The festive season is in full swing. The children have received their gifts from Santa Claus. There is revelry all around. Laughter and happiness is in the air. But is everyone happy? The tourism industry is the largest industry in the State that generates a great deal of revenue and importantly jobs. How did the industry fare during this, the most important time of the year for the industry?
For Savio Messias, a hotelier based in the south, the season he said was very good. When asked if the foreign tourists were coming in numbers he said that he had a lot of bookings but getting a visa was a problem. Savio said, “It has been quite difficult and many have been rejected. They are potential tourists from Europe. From countries like Germany, Holland and the UK and yes some Americans too.” He said many applications were rejected. Others were delayed with too many questions being asked or being asked for documentation like proof of booking or proof of an earlier visa to India that was given. He said it was taking two months to get a visa. He said those who applied for an e-visa were not facing problems. He went on to say that many countries like Thailand, Sri Lanka and Vietnam were giving free visas. They were giving free visas to Indians too. This meant a lot of people were switching destinations which was affecting Goa. He ended by saying the domestic tourists were great but the scenario could have been better.
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Jack Sukhija who runs a premium property in Panjim said business had been good with 55 percent coming from the domestic market with the rest coming from international tourists from Uk, France, NRI’s in America and Sri Lankans. He said he was getting his full rate even though they had increased rates by 15 percent from Dec 23. When asked if his property was full, he said it was nearly full and it would be on December 31 with last minute bookings like every year.
Gavin Alvares, GM of a resort in Calangute, was candid when he said business was good but overall there was a 15 percent dip in business over last year. He said with free visas being made available for Indians visiting Thailand, many had decided to go there. The airfare he said was the same. Gavin said, “We cater to the domestic market and we interact with them at great length and they say they prefer to go to Thailand. We as a resort are doing well. We did normal business like last year and importantly for the rates we quoted. We are full for the New Year weekend. We are now at 98 percent and for the December 30-31 and January 1 we are full.”
The President of TTAG had a lot to say about the state of the industry. Nilesh Shah said the market was a bit subdued when compared to last year. He said airlines and hotels had reduced their pricing. These industries, he said, worked on the concept that the earlier you booked, the cheaper it was. The number of flights, he pointed out, had increased in the meantime and that meant the pricing had not really changed that much. Neighbouring countries, he said, were now giving out free visas. Plus he said there was a Goa fatigue factor which could not be discounted. Nilesh said after there was a surge in the number of tourists who visited Goa after the lockdown and many people had visited Goa on a number of occasions. So many had decided to try other places. With regards to the drop in foreign travellers he said the war like situation in Eastern Europe meant foreigners were not coming. Earlier he said there were 6 flights a day but now it had been reduced drastically to six flights a week. War, he said, had affected everything. Even the Israelis were not coming now he said. Goa, he said, had received just 35 percent of the foreigners who visited last year. Then there was the cost of internal transport in Go which was very high. People, he said, were looking at value for money now. He however said that on the last day of the year, all the verticals would have business and would make the
most of it.
The Indian tourist drives a hard bargain is a cry from all hoteliers in the state. Ganesh Kalangutkar, the GM of a hotel in Vagator, said business was good from December 22 and it would stay like that till December 31. After that he said business would be poor. He said there was a lot of negotiating in the rates with the tourists who came from Delhi, Mumbai, Gujarat and Bengaluru. The average stay was for 3 to 4 nights. He expressed the hope that business would improve in the New Year.
However, for Ulhas Navilcar of a hotel in Panjim, business was great. He said they were full right through December. He said since the hotel was in the city all their clients were domestic tourists. When asked about the rates they charged, he said, payment was made online and they were getting the rates they quoted. Good for him.
Similar sentiments were expressed by Shane Fernandes who oversaw Hotel operations at a property in Benaulim. He said business was good with domestic, foreign and charter tourists staying with him. He said they were getting business at the prices they wanted so it was good.
However these sentiments don’t seem to be the norm. Rakesh Thakur who oversees a property in Mandrem said business was low when compared to the previous year. With a large percentage of their guests being foreigners and with not many charters coming in it was tough. The numbers he said were minimal. The domestic crowd from Gujarat and Delhi preferred to go to Pattaya in Thailand because it was cheaper than coming to Goa. Free visa offers from Vietnam, Maldives and other countries coupled with the rates on offer made Goa expensive. He said every year there were high end parties in the area but this year the government had not given permissions. Big artists were not coming in so the crowds would not come. The hotel was not full and many hotels in Mandrem, he said, were facing the same fate. Domestic tourists he said negotiate very hard and since there were so many hotels in the area, they would all get rooms. The usual trend he said was to hike up rates around this time with Rs 10,000 being the price last time and this time on the 31st it would be Rs 5000. He said the season so far had been poor and hoped it would pick up next month.
One hopes the industry sees good times because the fate of several Goans is intertwined with this industry.
