SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2024
Team Herald
PANJIM: Tourism Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar’s statement insisting that Goa looks for ‘richest’ tourists has not gone down well with the travel and tourism stakeholders. However the stakeholders too claim that they need quality tourists to maintain harmony between tourism and State’s tradition and culture.
HowPresident of Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) Nilesh Shah is of the view that Goa needs well-behaved tourists. “We have infrastructure to cater for all types of tourists. If we need high end tourists, there are 5 star hotels but what we require is well behaved tourists. We need to bring in changes to ensure tourists entering are disciplined and well behaved, obey the law and not resort to any nuisances,” he said.
“We get working class category of tourists. Goa is the next Singapore and Bangkok where people save money to visit the place. A lot of spas, casinos and nightlight are only what attracts many visitors, and this is not good for Goa in the long run,” one of the major stakeholders told Herald at the condition of anonymity.
The businessman apprehends that if the present trend continues, Goa will completely lose its original tradition and culture. The existence of tourism alike Singapore and Bangkok has discouraged quality travelers from making their holiday plans in Goa. “We need to preserve the culture and overall hospitality sector in such a way that affluent tourists get attracted to this coastal State. Places like Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Kerala fair much better than us because visitors don’t mind spending lakhs of rupees for pure high class tourism service,” he said.
Ralph D’Souza, another veteran in the hospitality sector, also emphasized that Goa needs to create a situation to draw qualitative than quantitative tourists. “First of all, we cannot keep anybody out and cannot get anybody to Goa as we want. If we need to bring tourists of a particular type, we need to create infrastructure and facilities that pleases and attracts them. Unfortunately, the charm that Goa had has been compromised keeping quality tourists at bay,” he said speaking to Herald.
D’Souza, who has also been a past president of the TTAG, said that decisions without understanding the requirements of ‘richest’ tourists have proved a doom.
“In the present circumstances high-end tourists are moving to extreme north and extreme south rather than spending time in the overdeveloped/concretized hubs like Calangute. At the end of the day, a destination gets the tourists it deserves,” he said adding, “You have to create an ambience that they like but we have gone the wrong way. We have put the cart before the horse. We should find out what they want and create accordingly.”
Another tourism professional, operating poplar hotel chains, also voiced similar opinion. “We get feedback from our visitors comparing our service to other states. When we are in a competition, we need to improve time and again to keep up with the trend. We cannot speak about being number one in tourism and looking for high end tourists, but do nothing on ground. The law should be stringent to book errant tourists. Moreover, we need to ensure that infrastructure is created in such a way that luxury tourists prefer Goa,” he said.
The TTAG has urged that proper signage about dos and don’ts should be visible across the State so that instances like cooking in the open and drinking on the beaches and/or littering on the beaches and main public areas are addressed. “Tourist police should also be stationed at major poins… These challenges can be addressed,” said Shah.
----
Hotel stay not at par with high influx of tourists, regrets GHRA prez
PANJIM: The occupancy rate in the hotels across the State is at 70-80 per cent, a not so impressive count, even as the State is witnessing huge influx of domestic arrivals. The budgeted accommodation, particularly in the coastal belt, is taking over the craze of hotel stay.
“The current hotel occupancy is 70-75 percent. Many guest houses and apartments are available which a hit among tourists travelling in groups are. They prefer budgeted places. Nevertheless, the industry will do well as we expect a good season in the coming days being long weekend during Diwali festival, up till first week of January,” President of Goa Hotel and Restaurant Association Gaurish Dhond said.
The Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) has also said that though the season is good, occupancy in hotels and flights are between 70-80 percent. “Coming Diwali season will be better. We are also expecting first charter on December 13 from UK. We are expected to get huge charter tourists from December 2021 to March 2022 mainly from UK and Russia,” TTAG President Nilesh Shah said. He confirmed that bookings have already begun.
