and upon arrival in Goa she went to see the doctor who sent her to hospital for an antibiotic drip. That first week we were vry lucky as the hotel was very quite and there was only 2 kids who were very well behaved but because it was so quiet all the guests knew one another and they were passing me magazines to take to my friend and the staff passed up fruit and when she came back to the hotel, everyone was asking for her including the hotel manager. We had booked another trip for the following week but as my friend didnt want to chance more mosquito bites we requested to cancel and although our tickets stated no refunds, we got our money back.
All in all it was a fantastic holiday. The staff couldnt be any nicer and wouldnt even take our tip at the end of the holiday. The rooms and pool area and resturaunt were spotless. The animation team come up with some bizarre games which you can join in or not but if your not interested they leave you be. The enetertainment is different each night of the week but we got to see it twice as we were there for the fortnight but it wasnt too bad. We were sat around the pool one evening and the disco finished because it was raining. I couldnt feel any rain but maybe its because im from Scotland im used to it but it wasnt enough to bother about and we were nearing the monsoon season.
On our trip my friend and i were the only people from South Goa the rest were from the north and they questioned what it was like. I explained that the shacks on the beach are about every mile apart, golden sands for miles and they do not tolerate hassle. The group from north Goa couldnt believe it and said north Goa is so busy, they were exhausted with the hassle by the time they got to the beach which was right across the road from their hotel. Another family who had been in Goa since January 09 said that North Goa is nice to visit for the day but its good to get back to the quiet life of South Goa.
Sorry for going on so long but i have checked out reviews before and sometimes dont cover everything. As you know all incusinve means drinks and food but The Heritage Village club do sell Carlsberg and Bacardi etc if you dont like the local stuff but at about £1 a bottle or nip. I dont like to drink fat juice but the shop to the left of the hotel sold diet coke around 10p a tin. The cigarettes out the shop werent too good my friends said but the shop inside the hotel had better quality at a cheap price.
I would say well worth a try. expensive getting there but once there i took £600 for 2 weeks and came home with £400 and that was after paying for trips, facials from the spa, drinks after the all inclusive had endec and taxis here and there. very hard to spend your money once there but after all that, its very quiet and there isnt much else to do apart from the beach but if thats what you want, i would well recommend it!
Will be going back soon

5 readers found this review helpful

I had read so much good about this place, but they spoilt it all in just one day.
Apparently the reviews I read were written by foreign tourists.....and so apparently the staff must behave differently with them.
Coz i had the most terrible, officious, unhelpful, even aggressive behaviour ever experienced by a hotel "guest"....
Its a shame, its pathetic and either the management has no idea of how there staff behave, or its a hotel policy.
Big mistake coming here.....and never again!

12 readers found this review helpful

Been to Goa before and said never again couldnt wait to get home. Got talked into going again and went to Heritage Village FANTASTIC. It had to be one of the best things i have ever done.Already booked to go back next January and for 3 weeks.

8 readers found this review helpful

Just returned from a stay at the Heritage, and can thoroughly recommend it. The rooms are clean and spacious, the pool area is compact, but there were plenty of sunbeds and umbrellas, and a decent size pool. The food was very good, with plenty of choice, and the drinks were fine for an all-inclusive - local brands (although Kingfisher beer and Honeybee brandy were strangely NOT included) which were not too strong, just as well when the bar is open for 12 hours every day! The beach is a short 5 minute walk away, and is virtually deserted - you can walk for miles in either direction and see just one or two beach shacks, and a smattering of fishing villages. The walks along the beach early morning, or to watch the sunset, were a highlight of this trip. We were also not approached by any beach sellers (a pity, as they can be good fun, and we have never found them to be too pushy). The jewels in the crown of the Heritage for us was the wonderful, helpful staff, and the meals taken in the a la carte Mango terrace, eating under the stars. Almost without exception the staff were smiling, and everyone spoke to you when they passed by, making our whole group feel at home. Some of them were even at the coach early in the morning when we left, to wave goodbye.
To comment on a previous review, although BOTTLED water was not included, they have numerous water dispensers throughout the hotel, some very near the rooms, so lack of available water is a nonsense. We would agree that the evening entertainment is average (karaoke and bingo are definitely not for us!) but there was always somewhere quiet where you could sit, drink, and talk to your fellow travellers - much better than dashing back to the room for the TV (which we never turned on).
All in all, if you like to try different Indian dishes, are prepared to talk to the staff, and love the sunshine and walking for miles along empty beaches, this hotel is perfect for you.

