The airport in the Indian state of Goa is located near the village of Dabolim, so it was called by this name. On the map of India, this is the smallest region of the country. It is located in the middle between the resorts of the southern and north coast, 29 km from the main city of Panaji.
History of development
The first terminal was built in 1950, when this territory was a colony of Portugal. After India's struggle for independence in 1962. political map The country changed, and the airport was taken over by the Indian military. It is currently part of the Hansa base.
When in the 1960s The first hippie travelers flocked to Goa, the need arose for the development of this region, and the first hotels began to be built. State authorities chose which airport tourists could fly to and agreed with the military to use the Dabolim terminal for peaceful purposes. In 1966 V Indian Goa The first civilian flight arrived.
Now Goa Dabolim Airport already consists of two terminals, one of which serves domestic flights, and the new one, opened in March 2014, accepts international flights. The main passengers of Dabolim Airport are tourists on international scheduled and charter flights. The airport's runway is 2393 m long and abuts the sea coast and the beach, which makes take-off and landing very unusual.
Contacts
Airport code:
- international IATA – GOI;
- ICAO - VOGO.
Goa Airport Address: 403801, Dabolim, Vasco da Gama, Goa, India.
Contact numbers: +91 832 540 806.
The official website of Goa Airport is www.goanairport.com.
There is little on the site useful information, with the exception of the online scoreboard, which can be used to check the arrival and departure of flights.
Opening hours: until 08 am and from 12 noon.
It is important to know in advance at what time the planes arrive, because... in the morning hours from 09 to 12 only military sorties are carried out, and for civil aviation the rest of the time is allocated. Often passengers arriving at Dabolim airport are forced to stand in line at passport control upon arrival, because... two or three planes landed one after another due to this restriction in airport operations. Flights from Russia arrive in Goa at night or early in the morning.
Ticket check-in and baggage check-in at the airport begins 3 hours before flight departure.
Important! You must have your passport and air ticket with you. Since Dabolim Airport is primarily a military facility, at the entrance each passenger is checked for a printed document on English language, as a last resort, a scan on a smartphone/tablet confirming the flight. They won't let you in without it.
Parking
Near the terminal there is a parking lot and a multi-level car park for 570 cars. Parking for 2 hours costs 85 Indian rupees (approximately 1.5 US dollars). Taxis and tourist buses park in front of the airport building.
How to get to Goa airport
The main flow of passengers who fly to Goa are tourists. They are met by host Indian companies and taken to hotels by bus.
There is an official taxi stand at the airport. The cost of the trip depends both on the distance of the trip and on the availability of air conditioning in the car. Prices and cities are indicated on the yellow board. For example, from the airport to Calangute beach (43 km) a taxi will cost $12 and with air conditioning - $14, to the Colva resort - $7-8, respectively, to hotels on Varca beach - $10-12. Payment is made through machines in rupees.
It is better for tourists not to use public transport, because... it is not designed for traveling with luggage, and its routes are not connected to the main resorts; you will have to make several transfers. There is no schedule as such. The bus from the airport goes to the city of Vasco da Gama, then you can get to Panaji, and from there to the resort villages.
In addition, in the village of Dabolim, 1 km from the airport there is a station railway. Trains go to Mumbai and Delhi. But it is important to keep in mind that traveling on an Indian train is very special.
You can also rent a car at the airport, but due to the chaotic and unpredictable traffic on Indian roads, it is better to take a taxi.
Airport map
The new international terminal is a two-story building with departure and arrival halls, flight displays, ticket offices and small shops with souvenirs.
Airport services
Luggage packing
The baggage packing counter is located in the international terminal. To keep things safe, as well as to avoid contamination and damage to suitcases, it is better to wrap luggage with protective film. The cost is about 300 rupees (approximately 5 US dollars).
Important! Lighters are not allowed in luggage. During inspection they are always required to be removed and left behind.
Luggage storage
There are no luggage storage services at Goa Airport.
Room for mother and child
Dabolim Airport provides facilities for passengers with children. The new international terminal has a room where parents can take care of their baby.
Currency exchange
You can change money at currency exchange offices, which are located in the departure and arrival areas.
