Gross mismanagement has killed Goa’s golden goose of tourism: Stakeholders

PANJIM: Once known as a paradise on earth and connoisseur of all eyes, Goa is fast losing its charm it once commanded due to its mismanagement by the political leadership over the years. This has adversely impacted the quality of tourism Goa used to boast of once upon a time and has literally killed the Golden Goose, tourism stakeholders lamented. 

This was the overwhelming sentiment of tourism stakeholders in a two-part panel discussion on Herald TV and available on cable, and all social media handles of Herald TV and O Heraldo.

Tourism Industry in Goa is taking a beating every year. The government is trying its best to attract high spending tourists, but succeeds in getting only low-end spenders. The exploitation of Goa’s pristine nature and its brand as a favourite destination to maximise revenue collection has only made the matters worse.

This is the reason why the air fares to Goa are still very low and hotel rooms are not packed, despite Christmas and New Year round the corner. Speaking at the weekly Herald TV debate Point-Counterpoint, the experts pointed out the gaps in the system which have led to the decline of tourist quality in Goa.

“As everyone’s aware that post-Covid, Goa was the only destination and for three years, people could not travel internationally as much as they would have liked to. Now things have opened up and with a lot of free Visas being offered to Indian travellers, so obviously it’s easier to travel out. A lot of people who’ve been traveling to Goa frequently for the last three years have sort of probably have had a boredom setting in. They are looking at options of going abroad,” Saurabh Khanna, General Manager, The Park Hotels, said.

The beach shacks, which used to be major attraction for tourists, have lost their charm. Speaking on the disconnection between the tourists and shack operators, Dixon Vaz, hotelier and Cavelossim Sarpanch, said, “For starting a shack business, one has to go through so much administrative paperwork. There are multiple rules and regulations. As a result, the shacks are becoming more like a commercial entity, rather than serving people.”

“The priority now is how they can earn money. For example, Rs 3.5 lakh is required to be paid as fees before you start. It’s a lot of money right. So, the question is how to recover that money? So they have become commercial so that they can recover their money first. In the process, they have lost that Goan touch,” Vaz added

Lyndon Alves, a senior tourism professional, said that negative perception caused by news about events like Sunburn is leading to indecisiveness among tourists, which is also contributing to the problems faced by the tourism industry.

“Till two days back you were having a music festival on the 31st and now you say it’s cancelled. It’s ridiculous because you can’t cancel someone’s 31st planned night out, just a week before. They bought air tickets. It’s all created a mess for people. I think it was completely wrong in the first place to apply for having the event on 31st,” he said.

Hitting out at government’s mismanagement involving a host of issues, Alves said, “I can’t understand why the government hasn’t been able to get its act together with the taxi problem, with Sunburn permission. You are delaying the shack licences. Every year it’s shortening their time to earn money. So it’s no more happy vibes about guests coming,” Alves said.

Maria Victor, founder of Make it Happen, a community-led experiential travel company, speaking about what’s clicking with tourists vis-à-vis her company, she said, “Tourism is a platform to showcase local talent. So in that sense, what we offer is authentic local experiences, trails or in heritage walks that are led by passionate local storytellers. That’s what travellers are seeking for.”

Broaching upon the issue of noise pollution caused by loud music parties, Darshan Bhatia, crusader against noise pollution, said, “Look I enjoy music concerts. All I’m saying is do it, but live in harmony with your neighbours. There are old people living, and students have to go to school the next day. You cannot have booming EDM music going till 4 am, otherwise I will have to fight against it.”