2 readers found this review helpful

We have just recently returned from a two week stay at the Heritage Village Club Hotel. H.V.C. offers an all inclusive board basis but which is has some sigificant omissions, most notably of these ( IMO ) is that bottled water is not included and each bottle must be bought at a cost of 50 rupees ( Dec 2008 ).
All the staff were always very helpful, however at meal times you could perhaps describe the service as being "5 minutes too fast". By which I mean that as soon as you finished eating your plates were instantly cleared away without giving you time to finish dining properly.
Evening entertainment is provided, ranging from karoke night to bingo and DJ night but these lacked some direction, tables and chairs were set out in front of the stage for guests but rarely were there more than a token number of guests enjoying the events. Indeed we found ourselves looking forward to 9:00pm, when there was at least an english speaking film on the TV movie channel.
The room was adequate but as the refrigerater didn't work, housekeeping forgot hand-towels 3 times and one day we found our bath towels out on the balcony ( presumably drying in the sun ). Coupled with the twice failure of the safe deposit box there is definately room for improvement.
It was difficult to see the purpose of some the daytime activities, which variously included cookery lessons and aqua-aerobics ( which lasted a total of about 15 minutes ) and we were very confused by the spice stall, which offered a large variety of spices and flavourings for sale, but not sure why...
Food was at best...average and afternoon snacks were included in the A.I.
Our visit was over the Christmas / New Year period and the Gala meals for these events were very well presented, with the food being of far better quality than is provided at regular mealtimes. The decorations of the hotel terrace for these events was well done and a firework display was given at New Year.
The pool area can get a little busy, but the beach is only a few hundred metres away. Arossin Beach is quite clean, but the local beach hut has a number of resident dogs which spend the day sleeping under the deck-chairs. There is little to do on the beach and no beach/ ocean activities are organised by the hotel. Some distraction is offered by the surf but this quickly fades and your are left with little to do except sunbathe and occasionally fend off the three local hawkers who will try to sell you something !
All-in-all I think that it's safe to say that we didn't really enjoy our visit and we will not be returning to Goa.

4 readers found this review helpful

Heritage Village is a gem of a hotel. It's in a perfect setting just a few yards from an unspoilt beach. It is not in a commercialised area which was quite refreshing. The local Goan village was a pleasant 20min walk through coconut trees. All the villagers were really friendly especially the children. There is a station in the village for the more adventurous which only costs a few rupees. We didn't go on any organised excursions but opted to do our own thing and flew up to Delhi and did the Golden Triangle. This was organised for us by a local travel agent in Magiore. Highly recommended. At the hotel we had a huge double room overlooking the swimming poolwith a fan and airconditioning. Meals were taken either in the hotel or twice a week at the a la carte restaurant. We found the food to be very good and varied, quite a lot of it was spicy but there were always options. Entertainment at night was around the pool but ended at 11p.m so we were never kept awake. The pool area was always spotless and the staff were amazing. They made us feel part of one big family and nothing was too much trouble. There were organised activities during the day for anyone who wanted to join in. Taxis outside the hotel were available at all hours. The prices were all on a board so there was no need to haggle. They would take you anywhere and wait for you for an extra 50 rupees an hour. The management were superb and Clarence and Jennifer really welcomed us. We felt at home within a few hours of arriving. The beach was very quiet near the hotel with just one shack, Anthony's bar. Food and drink here were excellent especially the sea food and cheap too. If you walked to the left towards Colva there were a few people selling things but even they were friendly and didn't pester if you weren't interested. You need to haggle a price for things though. We walked to Colva and then got a tuktuk back which again was cheap. We only ate out once at Wow 916 a short taxi ride away. Good and cheap. All in all a wonderful holiday and highly recommended hotel. Thomson flights now have much more leg room and t.v. screens on all seat backs. Not worth paying premium prices as our friends discovered! Would definitely go back.

4 readers found this review helpful

We are Helen and Ray aged 53 & 50 and arrived at the heritage village Goa on Feb 15th 2008. We were treated like royalty and the staff could not do enough for us. This is without doubt the best service we have ever had on holiday . Although the appartments are 3 star everywhere is clean . air conditioning is free as is the safety deposit boxes .The gardeners even dust the plants.The linen gets changed daily.Beach towels on a daily basis.Very hot this time of year.The food is nice.We could,nt really find a fault with anything. Beautiful gardens , beautiful quiet beach but there is a strong under current so its adviseabale not to swim in the sea but its ok as long as you dont go too far in to the sea. The locals are very friendly.The entertainment is ok but no big shows. We would definitely recommend these appartments if you want a relaxing holiiday. Lots of guests go back year after year and we can see why.Thankyou very much to the management and staff.

