Reviews from our community
10 reviews
5 hotel reviews
8 helpful votes
As part of a group of 6 friends who recently spent 3 days at Casa Jorge, I have compiled a joint review of our experience.
RESPONSIVE HOSTS: Although Georg and Ivana were not in India, they responded quickly to queries or concerns and provided us with detailed information by email. They permitted 2 of us to check in as early as 9 am and graciously allowed us to use the private pool at another of their houses, as the one in Marshall Retreat was shut during the monsoon.
LOCATION: South Goa is so peaceful at this time of the year and Betalbatim is especially far from the madding crowd. The pre-paid taxi from the airport to Betalbatim cost Rs 650. (Note: Casa Jorge is shown incorrectly on TripAdvisor. To find the right location, search for Marshall Retreat on Google Maps). The complex has day and night watchmen so it is a safe place. The owners put us in touch with Rocky, a local taxi driver who dropped us to the airport for Rs 800. Rocky also has a Honda scooter that he rents out for about Rs 300 per day.
The weather was excellent and the Betalbatim beach was almost empty; there were of course, no shacks. Casa Jorge is walking distance from the Betalbatim village and restaurants like Amigueiro, Martin’s Corner or Valanka Fast Food (famous for their sausages).
THE COOK: Vishwanath aka Vishu is a brilliant cook. As promised in the TripAdvisor overview, he is an expert in a variety of cuisines and conjured up 3 delicious meals for us.(He will do the shopping based on a mutually agreed menu; we paid for the ingredients + his charge of Rs 1000).
AMENITIES: In the villa, we had access to a functional kitchen with a fridge, a drinking water filter, a microwave oven, a washing machine, cooking & serving vessels / plates / cutlery / glasses, etc., a television with cable TV, a library with a fairly large and eclectic collection of books, a covered garage, and most importantly a living-dining space where the 6 of us could lounge. Casa Jorge was thus a far better choice for us than taking separate rooms in a hotel.
There were several points of concern though. The owners had warned us to expect power cuts so we weren’t too surprised to see frequent voltage drops and short periods without electricity. The air-conditioner in the living room did not work, in spite of technicians ‘repairing’ it for 3 whole days. The fridge did not work for 2 of the 3 days (the technicians managed to repair this) and the water filter stopped working on Day 3. We were unable to use the WiFi on the first day as we did not have the right password. The cook was using one bicycle and the tires on the second one were flat so we didn’t get to use either. The toilets lacked health faucets (or mugs) and the water pressure in the showers was low.
The saving grace was that the owners were quick to respond to our emails and tried to fix what they could from a distance. From my interaction with Georg and Ivana, I expect that they will rectify these problems soon. I have to add that when we contacted them about 2 of us extending our stay by a day, they allowed us to do so without any extra charge, to compensate us for these issues!
To conclude, Casa Jorge is a good choice for a group who want to stay together in a villa in South Goa, with tasty home cooked food as a bonus.
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1 review
We stayed here for 5 days in total. Overall stay was nice however some issues made me rate it lower than what I'd have without these issues.
Pros:
Prompt and friendly service from the caretaker and owner (who was in touch solely over messages)
Secured villas
Clean villa
Proximity to beach and restaurants
Cons:
Improper guidance by caretaker when we wanted to find the place. It's in Marshall Retreat. However the mention of Coconut Groove confused us big time and took us an additional 30 mins to find the place.
Maybe the season but frequent power fluctuations deprived us of air conditioning and this was quite inconvenient in such a humid place
Backup generator doesn't work for more than an hour
Wifi was not in a working condition
Weird and spooky art in the house scared few of my friends
Hanging musical instruments were somehow more spooky than artistic
Lack of some basic food utilities like coffee, sugar, salt etc.
