Increase in Goa holidays booked over festive period

Popular tourist destinations Goa and Kerala have seen a dramatic increase in accommodation bookings for the festive period this year indicating that the worst could be over for the region's struggling travel and tourism industry.

Travellers looking to book Goa holidays for Christmas or New Year’s Eve celebrations may be out of luck as Goa hotels and many luxury hotels in Kerala are reporting that they are already full up.

The bookings for holidays in Goa and Kerala have been made by travellers despite warnings being announced about avoiding travel to India during the high season in case of terrorism attacks.

Senior Vice President of Hotel Leelaventure, Rajiv Kaul, said:

"We are already sold out for the Goa property and the one at Kovalam (in Kerala) is more than 90 per cent full for the period. Apart from the continued influx of international tourists into the country, there is a strong interest from the domestic market as well. Beach resorts have marked the strongest of comebacks from the lows of last year."

In spite of concerns over terror threats, the region is relieved that so many travellers are planning to take Goa holidays this year, compared to the travel industry’s disappointing results last year’s due to the collapse of the global economy and the unfortunate Mumbai terror attacks.

Owners of Goa luxury hotels are looking forward to the influx of visitors and announced that bookings for the festive period started considerably rising over the past couple of weeks.

Co-promoter of the Bangalore-based Royal Orchid Hotels, Keshav Baljee, said:

"So far, November has been very good but bookings for December, including dates, which are other than the ones usually in demand, are happening at a very healthy pace."

Charter flights from Russia to Goa have increased by 35 per cent and the UK are still leading the way with the highest number of flights.

Hoteliers inthe area are once again increasing rooms rates and are optimistic about the industry in the next few months ahead.
Marketing Vice President of The Lalit, Shobu Mathew, said:

"There are lots of conferences and meetings taking place in our property, apart from a sheer increase in the number of weddings, especially from the NRI segment. We are just back from a summit in London and definitely the charter arrivals are expected to go up significantly. We had to increase our rates, too, due to the demand. Things are definitely looking brighter than last year."

Travellers booking Goa holidays are not cutting back on the quality of their stay despite the economic recovery remaining slow.