3 readers found this review helpful

We chose a holiday in Goa mainly for the sun in January & to escape the post xmas blues. We went for the Heritage mainly because of the rave reviews the place has recieved on line & are really glad we did.
Arriving at the Airport in Goa is a real culture shock, after a long flight its a strange experience not to be able to grab your own bags and have to dole out loads of pound coins to everyone who lays a finger on your bag. We even had to hand over cash to the uniformed customs official - kid you not.
Getting on the road for the first time in Goa is scary to say the least, the drivers there all seem to have death wishes & after being used to polite channel islands driving the roads seem a scary place.
When you finally arrive at the hotel the atmosphere is wonderful. The reception staff deal with everything while you relax with a cool drinnk and very welcome cold towel.
The rooms are better than i was expecting, very clean with great showers but have really noisy air conditioning (take ear plugs for a good nights sleep) and all seem to have a large and quite scary looking teddy bear as a permanant resident!
The pool is the central feature at the Heritage, with its wonderful swim up pool bar. The pool bar gets very popular in the midafternoon and the 'sunny seats' are a great place to sit and chat to other guests and pick up tips for the holiday.
The best piece of advice is Don't book the rep trips, its far better to take a taxi to the destination yourself. We went on a rep trip to the waterfalls which involved spending about 5 hors on a cramped, supposedly airconditioned (it would have been cooler to have someone blowing down your neck) bus. The falls were great but the trip was ruined by the orgnisers insisting on doing the furthest drop off first, even though we passed about 2kms from our hotel, meaning we spent an extra 2 hours on the bus.
Dont expect too much from the food, its ok but can be a bit repetative. The snacks that are made freshly for you at the poolbar by the lovely chefs are great though, talk to them about football and they make a special effort.
For really fantastic food get down to the famous 'shack'. We were a bit dubious at first as the place really is rustic but the seafood there is some of the best i've ever eaten. Its dirt cheap there so you don't feel you are missing out on the all inclusive and the manager Anthony will feel like your best mate after a few visits. Another waiter there is Joseph who's an absolute star, he doesn't get paid to work there but sells handicrafts to customers. Most sellers are really pushy on the beach but Joseph is a refreshing change who is happy to take no for an answer - this made me buy more!
The beach is breathtaking, its practically deserted and runs for about 30 miles with the softest sand ever. its one of the most beautiful beaches i've ever seen. A real highlight was the walk down the beach from the hotel to Colva, about 10 miles which took us between 3 & 4 hours. There's a shack every mile or so whichmeans plenty of cool drink breaks and the chance to wait for the amazing sunset. One way was enough though, take a taxi the other way!.
The major charm that the Heritage & Arrosim beach held for us is that it really is in the middle of nowhere and is romantic as hell. If you want any sort of nightlife other than having a few drinks, or you are travelling with teenagers this is not the place for you. If you want one of the most memorable holidays ever in a place which really does seem like paradise then book, now, quickly before everyone finds out about it!!
The one downside was the flight. I've never seen so may seats crammed into such a small area, i was surprised that half the plane hadn't died from DVT when we got there. Avoid mytravel airways at all costs, if you are stuck with them the £70 extra for the legroom seats will be the best money you've ever spent. Also take plenty of sandwiches as the food really is inedible.
Anyway hope this hasn't bored you and you find the review helpful,
Happy holidays - Shoogal x

2 readers found this review helpful

Stayed here for 1 week, as was having a twin centre holiday. I booked on the reviews this hotel has, and was glad I did.
The rooms small, but clean and comfortable. The service fantastic, well trained, and efficient staff at this hotel. The food and drink plentiful, never queued once for dinner or bar service.
The Location near a remote beach used the free mountain bikes a few times to get out and about- very handy. A lot of guests seemed to never leave the hotel for their stay, a pity as there’s so much to see in Goa. We never made total full use of the all inclusive, spending one full day at the hotel, out of seven.
I would recommend this hotel, and would stay here again.

2 readers found this review helpful

This is a relatively cheap holiday that I would recommend to anybody. The staff, food, and general feeling about the hotel is excellent.
The chefs also come out to the poolside and cook morning and afternoon snacks.
Trips are available through your company rep or the hotel itself and include a night on an elephant reserve, swimming off a secluded island, a trip to the capital via the river and another river trip where you see many birds and crocodiles.
I was so impressed that I went back to this hotel two years running.