VIP room
There is no VIP lounge at Dabolim Airport
WiFi
There is paid wi-fi at Goa airport. To use it, you need to be connected to the TataIndicom network.
Food at the airport
You can have a snack before your flight in a small cafe located in the international terminal, or buy snacks from the snack machine.
Hotels at the airport
The nearest hotels are located 1.5 km from the airport near Bogmalo Beach. It offers tourists Coconut Creek Resort 3*, Bogmalo Beach 3* and numerous private apartments.
Airlines served
You can fly to Goa airport by charter during the season (autumn - winter - spring), on regular flights of international airlines that fly all year round, and Indian Airlines from major cities countries daily.
The main airlines that have Goa on their regular schedule are Emirates from Dubai, Qatar Airways from Doha and Air Arabia from Sharjah. European air carriers send their passengers on codeshare flights with the Indian airline Jet Airways India.
When the tourist season opens, usually at the end of October - beginning of November, from Russia charter flights carried out by several airlines. Every year their list may change depending on the agreement with tour operators. Usually these are Azur Air, Royal Flight or Russia airlines.
IN major airports Air India and small local charter carriers fly to Mumbai and Delhi several times a day.
India is becoming an increasingly popular destination for beach holiday, on Goa resorts The flow of tourists is growing every year. Of all the international flights that land in Dabolim, thirty percent of the planes arrive from Russia. With the advent of the new terminal, arrivals and departures have become more comfortable.
Video
- identification document specified in the order,
- birth certificate when flying with children,
- printed itinerary receipt(optional).
What can you take on a plane?
Carry-on luggage is the items you will take with you into the cabin. Weight norm hand luggage can vary from 5 to 10 kg, and its size most often should not exceed the sum of three dimensions (length, width and height) from 115 to 203 cm (depending on the airline). A handbag is not considered hand luggage and is carried freely.
The bag you take with you on the plane should not contain knives, scissors, medicines, aerosols, or cosmetics. Alcohol from duty free stores can only be transported in sealed bags.
How to pay for luggage at the airport
If the weight of luggage exceeds the standards established by the airline (most often 20-23 kg), you need to pay for each kilogram of excess. In addition, many Russian and foreign airlines, as well as low-cost airlines, have tariffs that do not include free baggage allowance and must be paid separately as an additional service.
In this case, luggage must be checked in at the airport at a separate Drop-off check-in counter. If you are unable to print boarding pass, you can get it at the regular airline check-in counter, and check in and drop off your luggage there.
Where to find out the arrival time if you are a greeter
You can find out the plane's arrival time on the airport's online board. The Tutu.ru website has an online display of the main Russian and foreign airports.
You can find out the exit number (gate) on the arrivals board at the airport. This number is located next to the incoming flight information.
What to do if your flight is canceled
If a flight is canceled more than 24 hours before departure, passengers will be transferred to similar airline flights. The carrier bears the costs; the service is free for the passenger. If you are not satisfied with any of the options offered by the airline, most airlines can issue an “involuntary return.” Once confirmed by the airline, the money will be returned to your account. Sometimes this can take several weeks.
How to check in at the airport
Online check-in is available on most airline websites. Most often it opens 23 hours before the start of the flight. You can go through it no later than 1 hour before the plane departs.
To check in at the airport you will need:
There is only one airport in Goa called Dabolim. Its abbreviated name is GOI (Goa International Airport). And even then, this is not exactly a tourist airport: most of it belongs to the Indian Ministry of Defense. Today the airport has two terminals: Terminal 1 serves domestic flights, and Terminal 2 is international.
Goa's "air gate" was built in the 1950s by the Portuguese (at that time the state was a Portuguese colony and was not part of India). But the struggle for Indian independence did its job - and in 1962, all of Goa (including the airport) was captured by the Indian military. From that time until now Dabolim remains the property of the military forces Indian Republic, a military air unit called “Khansa” is located on its territory.
Travel time Moscow — Dabolim- approximately 7.5 hours.
Due to the fact that the airfield belongs to the Indian Air Force, military flight exercises are held on the territory every day from 8 am to 1 pm, and take-offs and landings of civil aircraft are prohibited, so all aircraft arrive in Goa either late in the evening, or at night, or early in the morning (before start of military fighter exercises).
