Some restaurants have started to close, hotels are preparing to bring down the shutters at the end of the month, the last charter is scheduled to fly out on May 5 and the first charter of the next season set to arrive on October 4.
Season 2024-2025 has been good, and 2025-2026 is expected to be better.
“It was definitely a good season compared to the last. There is nothing to complain about. It is safe to say that we are back on track and expect the next season to be better,” admitted Ernest Dias, CFO of SITA World Travels.
Shaikh Ismail, Senior Vice President of Concord Exotic Voyages, said that the company handled, “Thirty eight per cent more business compared to the last season and recovered around 50 to 60 percent from before the Covid-19 pandemic.”
“Earlier, we had guests coming in jumbo jets. Though the number has increased, we handled a high number of high-end tourists this season that opted to stay in South Goa,” confirmed Ismail.
“With the start of Polish charters and a constant flow from the Ukraine, bookings brightened, and we expect more foreign clients next season with our eye focusing on the British market,” disclosed an ebullient Dias.
Despite a slight blip around November and December – when the flow normally turns into a swell – most stakeholders were happy with the season that seemed to have turned around for the better.
“Pigeon Holidays catered to people from Iran that normally arrive during Novord which is the Iranian New Year. They were three charters with 140 people,” disclosed Dias.
There was a time when tourists used to arrive in April and May, too, but that is not happening. “We used to get clients from Russia during the Russian summer holiday in May. They have stopped,” disclosed a travel agent on condition of anonymity.
Many travel agents believe that the season could have been better had the hoteliers offered better pricing.
“Some hotels block their properties for a few days, and that makes it difficult to sell hotels as holidays are decided after due deliberation,” confessed another travel agent.
“Rooms are still being sold at high prices, and that is driving many guests away. They (hoteliers) need to understand that their prices have gone through the roof. How can we get clients to book rooms that cost Rs 50,000 a night?” asked a travel agent.
Many travel agents believe that the season could have been better had the hoteliers offered better pricing.
The 2024-2025 season has seen a visible shift of foreign tourists from the north to the south, and foreigners deciding to opt to stay only in Candolim in the north, leaving Baga, Calangute and other places for domestic tourists.
“Return tourists have boosted the industry. Whilst many who used to stay in the north have shifted to the south, they have taken along with them first timers because the north is now being known as a noisy place,” said another travel agent on condition of anonymity.
The heat is on, but it is not rubbing away the smiles from the faces of industry stakeholders as the jingle of most tills still reverberates.
Season 2024-2025 has been good, and on a scale of 0 to 10, many opt to rate it at 10.