Ancestral Goa is a high kitsch park with a series of sculptures depicting traditional Goan lifestyle. Follow the numbered trail to the mysterious ‘Big Foot’, a footprint in the rock that you can touch and make a wish on, and Sant Mirabai, the largest laterite sculpture in India.
Ancestral Goa
South Goa
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
11.89 MILES
Famous throughout the Roman Catholic world, the imposing Basilica de Bom Jesus contains the tomb and mortal remains of St Francis Xavier, the so-called…
12.06 MILES
At over 76m long and 55m wide, the cavernous Sé Cathedral is the largest church in Asia. Building commenced in 1562, on the orders of King Dom Sebastiao…
Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
14.96 MILES
Panaji’s spiritual, as well as geographical, centre is this elevated, pearly white church, built in 1619 over an older, smaller 1540 chapel, and stacked…
6.29 MILES
Artist and restorer Victor Hugo Gomes first noticed the slow extinction of traditional objects – from farming tools to kitchen utensils to altarpieces –…
6.81 MILES
Braganza House, built in the 17th century and stretching along one whole side of Chandor’s village square, is the biggest Portuguese mansion of its kind…
15.81 MILES
Opened to the public in 2012 as a cultural centre, Reis Magos Fort overlooks the narrowest point of the Mandovi River estuary, making it easy to…
10.56 MILES
About 8km southeast of Chandor is the busy small town of Quepem. Here the Palácio do Deão, the renovated 18th-century palace built by the town’s founder,…
21.44 MILES
Situated in the far southeastern corner of the Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary, Goa’s most impressive waterfall splashes down just west of the border…
Nearby South Goa attractions
0.03 MILES
Loutolim is home to a number of impressive Portuguese mansions but just one, Casa Araujo Alvares, opposite Ancestral Goa, is officially open to the public…
2.54 MILES
Built in 1580 atop an old Muslim fort, the Rachol Seminary and Church stands near the village of Raia, 7km from Margao. It’s not officially open to…
3.58 MILES
Surrounded by forest and paddy fields, the Shri Shantadurga Temple is one of the most famous shrines in Goa and is consequently packed with those who come…
3.79 MILES
Though undoubtedly one of Ponda’s less-attractive temples, Shri Ramnath is notable for the impressive and extravagant silver screen on the door to the…
4.27 MILES
Only 4km outside Ponda, and a stone’s throw from Naguesh Temple, is the relatively uninspiring Mahalaxmi Temple. The goddess Mahalaxmi, looked upon as the…
4.35 MILES
In the village of Bandode is the small and peaceful Naguesh Temple. The most striking part of the temple is the ancient water tank, with its overhanging…
4.4 MILES
The Safa Shahouri Masjid, Goa’s oldest remaining mosque, is on Ponda’s northern outskirts. Built by Bijapuri ruler Ali Adil Shah in 1560, it was…
4.69 MILES
The most famous of the traditional old Portuguese mansions in Largo de Igreja is the grand 1790 Sat Burnzam Ghor. Originally, as its name suggests, there…