Navigating Diu Islands

Hello Fellow Travellers! Here's our second post on Diu after our Discovers in Diu where we shared our experience of trekking through the Islands on Day 1 of our journey. However, Diu being such a beautiful place, not everything could be covered in a single blog post! Here we share our experiences regarding navigating Diu and a few other aspects as promised in our previous post!. 

How to Reach Diu?

The easiest way to Diu if coming from Ahmedabad is to take the overnight bus from Ahmedabad which departs at around 11:30 pm from the Paldi Bus depot and reaches Diu around 8:30 am in the morning, just in time for a slight early check-in. Most of the buses are non A.C. However a couple of A.C. buses are available for around 500 Rs/person. There are no Volvo options. We highly recommend to choose the sleeper A.C bus for a comfortable ride. Our onward bus was of Patel Tours and Travels. The bus condition wasn't great and one may describe the ride as everything except comfortable. The only good part was that it reached us Diu on time which was a breather!

The return A.C. buses leave Diu at 7.30 pm (Non A.C buses leave at 7:00pm). Our return journey bus operator was  "Shri Jalaram Viral". The bus was highly comfortable and we could hardly feel our journey as we dozed off early after a tiring travel day. The bus also reached us Ahmedabad as early as 5:15 AM. In short, it was an effortlessly comfortable ride.

The roads from Ahmedabad to Diu are quite ordinary and we only hope the highways are upgraded to make this destination even more popular amongst tourists. Alternatively, travellers can choose to Ahmedabad - Somnath - Diu if enough time is on hand, as that route has good roads. This way one can also visit the famous Somnath temple pilgrimage. The distance between Somnath and Diu is around 80 kms and the route may take more than 2 hours.

Nagoa Beach in Diu - The Commercial Tourist Hotspot

Nagoa Beach post sunset

Water Sport activities viewed at a distance at Nagoa Beach

In our last post on Diu we had promised to reveal where we found the majority of tourists flocking in Diu? - The Nagoa Beach! The Nagoa Beach has undoubtedly turned in a commercial beach destination. The moment we reached the beach it reminded us of the famous Calangute beach of Goa. Although the beach itself is not that great - there are green patches in some places and cleanlinesss may well be an issue for some cleanliness-cravings souls - but it is the people and activities that makes this beach quite interesting. There are recreational options like Para-Sailing, banana boat ride, bumpy ride among others. There aren't any great beach bed options but one can find beach shacks to grab a quick bite or to satiate the masala corn taste buds. The nearby beach resorts have converted this otherwise ordinary beach into a great beach party destination. In fact the famous "Festa De Diu" Diu beach festival is located extremely near to this beach. 

As a side note, don't get surprised to find highly inebriated men caressing the beach sand sitting clueless on the beach in shorts with visible lack of clarity in thought and balance! Quite amusing. It speaks volumes of the role played by this Island to quench the thirst for liquor of people from the Dry State (Gujarat)!

A few QuickTips:

1. It is highly suggested to get a scooter on rent to visit Nagoa Beach if one staying at any place near the Diu Bus Stand. (We stayed at Hotel Khushi International - a stone's throw from the bus stand) Enjoy the beautiful and scenic ride from bus stand to Nagoa beach (around 8 kms) where one can even witness the cycle lanes on the sides of the main road. Catch a glimpse of the same in our short Youtube video ( Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEmeygiNsGo )

2. Laid-back tourists desirous of enjoying a purely relaxing beach holiday can opt to stay at any of the beach resorts either at Nagoa beach or Goghla Beach. However there's a catch. The Goghla beach is not actually on Diu Island. It is a beach on the coast of Gujarat arriving before crossing the Diu beach and reaching Diu Island. However, the Goghla Beach area currently falls under the Diu administration and not Gujarat State although outside the Island which is commoner's term means the nearest beach with no restriction on booze!

3. Don't miss the Naida Caves, The Diu Fort, Diu Museum and Chakratirth Beach. Read our Discoveries in Diu to know more!

Diu Fort - Walk Through the Entrance

Diu Fort Entrance Gate

Diu Random Park

The historic St.Paul's Church Side view

Beach at the Diu Fort