Won’t promote Goa as a ‘cheap’ destination, says state tourism minister

“I have seen videos that influencers have been taking at 5am and 6am, saying the beaches are empty,” Rohan Khaunte Goa’s minister for tourism, IT, E&C, and printing and stationery, told Mint in an interview.

“We have done our numbers. The 5-stars [hotels] and 4-stars [hotels] are running at almost 100% capacity…” he said. “That talk about quality tourists coming in… the whole thought is that Goa has become a ‘costly’ destination. But Goa, being at that cost, I would say is a luxury destination, and people are buying it.”

In FY25, Goa reported a 20% jump in domestic footfalls to over 10 million, while international arrivals rose more than 25% to over 500,000—although the number is still only 55% of Goa’s pre-pandemic international arrivals. In the pre-pandemic year FY19, Goa had received just over 7 million domestic tourists and more than 900,000 foreign tourists, per data from the state government.

“There is a huge potential of growing this number,” Khaunte said. “The challenge is connectivity. We have been talking to the Centre—both the ministry of tourism and the ministry of civil aviation—to connect Goa. We cannot lose business. Tourism contributes to about 16.4% of the (state’s) economy and takes care of almost 40-45% of employment, directly and indirectly.”

The ongoing wars in Russia and Israel, traditionally the biggest source of international tourists to Goa, have led to a decline in international travelers from the two countries. However, Khaunte said, Goa is now receiving more tourists from Scandinavian countries and eastern Europe, both by commercial flights and international charters to the state.

In November, Goa got its first set of tourists for the season by a charter plane from Poland. However, in calendar year 2025, Goa received only 189 charter flights with just over 40,000 international tourists, compared to 266 flights with nearly 59,000 foreign tourists a year earlier.

Pivot to premium

Domestic tourists pouring into Goa have been responsible for a boom in the state’s tourism industry post-pandemic. However, Indian travellers are now pouring into similar sea-side destinations in Thailand, Vietnam and Sri Lanka as more direct flights operate to these countries and they make entry for Indians easier, even visa-free. About 2.48 million Indians visited Thailand in 2025, up 17% from the previous year, as per data from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).

However, Khaunte says, Goa, with 15 million annual tourists, is not in competition with these wildly popular southeast Asian destinations. “We are very different as far as culture and people are concerned,” he said. “Our hospitality is different. We wouldn’t want to be Thailand, very simple.”

“Every Indian wants to go abroad and have his passport to be stamped, you can’t discount that. At the same time, the type of tourists with cheap packages is not something we want to provide over here because the long-term vision is quality over quantity,” the minister said.

Between 1 January and 4 February 2026, a total of 256,782 Indian tourists travelled to Thailand, “ranking India as the fourth-largest source market in terms of international arrivals”, the country’s government said in a press release last week. “These efforts are supported by strong air connectivity between India and Thailand, with 10 airlines operating during the Winter 2025–2026 schedule, offering 438 flights per week and more than 14,600 seats weekly, with further capacity growth projected in 2026,” it said.

India was the biggest source of foreign tourists to Sri Lanka in 2025. According to the Sri Lankan government data, more than 530,000 lakh Indians visited the island country during the year, and over 52,000 have already visited Sri Lanka in January 2026. Vietnam received 740,000 lakh Indians in 2025, per the country’s tourism ministry data. However, more foreign tourists visited the country from China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan than from India.

As more Indians travel abroad and in India, top tourist destinations are increasingly fighting for the premium Indian’s wallet. As a result, the nature of tourism in Goa is changing from an inexpensive getaway for foreigners on the hippie trail and young Indians on their first salary to the host of aspirational destination weddings and newer tourist circuits themed around wellness, spirituality, and historical heritage of Goa. Mint had earlier reported that investment in Goa’s hospitality real estate had led to an oversupply of hotels, hostels, and informal vacation rentals.

“We don’t want to promote ourselves as a cheap destination just to attract more tourists,” Khaunte added. “Don’t come to Goa if you are looking for a cheap destination, other countries are very welcome to take these tourists.”

Thailand too is keen to attract “high value” tourists from India, Thailand’s tourism authority governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool said in the press release quoted above.