VASCO
Former Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) president Savio Messias on Monday said though charter flights have been arriving in the State, tourism did not look very promising during this season.Speaking to reporters, Messias also said domestic tourism, which has been on a high, could decline in the near future over various SOPs like night curfews being implemented in other states.
"We were very happy initially that charter flights were arriving but the tourism season does not look very promising because the situation is very fluid and no one knows when the Centre could introduce stronger SOPs and flights could be cancelled.”
He said a lot of international flights scheduled for the New Year have been cancelled.
“We just have to wait and watch and hope a Covid wave does not affect business in Goa," said Messias.
"British bookings were very encouraging in the beginning with plans of 5 flights a week and while they have now confirmed two flights, the others are cancelled.”
“Slots have been booked by charters but the situation is fluid and while we once had around 60-70 flights to Goa from different countries every week, we now have around one or two a week," said Messias.
Messias said domestic tourism had been doing very well, but cancellations were gradually coming in.
"We see around 3-5 percent cancellation these days and nobody knows what will be the position. Maharashtra has declared night curfew and Delhi has come with stronger measures. Our main markets are Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad. We hope that domestic tourism does not decline in the new year," added Messias.
