Golden Tulip Goa Candolim

Golden Tulip is a modern, upper-middle-range business and leisure hotel, with rooms and facilities spread out over two beige-colored four-story blocks. Reception services are located in a lobby with high ceilings and wooden beams, with lots of cream-colored faux-leather sofas and pretty turquoise-gray floors plus huge floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides that let in lots of light. There are a few paperbacks, newspapers, and tourism brochures laid out for guests, but this isn't a primary place for travelers to congregate. Instead, most travelers can be found poolside or hanging out on the grounds -- there's a particularly nice platform covered with grass and a few tables and chairs, plus a couple of covered swing benches. Like many of the hotels in the area, this property gets lots of Russian tourists as well as some guests from the United Kingdom and India.

The Golden Tulip is situated in Candolim, on a quiet back road that juts east from the main road that runs through town and behind the parking lot of another hotel (the Fortune Acron Regina). The property borders grassy fields, so it's quiet most of the day. The main road is touristy, with lots of bars and restaurants, and it takes about three or four minutes to reach on foot. Getting to the beach takes closer to 10 minutes. It's a 10-minute drive to Aguada Fort, located on the beach just south of the hotel. The drive to Calangute takes about the same amount of time in the opposite direction. Anjuna and the Goan capital city of Panaji are each a half-hour away by car. The international airport in Vasco de Gama takes closer to an hour to reach, traffic permitting. 

This hotel offers a total of 46 rooms along with six two-bedroom apartments. Rooms are spacious, starting at around 36 square meters (388 square feet). Superior Rooms come with either one king bed or two twin beds and have city views of the surrounding low-lying neighborhood buildings, while Deluxe Rooms look out over the pool and only have king bed options. Imperial Rooms are more or less the same as Deluxe units, but are slightly larger. Both Deluxe and Imperial units feature vaulted ceilings with exposed wooden beams The Apartments add kitchenettes with microwaves, toasters, induction stoves, and larger fridges. Each of these units has one king bed in the master bedroom and two twin beds in the second bedroom. Every unit has its own balcony furnished with chairs.

All have similar decor, with off-white tile floors, beige curtains, headboards, and sofas, dark-wood desks and cupboards. Throw cushions and bed runners add some color in hues of blue, green, or red. Amenities include flat-screen TVs, minibars with snacks, safes, and coffee- and tea-making facilities.  Wi-Fi is free, with a limit of one device per room (at a time) and there's a fee for extra devices. Bathrooms are predominantly cream-colored marble, with big glassed-in rainfall showers. Basic toiletries and hairdryers are provided.

At the heart of this vacation hotel is a large lagoon pool flanked by colorful shaded lounge chairs on one side and bordered by a few trees and plants. There's also a small kids' pool off that's shallow enough for toddlers to wade. Other family-friendly amenities include a large outdoor playground full of colorful play structures suitable for smaller kids, plus a game room with foosball and a pool table. The gym is compact, with a few cardio machines and some free weights. For business travelers, there's a single meeting room with a projector and a built-in sound system, with a maximum seating of 100 people, theater-style. There's a 24-hour restaurant, Aquatico, with Indian, Asian, and continental dishes available. The breakfast buffet is included in all room rates. Room service is available day and night. There's ample on-site car and motorbike parking.