Goa has recently seen an influx of domestic tourists opting to take a break during this long weekend that coincided with Gandhi Jayanti. Many 3 stars and some of the bigger hotels have seen a boom in business this weekend with their package offers though the smaller hotels are not making as much profit as the bigger ones.
Nilesh Shah the president of Travel and Tourism of Goa has said that some hotels are functioning at 70%-80% while some are at full capacity, customers have been calling ahead making reservations or inquiries on packages. Out of the 3370 hotels in Goa 600 are currently functioning and more will follow suit as we go.
With the commencement of the Indian Super League (ISL) in November in Goa, the state is already hosting the football team as they have started their training, officials, organizers, sports news crew are all reserved at hotels in Goa. This has seen an increase in bookings in the starred hotels.
Shah has added that this recent influx will be beneficial for Goa since foreign travel has been curbed due to Corona.
While this may have a profit for the Goan economy, it may cause a problem with the safety of the customers. Goa is already having trouble with housing new COVID patients. It is of utmost importance that the state implements standard rules for sanitation and operating capacity of hotels for this to be a success.
So far the profits have only been for bigger well-known hotels. The smaller ones are still struggling to rope in customers in the quagmire of competition. It is quite possible that they might go into loss. Shah, though, has assured that non-starred hotels are also seeing profits though they’re not as much and that gradually as the Unlock happens, the smaller businesses will also get profits.
Former TTAG President Savio Messias believes that it’ll come down to being a buyers’ market and will about who offers the best packages. Shah added that as more airlines resume function, the state will see more tourists.
