We stayed there 3/4 years ago and were very pleased with everything about it. Do not know what if any refurbishment has been carried out since then.
We were advised to request a room overlooking the pool and garden area.
We forwarded our request by e-mail and this was confirmed by the hotel. We were also offered to be collected from the airport in the hotels Jeep, which they charged at the normal taxi rate.

the only refurb I saw last year was to the rooms which used to be reception.
all the other rooms I saw were the same as the previous 4-5 years, but a bit more tired.
As far as upgrading,personally I wouldn't bother for the amount of the upgrade. However maybe your standards are higher than mine!
Perhaps it is worth asking how much when you get there as it may well be cheaper than booking before you go.

we have stayed at the phoenix twice -2007 and 2008. first time requested rooms with balcony but they are so small not worth bothering with. second time asked for rooms over reception - no balcony but much larger. both times we were more than happy with our rooms - we have been to goa 4 times and would return to this hotel but want to go for 3 weeks this time and its a bit expensive so looking at other hotels. we did ask about upgrading to the new rooms last time but it was very expensive and we didn't think it was worth it considering how much time we spent in our rooms.we thought it was the best hotel out of the hotels we had stayed in-goan heritage, and neelams the grand and would return if we could get a good deal. we have found that when new hotels come up they have great deals.