The first charter landed in Goa in 1984. Condor Airlines, 30 years hence, stopped flying to Goa. The drop in foreign tourists is easy to see. The English, French, German and those from Scandanavian countries are not here in the numbers that they once were. The Russians too, the latest darlings of hotels and restaurants across Goa, especially further up in North Goa, have gradually stopped coming to Goa.
The biggest cause may be the massive halving of the value of the Russian Rouble. This has resulted in a near 50 percent drop in Russian tourists across the world. Goa has suffered for it too. A recent government delegation visit to Russia resulted in a lot of positive press, but the feeling is that Goa’s infrastructure is faltering. Rightly so.
For almost a decade now, there have been calls from all corners for better garbage management. A solution has yet to materialise. Until that happens, garbage will continue to pile up everywhere possible; an eyesore for anyone visiting the state as well as the locals. Another issue is the severe lack of mass transit systems for one, and the overcharging of customers by the taxi drivers. But, these issues are well-known and have been written about in all forms of media. The rot continues.
The charter flights have brought in a large percentage of tourism from European countries for three decades now. But Goa’s indifference of sorts with the different nationalities of tourists has led to this slowdown. The system is certainly to blame. The British, French and German tourists made up for the largest chunk of foreign nationals to visit the state during the October to April months. But in the past five to six years, since the Russian tourist numbers started to grow, the interest in the central European nationalities started to wane.
The Russians were the new moneyed crowd. They spent more than the English or Germans in a shorter span of time. Most of the English tourists came down for longer periods. Those still working came in for three to four weeks, the retirees for as long as five to six months. Hence the cautious spending. By contrast, the Russians came down for a week or two and made sure they had their value for money. They patronise nightclubs and drink more at restaurants, in contrast to the older central European crowds who eat early, have a few drinks and retire early. The increase in Russian tourists had led to the sprouting up of more restaurants and pubs.
How long will this obsession with Goa last for the Russians, nobody knows. They are a very nomadic sort of tourist crowd. Sooner or later, a new cheaper destination will crop up. The charter companies too will go where the tide goes. A better business deal in say, Sri Lanka or Thailand, will lead to a mass exodus from Goa.
There are a few charters coming in from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. But is that enough to tilt the balance in favour of Goa? The Israelis too came, saw, conquered hearts and then ceased to come to Goa after a while. There has to be a balance between the weekend domestic crowd and the week or fortnight long foreign tourist. Goa’s tourism outlook needs a wider scope.
