'Not just Goa, decline in foreign tourists...': Top hotelier on competition from Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and what India can do

The decline in foreign tourist arrivals in Goa has sparked a broader debate on the state of tourism in India. The dip in foreign arrivals, however, isn't just in Goa, it is across destinations in the country, says Gautam Munjal, founder and CEO of Minimalist Hotels, in an exclusive interview with Business Today Digital.

India's tourism, Munjal states, has not been able to recover from the pandemic in terms of foreign tourist arrivals. "I run hotels in Delhi. I understand the amount of transit passengers that were there before the pandemic."

Edited Excerpts

How do you see the current tourism trends in Goa?

Yes, there is a dip in foreign tourist arrival in Goa, if you compare it to what it was 10 years ago. But it is not just a dip in Goa, it's an overall trend in foreign arrival in different destinations in India. We have not been able to recover from the pandemic in terms of foreign tourist arrivals. I run hotels in Delhi. I understand the amount of transit passengers that were there before the pandemic. 

Local public transportation is a problem in Goa. Regulation of taxi operators is something that needs to be sorted and the government needs to take strict action. In any tourist destination, regulation follows commercialisation. If Goa takes a stance that it won't allow entry of Ola and Uber, that is okay because I have seen destinations across Europe as well. For example, in a place like Prague, for a very good time, they were very clear they won't allow Uber. But tourism was still thriving. That was the pull of Prague. Goa has definitely had a pull all these years. Even if Ola and Uber are not allowed, there are local solutions to this problem. If I'm staying in North Goa and I want to do a day trip in South Goa, I don't really have an option beyond local taxi. Seasonally taxi prices keep varying - this actually happens everywhere like Bali. So yes, some sort of regulation in local transportation is required.

Are rising hotel prices driving tourists away from Goa? What’s your take?

This idea that rising cost of hotels is leading to low demands, I don't agree with this at all. Even today, you can get a hotel according to your budget from Rs 1,000 a night to Rs 50,000 a night. I don't validate this idea that Goa is becoming a destination which is becoming very expensive to stay. It is for all sorts of travellers. 

So, yes, the drop in foreign arrival is not just in Goa, it is across. More domestic tourism is happening, connectivity is better with Goa from across India. General concern of safety, security, and cleanliness DNA - that is something probably missing and we need to upgrade. 

Is Goa facing competition from hotspots like Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Thailand? Radisson Blu in Vietnam's Nha Trang is charging nearly one-third the price of a similar property in Goa for Dec 25. 

Competition is there, for sure. There is competition and people tend to spend less if they go to Vietnam. Rs 35,000 for a Christmas evening in Goa for Radisson Blu - it's pure supply and demand. Domestic tourism has grown by leaps and bounds. It is a known fact that domestic tourists are ready to pay a premium for a good experience. In this whole parameter, Thailand, Bali, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines are any day a competition. We are behind in terms of foreign tourism arrival numbers. Domestic tourism has made up for it. There is no parallel to Goa in terms of the ecosystem it has been able to build in these years. 

I read somewhere that traffic is becoming a problem in Goa. Traffic is one of the biggest problems in Bali as well. But that does not mean that we start building more and more highways in Goa. No, that will take away the charm. There is an amazing highway that runs through North to South Goa now, which is creating connectivity in a much faster way than what it was 10 years ago. If you start building wider roads, then it will take away the charm. 

Similarily, in Bali, even today, I don't think that there is a proper highway that runs through Bali. It is the destination that it is because of rich history, culture, and whole marketing of Bali. But it is also about the people. We need to upskill our tourism employee base in terms of general sense of humility and welcoming for tourists - be it foreign or domestic. If anybody who has travelled to Thailand or Bali, immediately understand the difference. There is a lot to learn and grow. Probably, a Radisson in Vietnam is cheaper than a Radission in Goa on December 25, it is because domestic tourism is high. It is supply and demand.    

As a hotelier what do you think the governments can do to attract more foreign tourists? 

If I'm an European citizen, can I directly fly to Goa? I can't, as of now. There are some transit points like Dubai, Qatar, etc. Maybe flight connectivity from top destinations like London, and Paris. If that could happen, there will be an influx, for sure. With Mopa (home of a new Manohar International Airport) coming in and having better infrastructure, I'm sure that is a possibility. Direct connectivity with the top 4-5 cities of the world can be done so that a person sitting in Europe can fly to Goa in the 7-8 hour flight time.        

Better local transport connectivity does help. Bali has Grab, a parallel of Ola and Uber for Southeast Asia. In Bali, you can also take bike taxi as well. It is also there in Goa. But it is not regularised or organised or through a technology platform. In today's time, modern travellers want all that. By the tap of a button they want to be able to move from one place to another. 
      
And lastly, better marketing - overall, not just for Goa. A place that is growing in terms of foreign arrival is Varanasi. What Varanasi offers and what Goa offers are completely different things. But now India has various Indias within itself. Packaging the whole country together is tough. How can we sell the "Incredible India" campaign when Rajasthan has completely different things to offer, Varanasi has something different, Kerala is different, and Goa is different?    

Unfortunately, in recent budgets, the amount of expenditure to attract foreign inbound tourism has not been very aggressive from the government side. But in today's time, the ministries do realise that foreign tourists are a very important parameter for overall growth of the economy. We need better marketing in terms of how we package the whole country together. Because Goa tourism in itself cannot succeed in silos if overall India tourism does not grow. 

So if I'm a tourist sitting in America, I want to make this trip to India, maybe I will come for three weeks. We have hotels in Delhi so we have this experience. A regular tourist coming from Germany would come, let's say, for 3 weeks. They will go to Varanasi, Jaipur, and then Goa for 5-6 days at the end of their trip. Now what happens is, these three weeks for first or second-time traveller needs to be better packaged and marketed more aggressively. Private players will do what is needed, but government support is required to push that marketing.        

Have you picked up any new trends In India's tourism?

There is so much potential in North East. Better flight connectivity is happening as well. In Arunachal Pradesh, there is a destination called Tawang. Northeast is a destination which will need marketing. It has so much to offer, quite in parallel to the ecology of Vietnam -- maybe without the beach. 

How serious is the threat of what people are describing as 'taxi mafia' in Goa? 

The whole problem is unregulated pricing. There will be supply and demand. The more we are in season, the more price will be. The word mafia sort of creates an image where the whole industry is questioned. If the whole industry is locally regulated, even if they are charging a premium, that will be better. Because right now, you can't book through an app. There is a platform called Goa Miles, which is operating in Goa and trying to build something similar to Ola and Uber. It's a great idea. It's not about mafia, it is about the regulation that is required. They can charge a premium during peak time and it happens across the world. If you take Uber during peak time in Delhi or Mumbai, you will be charged a higher price, this is a reality. Does a mafia exit? Probably. So can there be a solution through regulation? Absolutely.