We once found ourselves in a situation where our arrival was late, which is why the flight was delayed by 4 hours. At that time runways The air hub was already occupied by military fighters, and about 300 people sat in the waiting room and watched in silence. We were supposed to take off at about 7 am, but it was possible to take off only around 12 noon. We were lucky, and by some miracle our plane was allowed to take off between the takeoffs of Indian fighters (apparently there was a lunch break). And we already expected to wait until the end of the working day.
Also, due to the military nature of the airport, at the entrance there is always a military man with a machine gun and checks the tickets of everyone who wants to enter. Therefore, everyone must have a printout of their electronic ticket, which shows the flight number and date. Entry to the airport terminal with a ticket is permitted no earlier than 4 hours before the departure of your plane.
Dabolim Airport on the map:
Arrival to Dabolim
Upon arrival in India, all tourists are required to fill out an Arrival card; it is sometimes handed out on planes, but most often you have to take it at the Goa airport and fill it out at the counters, so we advise you to have your own pen with you (there are few pens at the counters, and you have to wait your turn to fill the card takes a long time). The Arrival card contains standard information: arrival flight, departure date, which hotel you will stay in, which cities you plan to visit.
This is what the Arrival Card looks like, which all foreign tourists need to fill out
After filling out the Arrival Card, you need to go with it to border control (if you have an Indian visa pasted in your passport) or to the Visa on Arrival counter (if you applied for an electronic visa, which is pasted into your passport upon arrival).
After passing through border control, we head to the baggage claim area. Dabolim is small, so there are only two ribbons. Local “helpers” are on duty at these belts around the clock, who are in a hurry to snatch your suitcase from your hands in order to take it to a taxi, or to the operator’s desk if you did not arrive on your own. They are dressed in some kind of uniform that makes them look like airport employees, in fact, this uniform is “left-handed”.
They know our main operators flying to Goa, so when a confused tourist hears: “Pegasus, let’s go there,” he is sure that this is an employee of the tour operator, whose duties include escorting tourists to the counter. In fact, this is an ordinary Indian who makes money this way. After you and he find the counter of your tour operator (or taxi), he will begin to demand payment from you for his services. They ask for a lot (according to eyewitnesses, from 5 dollars to 500 rupees), although they have to carry a suitcase no more than 50 meters.
There is a currency exchange at the airport, but the rate is extremely unfavorable. Therefore, if you really need it urgently (for example, to pay for a taxi), exchange a small amount (no more than $50). But it’s best to order a car at a prepaid taxi booth (state prepaid taxi) and tell the driver that you will pay the driver in person. At the window you will be given a piece of paper with a fixed price, and already in your village, you will exchange dollars at a favorable rate and pay the driver. Taxi prices to different villages in Goa are posted at the exit from the airport terminal, so if the taxi driver starts to inflate the price, you should not encourage this. We will provide taxi prices from the airport and distances to popular tourist villages in this article, just below.
State Prepaid Taxi counter at Dabolim Airport
In addition to currency exchange, you can use the ATMs located at the exit of the terminal: simply withdraw money from your card. The ATM dispenses rupees, the conversion takes place inside the bank. The issuance fee for Indian ATMs is standard: 200 rupees. The commission for withdrawing money from your bank may be different: with us, for example, money can be withdrawn without commission anywhere in the world (provided that the withdrawal amount is at least 3,000 rubles). Usually, we withdraw 10,000 rupees, and pay 200 rupees for withdrawal - this turns out to be 2% of the amount. The smaller the amount you withdraw, the less profitable it turns out.
It is worth considering that Indian ATMs work differently than Russian ones. They do not “swallow” the card - you need to insert it all the way and immediately pull it out: the ATM has already counted all the necessary information. After the card is read and removed, you enter the PIN code, select the desired account and enter the required withdrawal amount.
There is also a sale of Indian SIM cards at the exit to the city. Buying them here is extremely unprofitable: they cost many times more than in villages of Goa, and if the card malfunctions, there will be no one to file a claim (you won’t go to the airport by taxi for 1000 rupees to exchange a SIM card for 500).
