Mapusa is a town in North Goa. It is the main commercial centre in North Goa (outside of Panjim, which is larger). It is basically a town for locals, who throng to it for their shopping and commercial requirements. However, Mapusa has a very colourful weekly Friday Market that goes on from early morning to late evening, and it increasingly attracts a number of tourists.
Easily reachable by bus from Panaji (the state capital) and the north Goa beach belt. Be warned however that the Goa bus service, while inexpensive, can also be crowded, and from some parts of the state (outside of the bigger cities) often very infrequent.
Mapusa, a small town, with a hillock at its northern extreme, can be easily accessed on foot. Two-wheeler motorcycle taxis will also not just take you around the place, but also help you find the address you're searching for.
Besides the weekly colourful Friday Market, Mapusa is known for its educational institutions. It also has scenic (though not very famed) churches and temples. An alternative bookshop, the Other India Bookstore, is known to attract a number of tourists and visitors because of the wide range of off-the-beaten-track books that it stores.
This is the place to eat traditional Goan food, both prepared in the Catholic and Hindu styles. Though there are a few eating outlets in Mapusa, the traditional styles of cooking still hold reign in places like Cafe Xavier (in the market), while Babaji's cold drinks outlet, which also offers snacks, is a prominent draw for the younger crowd.
Like the rest of Goa, lots of restaurants, bars and cold drink houses. Check out the roadside stalls near the Mapusa taxi stand that offer traditional Goan cold drinks (green and red-coloured syrups, coolant and healthy kokum juices, milk-shakes and a lot more).
Mapusa has quite a few hotels, but many visitors prefer to either stay on the coastal belt or in bigger cities of Goa like Panjim. The Govt of India Youth Hostel is very cheap (as low as ₹30/night) and can be ideal for groups of students. As Mapusa is close to some popular beaches and to Panaji too, it can be a good staying place.
Cybercafes in and around Mapusa:
Mapusa and around:
Each evening, as hundreds of tourists (especially foreigners) use Mapusa as their departure point to leave Goa (specially if travelling by bus to Mumbai or Pune), the local bus-stand becomes crowded and colourful with crowds waiting for their evening bus out-of-Goa.
2nd-order administrative division
Primary administrative division