2,000 Poles visited Goa: TTAG

As the tourist season draws to a close, industry professionals claim that there was nothing much to cheer about, save the tapping of a new market – Poland. “We received around 2,000 new guests from Poland,” said outgoing president of the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa Ralph de Sousa at a press conference Thursday evening.

The effects of the global recession were felt during this tourism season as the bookings were done at the start of 2009 when most of western Europe was in the midst of the meltdown, he said. The volcanic ash that spread over the skies of Europe also brought an abrupt end to the tourism season, said the TTAG president. De Sousa said that there was a 30% drop in charters from the United Kingdom, which once enjoyed the status of number one tourist market for Goa.

“However, there was an increase in Russian tourists, and we expect a further rise of 25-30% of Russian visitors,” he said. Meanwhile, hotels across the state are continuing adding security features to keep terror at bay, said the TTAG. “Hotels are putting in place systems to check details of guests, luggage scanners and CCTV cameras.

However, more importance has been given to staff sensitization through training sessions. We cannot expect the police to be everywhere and this will lift up some of their burden,” de Sousa said.

The TTAG also thanked the World Travel and Tourism Council for providing logistical support to Goa’s soon-to-be-commissioned Tourist Security Force (TSF). The TSF has been given a fleet of 15 four-wheelers and seven two-wheelers which are equipped with state-ofart tracking and monitoring devices as well as transmission services. They will be used for the purpose of patrolling the coastal belt by the TSF from the next tourism season onwards.