There are no luggage storage facilities in Dabolim, so leaving your luggage there while you look for accommodation is not possible.
Online scoreboard Dabolim Airport(select the “Departure” or “Arrival” tab) :
Distance from Goa airport to tourist villages and taxi prices
Table with prices from 2017
| Route where to go from Dabolim airport | Distance in km | Cost of official state prepaid taxi in rupees (car without air conditioning) | Car with air conditioning |
| North Goa | |||
| Candolim | 47 | 1200 | 1271 |
| Mapusa | 45 | 1149 | 1218 |
| Calangute | 45 | 1149 | 1218 |
| Baga | 47 | 1200 | 1271 |
| Anjuna | 52 | 1328 | 1407 |
| Vagator | 54 | 1379 | 1461 |
| Mandrem | 65 | 1659 | 1758 |
| We're blinking | 63 | 1608 | 1704 |
| Arambol | 67 | 1710 | 1812 |
| Ashvem | 64 | 1634 | 1731 |
| Pernem | 71 | 1812 | 1920 |
| Terekol | 75 | 1941 | 2028 |
| Miramar | 37 | 945 | 1002 |
| South Goa | |||
| Margao | 34 | 869 | 918 |
| Ponda | 41 | 1047 | 1110 |
| Cancolim | 43 | 1098 | 1164 |
| Betul | 52 | 1328 | 1407 |
| Sanwordem | 55 | 1404 | 1488 |
| Sanguem | 60 | 1550 | 1623 |
| Mobor | 44 | 1124 | 1191 |
| Palolem | 70 | 1787 | 1893 |
| Loliem | 87 | 2220 | 2352 |
| Agonda | 74 | 1889 | 2001 |
| Canacona | 68 | 1736 | 1839 |
| Benaulim | 29 | 741 | 786 |
| Kepem | 45 | 1149 | 1218 |
| Panjim | 34 | 269 | 921 |
It is worth considering that at night (from 23:00 to 05:00) another 35% is added to these tariffs. Also, the prepaid taxi charges another 10 rupees from each passenger for luggage.
Departure from Dabolim
About the fact that you can enter the terminal only by presenting your printed card to the military at the entrance e-ticket, we already said. What happens after you go inside?
When departing from Goa, your luggage is carefully checked, and then a yellow sticker is placed on the suitcase lock, which cannot be removed without damaging it. This is how they try to secure the flight (so that they don’t put prohibited items in the suitcase after checking). By the way, it is forbidden to carry any batteries in luggage; we once had a children’s suitcase rejected because it contained a remote control for a car with batteries inside.
Lighters are also prohibited from being carried in both carry-on and checked baggage. Therefore, even souvenir lighters from India are also removed from suitcases.
This is the queue at check-in for the Goa-Samara flight at 4 am
Passenger check-in at counters international departure at Dabolim airport
A service for rewinding luggage with plastic film is available at Dabolim Airport - it costs only 200 rupees. Compared to a similar service in Sheremetyevo, which costs 500 rubles- Indians ask for 2 times less.
We noticed another feature of the Goan airport: special tags are attached to all hand luggage. But this is not the most interesting thing - such tags are issued for hand luggage everywhere. But only at Dabolim airport you won’t be able to bring hand luggage on board without tags: these tags are placed on special seals after checking your hand luggage on a scanner, and without these stamps you will not be allowed past customs control. At other airports, we often don’t even attach “Cabin baggage” tags at all - and we’ve never had a problem.
All in all, Harbour Air Goa is small, there are a lot of people, there are queues everywhere. Dropping your luggage and going through passport control takes a painfully long time; it is better to arrive at the airport at least 3 hours in advance (unless, of course, you are traveling with an organized transfer from a tour operator).
Until about 2017, no one asked this question: fruits in special baskets were accepted into hand luggage without problems, even if the basket was not the only element of hand luggage, but was an addition to it. To be fair, it is worth saying that according to the rules, transporting fruit in hand luggage has always been prohibited, but no one paid such serious attention to it.
