article: Something odd is going on this year in Goa - and it has to do with the rows of empty sunbeds. With the rouble in trouble, Russians are freezing at home, rather than sizzling in India's flop-in-the-sun western state. Sorry to be mean, but it's all too good to be true for the rest of us. Blissful: Agonda Beach is one of the many relaxed stretches of shoreline along the edge of Goa . The beaches are more relaxed, the restaurants and bars quieter, the accessories less shiny. My friend Alex and I find direct flights for £348 return through Thomson. On arrival, we head for Ashvem Beach, in the north, for three nights at Yab Yum Resorts. Our seaside accommodation, with en-suite bathroom, is chic and tucked away in palm trees. We're paying £49 each for three nights. You won't find those prices in the Caribbean. On the beach, Goans peddling pedicures and sarongs smile and tell us we are 'very pale', adding: 'You won't stay that way for long.' Even without the Russians, the beach is a hive of activity. There are yoga and Pilates classes, massage sessions, trinket sellers, football kick-arounds, Frisbee games, joggers. Watching the sunset on Arambol Beach - Ashvem's neighbour - is spectacular, after which we take a ten-minute ride on a tuk-tuk taxi back to our hotel. Goa has 11 hours of sunshine a day at this time of year. And it retains something of its European flavour, a leftover from its days as a Portuguese colony for 450 years. One of its greatest assets is the food. The ball's in your court: Goa has a famously relaxed ambience, and is a real favourite with tourists . You can eat famously here for no more than £20 a head. After a few days in the north, we take a two-and-a-half-hour taxi (£27) to Palolem in the south and fetch up at Ciaran's Camp - a smattering of beach cottages costing £50 a night. It's altogether livelier here, with music blaring and enough nightlife to keep the most earnest raver happy. Agonda, a ten-minute drive away, is gloriously serene, with one solitary bar. Its genial owner looks a little downcast. His displeasure is our fortune. Which is to say that he hopes the rouble revives and the Russians return. Thomson (0203 451 2688, www.thomson.co.uk) and Thomas Cook (01733 224 800, www.thomascook.com) both fly direct to Goa from £336 return. A standard cottage at Yab Yum Resorts (0091 832 651 0392, www.yabyumresorts.com) costs from £35 a night B&B, and at Ciaran's (0091 832 264 3477, www.ciarans.com) from £40 a night.
highlights: Goa is India's smallest state but one of its most popular travel destinations .
  It offers bargain beach breaks (and luxury too) in the west of the country .
  Weak Rouble means there are currently fewer Russian visitors than usual .
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