To conclude, some of the cons might not be the fault of the owner or the caretaker. However, they could have avoided these like having a better generator or at least warning us of power fluctuations during the season instead of arguing all is fine.
| How easy was it to book the property? | How helpful were the directions to the property? |
| How easy was key pickup/access to the property? | Overall condition of the property |
| Bedding & mattresses | Kitchen & utensils |
| Bathroom cleanliness | Other facilities & amenities |
| Service |
| Friends getaway |
- Was the property as advertised?
- Was it a good value for the price paid?
- Was your security deposit returned on time?
We have not provided any foodstuff whatsoever because that is not what is agreed.
This year the electricity interruptions caused by extremely intensive monsoon were more frequent than usual in all Goa. The overloading of the generator causes operational stoppage after 2 hours. Normally guests especially of Indian origin are well aware of the climate situation in Goa.
The decoration of the place with original oil paintings and the collection of musical instruments have been so far hugely admired by all guests and is sufficiently visible in the photos not to get any surprise.
3 reviews
4 helpful votes
The house is perfectly located for both traveling around Goa and for enjoying the nearby beach, which is nicely clean and with few friendly shacks to have some food and drinks.
Everything in the house was just perfect, including internet connection, airconditioning, kitchen etc. Furnishing is nice and decorative.
We really enjoyed our stay, thanks.
| How easy was it to book the property? | How helpful were the directions to the property? |
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| Friends getaway | Older travelers |
| Families with young children |
- Was the property as advertised?
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6 reviews
6 helpful votes
Perfect location somewhere in the middle between the beach and center of Betalbatim, everything (beach, shacks, restaurants, fitness, stores ...) very easily reachable within comfortable walking distance (up to 10 min). Very nice, comfortable, spacious house furnished with all necessary stuff. Large outdoor swimming pool at disposal. And, moreover, but on the first place, very kind, careful and helpful owners prepared to assist you anytime. We highly appreciate our stay at Casa Jorge. Prepared to repeat our stay anytime in the future!
1 review
4 helpful votes
We stayed for a week from end of December to 5th of January during new years eve.
The house is very nice, tastefully decorated and very comfortable. Everything is available. No noise at all, clean and safe. There is a guard at the gate day and night. We enjoyed the service of the cook, who prepared breakfast and dinner for us, indian as well as continental dishes and everything with fantastic taste.
It was totally relaxing. In the morning a short jump in the pool, in the afternoon enjoying the beach. Some half day trips to the locations around we did. Old Goa, Pandolim city, spice farm, regional markets, all reachable within almost one hour.
It is an exceptionally nice location. Only a short walk to the beautiful beach which was absolutely not crowded even it was peak season in goa. The people at the beach huts are very friendly and serve you drinks and foot at your beach lies.
Conclusion: A place to which we will return with high expectations
3 reviews
4 helpful votes
Perfectly relaxing enviroment, tranquil and exotic. The house is very well furnished and it takes only a few minutes walk to get to the beach. I had great time there, enjoying Goa and working on my literary endeavors.
1 review
5 helpful votes
We really liked our stay here. The beach is circa ten minutes from the house and the stroll is mostly all the way in the palm shade. The house itself is tastefully furnished and most importantly equipped according to Western needs. A permanent guard the front gate of the apartment complex and backup generator in case of electric outage are very nice bonuses.
Nearby hotels easily provide opportunity for additional recreational activities. We found there some interesting tours and excursions, for example to so called Nights Market - a market place opend exclucsively in the night till the two o'clock in the morning.
I can definitely recommand this housing as ideal main base for your adventure or place of relaxation.
| How easy was it to book the property? | How helpful were the directions to the property? |
| How easy was key pickup/access to the property? | Overall condition of the property |
| Bedding & mattresses | Kitchen & utensils |
| Bathroom cleanliness | Other facilities & amenities |
| Friends getaway | Older travelers |
- Was the property as advertised?
- Would you recommend the location of this property?
- Was it a good value for the price paid?
- Did the property offer wi-fi/internet access?
- Was your security deposit returned on time?
