Confusion in Egypt, gain for Goa TNN, Feb 17, 2011, 02.32am IST PANAJI: The unrest and chaos in Egypt has brought its tourism industry to a virtual standstill. Tourists that were planning on travelling to the land of the pyramids are now heading to other global destinations, including Goa. However, the lack of a visa-on-arrival facility may see fewer numbers heading here than other popular holiday destinations.
According to statements made by the press secretary of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, Irina Tyurina, which have been reported by the media, most packages to Egypt that have been cancelled, are being replaced in priority order to destinations like Turkey, Thailand, Goa, Israel and the Maldives. Meanwhile, the hospitality industry in Goa claims it is busy making arrangements to accommodate the spill-over from Egypt. "Our rooms are booked. Most guests who will be checking in are from Moscow," said Dona Alcina's chief executive officer and the past president of the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa Charles Bonifacio. "Other hotels have been seeing a rush in enquiries too. I think there's going to be a 15% increase in room occupancy," Bonifacio said. The travel industry estimates a minimum of 700 additional tourists coming in from Moscow alone. However, they say that these numbers would have been higher if the visa-on-arrival facility was available to international tourists coming in to Goa. "Charter operator Intourist will be adding an additional 100 seats to their operations to Goa. This means that 250 Russian tourists will be arriving on this charter every 10 days. Charter operator Pegas will be pressing in two additional flights, which translates to 450 tourists arriving every ten days," said Sita vice-president Ernest Dias. "However, these numbers are from Moscow alone, as it is tougher for Russians living in other regions within the country to get a visa to India this quickly. Most of them are now diverting their holidays to Thailand and Sanya, a tourist destination in China, where the visa-on-arrival facility is available. Goa is really missing out on the tourism potential it has," said Dias, who is also an executive member of the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG). Government officials say that the TTAG has also made a presentation to the tourism department stating that British tourists heading to Tunisia could also be heading this way. However, no confirmation in this regard was available from the tourism industry. Read more: Confusion in Egypt, gain for Goa - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Confusion-in-Egypt-gain-for-Goa/articleshow/7511777.cms#ixzz1EJmKtgTU