A small town clustered around the Mount (Alto) is Mapusa. It forms the hub of north Goa with an even blend of residential and commercial establishments. Its 13 kms away from Panaji, a sharing taxi or a bus will take you there. Known popularly for its Friday market, people from all over Goa come here to buy and sell their wares. You will also get plants and saplings, ready spiced Goan pork sausages, dried fish and prawns, clothing, junk jewelry, and the famous country liquor, all sold at the most reasonable prices you could possibly find.

Mapusa market was first heard in the 1580 by a Dutch Chronicler, who even described it as the "Bazaar Grande". The popularity of Mapusa as a market center grew out of ancient festivals in honour of the God Kanakeshwar Baba, venerated at the Bodgeshwar Temple. The festivals attracted large crowds seeking to fulfill their individual wishes, which needed pots and oil lamps as offerings to propitiate the Gods. Both Mapusa's location at the hub of commercial activity and its proximity to a place of religious pilgrimage have caused the Mapusa market to grow to its current size and scope.