Another year, another dash for rooms...

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We searched and searched and searched. Man, it's difficult to get a room in Goa now, and impossible for the weekend you're planning to spend there sometime between Christmas 2006 and New Year 2007. Didn't you notice, silly "" that one week is crazily sold out every year.

So what do you do if you've set your heart on winding down the year on the beach? This is what friends/colleagues say (sarcastically, in case you failed to notice): "Pitch a tent up on a beach and chill, man."

As advice goes, it's probably the soundest byte you're going to get. With not a room in sight, it isn't a bad option. some might even say it's downright romantic, so what if you have to scramble behind the bushes in the morning for you know what.

Nevertheless, a tent on the beach, balmy weather, the breeze flowing through the front flaps right next to the shack that does the most divine crabs "" so okay, it might actually be a slice of heaven.

On the downside, not everyone is adventurous. They want a room, no matter how modest. For them, a suggestion from an old friend from Goa, Atish Antonio Fernandes, a tour operator when he's in Goa (which is all the time) "" land up in Goa, hire a cab and go hotel tramping.

"I've seen people invariably find a room that way. You ask a travel agent for rooms and he will check 10-12 hotels that he knows about. You go on you own and you are bound to find a room, even though it may not be up to your expectations," he says.

But how does it matter if you get a two-star room or a five-star one, except that you pay more nosh for luxury that's hardly necessary when all you can think of are chilli prawns by the sea and a tan in the bargain.

Not to forget that this is high-high season in Goa, so all rooms are at least double their high season price. Which means you could end up paying Rs 15,000-20,000 a night for a 4-5 star hotel. Makes even the tent seem attractive.

The best places to go room hunting, Fernandes suggests, are Baga, Calangute, Anjuna and Morjim, which offer a host of budget category, neat and clean rooms (don't expect anything fancy in these places).

Yet, this is where those beach parties all are! Every shack on these beaches could have its own party on (no, you don't need an invitation!).

Go get your self a place to sit, order your king fish, and you're part of the party! Else there are the high-voltage clubs "" Titos and Mambos at Baga, and Club Cabana at Arpora near Calangute beach, where you pay Rs 2,000-3,000 just to get in.

Alternately, you could try to rent an apartment at Siolim. Check on the Net for good apartment deals. I found a one-bedroom apartment near Arpora for Rs 900 a night; another in Candolim for Rs 600 a night (a steal!); a two-bedroom house in Bambolim for Rs 10,000 a night; and a one-bedroom flat in Vasco da Gama for Rs 8,000 a night (these are all gone by now "" I know).

If you'd rather have a contact do it for you, call Fernandes on (0832) 242035354, or Prashant on (0)9326113063. Remember: you owe me one.