These are the baskets used to carry fruits from Goa in hand luggage
At the end of 2017, for some reason, this rule began to be followed with special care: everyone was forced to check all fruit baskets as luggage. But they didn’t take money for them, as for additional luggage.
Nevertheless, we witnessed how our enterprising Russian tourists still carried baskets of fruit in their hand luggage: they simply did not show them when checking in their luggage, and were successfully able to carry them on board. The same tourists who asked the workers if it was possible to carry THIS and pointed to the baskets were forced to check them in as luggage.
It is worth saying that during our visit in December 2017, all the baskets arrived safe and sound, they were not unloaded onto a belt, but all the baskets were carefully brought on a separate trolley and placed near the luggage belt.
Most of all, those tourists who were forced to check fruit baskets in their luggage were worried that at the Russian border (according to rumors) half of the fruit would be confiscated by workers, and only a small part of what they were carrying would reach the owners. In view of this, they carefully wrapped the baskets with tape. Whether the tape helped, or whether the customs officers came across honest ones, all the fruits checked in as luggage reached their owners in the same quantity as they were checked in.
Duty free and food courts at the airport
The duty-free zone in Dabolim is very, very modest (about the same as in a Russian province). In fact, there is only one small shop with some alcohol and souvenirs, several fast food nooks with very expensive prices, and that’s all.
On the right is the same nook with fast food. There are no tables where you can eat and drink what you bought. Passengers eat on their seats.
Departure hall: in the distance you can see the only duty-free mini-shop, nothing about it
When our flight was delayed for 4 hours, we had to buy expensive and tasteless (and spicy) burgers at one of two food outlets in the departure area. There is no normal food here. Therefore, I can’t even imagine how to feed children here during a long plane delay. I highly recommend, just in case, stocking up on some healthier food for your children in advance.
Goa airport from the landing strip.
A few minutes before the plane lands at the airport, the flight attendant will give you an entry card to India "Arrival card". It will need to be filled out to pass customs control. After landing, a bus will arrive at the plane and take passengers to the airport building. There you will go through customs and passport control and will be able to collect your luggage at the conveyor belt.
Currency exchange and communications
At the beginning of your trip to Goa, you will need some local money to move around the state. The currency exchange rate at Dabolim Airport is very unfavorable, so we advise you to exchange as much currency as you need to get to a normal exchanger or bank. Next to the exchanger there is an office of a local cellular company, where you can purchase a SIM card from an Indian mobile operator. The cost of a SIM card at the airport is slightly higher than in other parts of the state.
Duty Free stores
There are duty-free shops at Dabolim Airport Duty Free. The range of goods presented there is significantly lower than in many other airports in the world. Indian rupees, dollars and euros are accepted for payment. The exchange rate is low.
Where to buy a ticket to Goa at a low price
You can buy plane tickets on our website. Our system will quickly find tickets for you from many airlines at once and show their prices.
check-in
You can enter the airport building no earlier than 4 hours before departure, if you have an air ticket with you. It is better to arrive at least an hour before departure. First you will need to go through customs control and check in for your flight. Check-in occurs by airline, and not by flight number, as in most airports in the world. The airport has ticket offices for Air India, Indian Airlines, Jet Airways, Kingfisher, Sahara Airlines, SpiceJet, and GoAir. At customs you will need to fill out a Departure card.
Location of Goa airport on the map
Goa airport is located almost in the very middle of the state between North Goa and South Goa 4 km from the city center of Vasco Da Gama. From the airport to the state capital of Panaji, it is about 30 km.
How to get from Goa airport to the hotel
There are several ways to get from Dabolim airport to the resorts of Goa, but the most popular of them is to take a taxi. The driver will meet you at the airport in the arrivals area, help with your luggage and take you to your desired address. Book a taxi from Goa airport to your hotel online!
Those planning to travel by bus will have to deal with the local public transport. The closest bus station to the airport is located in Vasco da Gama, a 10-minute drive away. You can get from the airport to it by autorickshaw (local minibus) for about 60 rupees.
A kilometer from Goa airport is Train Station, from which you can travel to other areas of Goa and India.
