Its summer time, the schools are shut, the children are running wild and the boss at work is susceptible to clearing that application for leave. The cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru empty and the hordes leave for their hometown or visit hill stations or a state like Goa. Goa has been attracting tourists from all over the world for decades. One should also not forget the swathes of tourists who come in from the rest of the country.
The figures available online revealed that in 2017, 68,95,234 domestic tourists visited the State. After a relative lull if one could call it that the number of domestic tourists visiting the State surged from 4,78,069 in April to 7,30,441 in May which was only dwarfed by the numbers generated in Nov and Dec. The authorities in the tourism department expect similar figures this year. Menino D’Souza, director, Dept of Tourism, Govt of India said the State always received a good tourist footfall during the summer vacations.
Mr D’Souza said “While tourists are thronging the beach belt for a splash in the water to beat the heat, there is a shift to the hinterland this year. Tourists have opted for a dip in the lakes and rivers in order to stay away from the blistering sun. The spice plantations, Bondla and other green locales are favourites. We witness a 12 to 15% rise in footfall during the summer and we expect to maintain this.”
The State attracts tourists from the neighbouring states like Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kolkata, Gujarat and from North India. The director said most of the tourists travelled by rail or bus though many tourists preferred travelling to Goa in private vehicles or chartered bus tours. The average stay ranges anywhere between three to a maximum of six days. There was, he said a large percentage of the tourist population visiting Goa for a short weekend break.
An executive at the Bogmallo Beach Resort echoed the sentiments when he said “ the bookings look promising and hopefully the summer would be hectic. The resort always attracts much interest from Delhi because they have their destination weddings here. The tourists from Delhi usually stay for 3 nights and 4 days.”
This season is marked also by very competitive pricing. Another senior executive at Hotel Manvins in Panjim claimed competition was so intense that it was really bad. He claimed a market aggregator had signed up hotels and bed and breakfast all over the State and brought down the price. Vacant flats outside Panjim he said were available for between Rs 800 and 900. Rooms at Calangute, he claimed had dropped from Rs 2500 to Rs 1200 to Rs 1400. In such a situation, he argued it did not make sense to stay in a hotel.
A market observer said there was always a difference between the winter and the summer rush. It was usually around 30% less than the winter rush but business was still good.
Business should be good and it should bring smiles to hoteliers when the monsoon commences and they can perhaps sit back and relax a bit before the monsoon rush begins. Now that is an entirely different story.
