Goa’s hospitality industry is undoubtedly surviving on the quality tourists coming down to the state from the various parts of the world. According to the reports despite being just 11% of the total tourists landing in Goa, foreigners spends four times more compared to the local tourists coming down to the state.
Perhaps the spending capacity is directly proportionate to the currency conversion value but the fact remains same and the foreigners are the best spenders in the Goa’s hospitality sector compared to the local tourists. The food business claims to have the lion’s share in this, said the sources.
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If you take a look at the inbound tourist’s statistics in Goa, the domestic tourists have the lion’s share in it. According to the sources, as much as the 89 percent of the total tourists visiting the state are locals. They constitute major chunk of the flow into Goa and mainly travels to Goa for business cum leisure purpose. Even the spending in Casinos is mainly contributed by the local tourists compared to the foreigners, said the sources.
The Indian tourists keep on pouring into the state throughout the year while the foreigners only prefer to come down during the October and February. According to the sources, the Indian tourists are considered as quantity without quality while foreigners are treated as special guests who are the revenue generators for the state.
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According to the reports published in the TOI, Goa, which largely counts on tourism, depends on inbound (international) travelers, especially charter arrivals, to sustain the industry. International travelers spend more than domestic travelers with an average per person spend for foreigners being Rs 87,000 compared to Rs 31,500 for domestic visitors.
According to the sources, the major chunk of money is spent on the food and beverages compared to the stay and other activities. “Most of this spend is in the hospitality and dining segment, say industry observers. Last year, 6,80,683 foreigners flocked to the sunshine state, an increase of 79% from 3,80,414 visitors in 2006,” said the sources.
The latest study shows that during the last six months starting from October 2016 until March 2017 “There have been 2,16,437 visitors to Goa from the UK, Finland, Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, and Ukraine,” said the sources. With the large arrival of foreign visitors, Goa is now the fifth major airport in the country for international travelers.
SOURCE: TOI
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