Another tough year expected for Goa’s tourism industry

Ajit John

PANJIM: The Russian tourists could be that rare specimen this year too if early indications from that country are anything to go by. Of the remaining five tour operators responsible for flying in tourists, two operators tested the market with offers and the response was extremely poor. This is being attributed to the poor state of the Russian economy and the poor image of the state in that country.

Goa is a 50:50 destination for operators in Russia and the attention of these operators are directed at more popular destinations like Egypt, Turkey, Israel and Vietnam. The government in Vietnam is paying operators half of the hotel cost incurred by operators, Israel pays Euro 45 for each tourist brought into the country by operators, Turkey pays $8000 for each charter flight and Egypt has cancelled visa fees for Russians. 

When the Russian economy was doing well 7.5 million tourists had visited that country though there has been a 30% drop in figures recently and t is expected to dip further. 

Speaking of Goa Ekaterina Belyakova, Russian Information Centre said Goa could expect less than half of the Russian tourist this year given the trends in the Russian economy. 

She said “80% of the Russians visiting the state are middle class and poor and can only afford rooms for Rs 1000 or less, which explains the continuous search for cheaper accommodation for these tourists. Tour operators look at the customers for each destination very dispassionately and are not above cancelling destinations if they are not profitable. In 2013-14 approximately 2.5 lakh Russians came over in 2013-14 and the drop this year will be even more drastic”. 

The economic crisis has not helped matters. According to the “Intelligent Research for Growth” almost 47% of Russians refused to travel. Federal Migration Service also noted a significant reduction of passports issued: the total number of passports issued in January 2015 decreased by 44 % as compared to last year. 

Reducing number of Russian tourists has made a big impact for tourism industry of many countries. 35 % fewer Russians tourists visited last season. The problem for Goa is exacerbated by the number of negative articles in the Russian media. According to a influential website www.aif.ru at least 40,000 Russian tourists refused of booked trips to Goa.

Adviser of the Russian consulate in Mumbai Vikram Varma confidently predicts further reduction of Russian tourists flow in Goa next season. The website quoted him as saying the decreased interest of Russian tourists was caused not only by the high exchange rate and economic problems, but also with worsening crime situation involving foreign tourists, actively published in press.  

Articles on the unpleasantness experienced by Russian tourists in the state have been published in Russia. Headlines claiming that Russians are not popular in Goa have created an impression that they are generally not welcome has not helped.

The state government is aware of these realities but has not done anything to change perceptions in Goa. A decision was taken to sponsor members of the Russian media for a three day visit to the state. Articles were expected to be carried over a period of six months. However till date no action has been taken by the concerned authorities.