A carpenter, a painter and a double-door fridge: getting Rivara ready for guests
Before the first guest, there was a carpenter, a painter and a long list: a kitchen equipped down to the salt and pepper, a washing machine, and a fridge chosen with Goa in mind.
On this page
In short
- Getting Rivara ready took a carpenter and a painter, and a 650 sq ft studio in Siolim equipped for real stays, not just for photographs.
- I equipped the whole kitchen: a Prestige induction cooktop, a microwave, a kettle and coffee, a sandwich griller, RO drinking water, pots and pans, crockery and cutlery.
- I chose a double-door fridge, because a single-door one isn't a good idea for Goa.
- A fully automatic washing machine on the balcony, an iron, a desk with 75 Mbps Wi-Fi and housekeeping four days a week make long stays of 28 nights or more easy.
- Every guest is welcomed by a note from me, framed in the hallway.
Choosing a home is one decision. Getting it ready for guests is a hundred small ones. At Rivara they came down to a carpenter, a painter, a kitchen equipped down to the salt and pepper, a washing machine, and a fridge with two doors, because a single-door one isn't a good idea for Goa.
Here's what it took, and why. If you're setting up a holiday home in Goa yourself, it's also the list I'd hand you. Why I chose this studio in the first place is its own story: why I chose Siolim.
A carpenter and a painter
Some of the work at Rivara is the kind a listing photograph never shows. I worked with a carpenter and a painter, because a small studio only works when every surface earns its place and the walls are fresh enough to disappear behind the view.
What they left behind is quiet on purpose. The walls are plain white, and the colour comes from everything else: deep green velvet on the headboard and the sofa, walnut on the nightstand, the TV console and the bathroom vanity, olive curtains, and crisp white linen on the bed.
A kitchen you can cook a real meal in
A studio kitchenette can easily be a kettle and good intentions. I wanted guests to be able to cook properly, so I equipped the whole kitchen, down to the oil, salt and pepper on the shelf.
Goa is a place to eat out, but it's also a place to shop: fish, fruit, bread from the village bakery, whatever the market has that day. A kitchen that works means you can bring it home and cook it. For where to shop, see markets in Goa, and for what to look for, what to eat in Goa.
| For | What's there |
|---|---|
| Cooking | A Prestige induction cooktop, pots and pans, oil, salt and pepper |
| Quick meals | A microwave and a sandwich griller |
| Mornings | A kettle and coffee |
| Water | RO drinking water, from a purifier on the kitchen wall |
| The table | Plates, bowls, cups, glasses and cutlery |
| Keeping things cold | A double-door fridge with its own freezer |
Why the fridge has two doors
The fridge is the decision I'd defend at the greatest length. I chose a double-door one, because a single-door fridge isn't a good idea for Goa.
Goa is warm all year and humid for much of it, and a fridge here works hard. It has to keep the water cold, make the ice, hold the fruit from the market and the fish from the morning, and still find room for last night's leftovers. With the freezer behind its own door, the cold stays where it's needed.
It's the kind of thing a guest never notices, unless it's wrong. That's most of what getting a home ready is.
A washing machine, and the rest of a long stay
A washing machine is the difference between a holiday and living somewhere for a while. Rivara's is fully automatic and sits at the far end of the balcony, and there's an iron too. Beach towels, monsoon clothes, a month of work shirts: it takes all of them.
The rest of the studio is set up for staying, not just visiting. There's a desk by the window with 75 Mbps Wi-Fi, air conditioning and a ceiling fan, room-darkening blinds, an open wardrobe with a full-length mirror, and housekeeping from 9 AM to 3 PM, four days a week. Stays of 28 nights or more are welcome, and I've written about working from Goa for anyone planning one.
The small things guests notice
Then there are the things every guest feels: white towels rolled on a walnut shelf in the hallway, shampoo and body wash by the rain shower, a hair dryer, warm reading lights over the bed, a Marshall speaker for the evening, and self check-in, so you can arrive at your own pace.
And there's a note. Every guest is welcomed by one from me, framed in the hallway. It's the smallest thing in the studio, and it says what the rest of the list is for.
What I'd tell anyone setting up a holiday home in Goa
If you're getting a home ready for guests in Goa, this is the short version of everything above.
- 1Get a double-door fridge. A single-door one isn't a good idea for Goa.
- 2Equip the kitchen fully. Induction, a microwave, a kettle, RO drinking water, real pots and pans, and the salt and pepper.
- 3Put in a washing machine. Anyone staying more than a few days will use it.
- 4Give the Wi-Fi a number, and a desk to go with it. Guests who work will look for both.
- 5Plan for the monsoon. The showers arrive quickly, so think about the windows, the balcony door and anything left outside.
- 6Show every room, and say what the home isn't. If it's a river view rather than a sea view, say so before anyone books.
A guest arrives to a made bed, a cold fridge and a note in the hallway. Everything on this list happens before that, so that nothing else has to.
Questions people ask
Everything you need to cook a real meal: a Prestige induction cooktop, a microwave, a double-door fridge with a freezer, a kettle and coffee, a sandwich griller, RO drinking water, pots and pans, oil, salt and pepper, and plates, bowls, cups, glasses and cutlery.
Because a single-door fridge isn't a good idea for Goa. It's warm all year and humid for much of it, so a fridge works hard, and a freezer behind its own door keeps the water, the ice and the day's shopping properly cold.
Yes, a fully automatic one on the balcony, and an iron. It makes long stays easy, and stays of 28 nights or more are welcome.
Yes. There's a desk and chair by the window and Wi-Fi at 75 Mbps. I've written about working from Goa for anyone planning a longer stay.
Start with what guests use every day: a double-door fridge, a fully equipped kitchen with RO drinking water, a washing machine, good linen, a desk with fast Wi-Fi, and air conditioning with a fan. Then add the small things, like towels on a shelf and a note in the hallway.
Sources and checks
Opening days, prices and seasonal rules change. I check them before every update; please confirm anything time-sensitive before you go.