Goa is a very popular place among tourists from the CIS countries. This can be understood, since this resort has a huge number of advantages. We are talking about one of the smallest Indian states. By itself it represents a continuous coastline washed by the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. Arriving here, tourists find themselves in real paradise, as if straight out of a postcard: palm trees, White sand, clear sea, exotic temples and resorts. At the same time, holidays in India are very cheap; it is considered, perhaps, the most affordable in the world. The only thing that can darken Russian tourists– this is the presence of a visa.
Since Goa is not a separate island or state, but still a state of India, you need to submit documents here. However, any traveler will tell you that this country willingly and without any bureaucratic delays issues holiday visas, without requiring a huge package of paperwork. Therefore, obtaining the desired permission to visit the resort will not be difficult. In order to get to this state, you need to take a flight from Russia. Naturally, when you travel for the first time, questions arise: which GOA arrival airport will you visit and what do you need to know about it in general?
If you have a question about which airport planes fly to in GOA, then just remember the name - “Dabolim”. There is no point in flying to another state in India and then getting to the resort from there. After all, we are talking about a modern air harbor. It is located four kilometers from small town Vasco da Gama. It takes about 30 kilometers to get to the large administrative center.
The statistics that relate to this airport are as follows:
- Dabolim receives 700 foreign aircraft per year;
- most of the flights are charter;
- a third of them are Russian companies and aircraft;
- at the same time, quite a lot of flights come from other states, and they also fly tourists who, for some reason, could not fly by direct route;
- Every year 200 thousand foreigners fly to the airport, which is an impressive figure for such a small establishment.
It is noteworthy that the number of tourists is approximately 10th of all foreigners who arrive in India. Most often, this resort is chosen by Russians, other residents of the CIS countries, as well as the British.
A little history
Construction of the airport began in 1950. Land from the village of Dabolim was allocated for these needs. The airport still bears its name, with no intention of changing it. In the 60s, India gained independence and by force conquered lands that belonged to other colonies. For example, Portugal, under whose jurisdiction the airport was. In 1961, it was even bombed by the country's Air Force. In 1962, Dabolim became the property of the Indian authorities, in a dilapidated state.
At first, the air harbor was exclusively a military platform for the needs of military aviation. But times, of course, changed, the country returned to normal life, tourists flew in, paying special attention to Goa. In 1996 it was already a resort, and there was no point in delaying the airport expansion any longer. Regular civil aviation flights began this year. Further, Dabolim was only modernized, gradually replenished with modern aircraft.
Dabolim Airport
Passenger handling and service
Most often, planes arrive at the airport at night or early in the morning. This is due to time zones and their changes. You need to mentally prepare for this, since it is unlikely that you will be able to sleep on board, as practice shows. Consider the following nuances:
- Before boarding you will be given special cards. They need to be filled out, indicating passport information, visa, and other similar data, which mainly relate to the place and time of residence in the country.
- It is necessary to think about housing in advance, since this column cannot be missed.
- Upon arrival, you enter the building or are brought here by special buses, go through customs and passport control.
- Passengers flying within the country and those arriving from other countries are processed at different terminals.
Registration upon arrival takes approximately 20 minutes, and, by the way, also occurs after departure.
What you need to know about Dabolim Airport?
After you check in, you go to baggage claim. You need to understand that this area is quite small, and there is often a queue. Finding luggage is difficult. This is taken advantage of by local employees who, for a nominal fee, will find and hand over your luggage to you without queuing. Here you decide for yourself whether to pay or not, one way or another, your suitcase will appear on the tape.
Another trick that is very common in Goa is the porter to the taxi. Such people construct their phrases to create an ambiguous impression that they are offering a taxi. Having received consent, they follow to the taxi drivers at the airport, who often also participate in the system and then take you to the right place at an increased rate. But upon reaching the car, the porter demands money for his services.
You can use a currency exchange office right at the airport. Rupees are very common in India, and in some places they won’t accept dollars or cards, so it’s best to have a supply of national cash with you. There is also a place where you can change to local telephone communication. You can immediately purchase it new map. To do this, provide the seller with:
- 2 photos;
- copy of visa;
- photocopier of passports.
The disadvantages of Dabolim include the lack of Wi-Fi and paid storage rooms.
