The tourism industry is a golden egg laying goose, and the stakeholders can only remain happy if they do not become greedy, but people don’t learn from their mistakes and keep repeating the same every time. Goa’s tourism industry is already suffering an all-time low business in the 2018 year end due to similar reasons and if these practices are stopped then only God can save this industry.
When it comes to a business or an industry, competition is bound to happen. With the growing technology and fast-paced modernisation, there is a tough spot to survive in the market.
Travel and tourism industry in Goa has come a long way in the path and grown as a full-fledged industry. What was done for leisure and pleasure has now become a full-blown profit-making business which is supporting the economy of the state to quite an extent? The tourism industry of Goa derives its income from the Tourism industry and has maintained a top tourist destination spot for almost a decade.
The tourism industry has many sectors like accommodation, food and beverages industry, transportation and entertainment business and all are dependants on each other. Everyone is trying its best to survive and thrive in the market. Goa particularly is known for its hospitality. The people and vibes of this place are amazing. Goa is also famous for its resorts and spas which provide best services.
Stakeholders comprising mainly of small and medium-sized hotels and guest house owners said that illegal tourism is making the state lose revenues and lowering business of small hoteliers
This year, there has been a sharp decline in the tourist footfalls. One of the major causes is overpriced accommodation and other services. During the peak tourist season in Goa, the rents of rooms and services tend to hike up causing a lesser tourist interest as they want to spend under budget.
There have been many issues regarding the Online Travel Agencies and also the hoteliers. The tough competition amongst the OTAs had led to them coming up with unethical strategies which caused a burden to the hotels. The hoteliers were disappointed with the OTA causing such problems with high-commission and misinformation about the properties.
With all these in the picture, in the recent news, Small hoteliers are accusing “Illegal tourism” of taking away profits and revenues. According to Navhind Times, Stakeholders comprising mainly of small and medium-sized hotels and guest house owners said that illegal tourism is making the state lose revenues and lowering business of small hoteliers. They said that the illegal sector is on par with legitimate players in terms of room capacity and accounts for 50 per cent of accommodation in the state.
“The illegal entities comprise real-estate sharks from other states who, under the garb of building houses, use the rent-back business model to be a participant of the tourism industry,” said stakeholders. They further alleged saying that “The only permission the builder takes is a no-objection certificate (NOC) from panchayat to operate one villa within the complex as the hotel. But by using the remaining empty flats in the complex the builder actually runs a 60-room property”
According to the hoteliers, the gated residential functioning around the beach belt area is out of the influence of the state Tourism Trade Act.
According to the hoteliers, the gated residential functioning around the beach belt area are out of the influence of the state Tourism Trade Act. Serafino Cotta, president of Small and Medium Hoteliers Association (SMHA), speaking on the same stated that “They do not take consent from the state pollution control board, pay no licensing fee to the excise department or GST, receive water and electricity supply at non-commercial rates,”
According to him, the major drawback of the on-going hospitality industry is due to unregistered players and unplanned tourism. He said, “Occupancy dropped to less than 50 per cent on the peak days with rooms going as low as Rs 900 per night. It is unheard of tariff for Goa,”
Antonio D’Souza, a small hotel owner and secretary of SMHA, speaking on OTA said, “Online travel companies have been banned in Gujarat and Sikkim and must also be banned in Goa,” SMHA accused OTA of being a part of these unregistered sectors.
“The issues facing the tourism industry have been building up and the current season’s decline in tourist arrivals is a result of the build-up,” said Pifran Fernandes, joint secretary, SMHA. A Tourism Tribunal is being demanded by the SMHA to address these issues and take actions for the same. Measures must be taken to bring about discipline in tourism. These kinds of events will only attract low-grade tourists which will bring down the reputation of the state.
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