Concerns over the third wave of Covid-19 and Omicron coronavirus variant including fresh travel restrictions have led to a spike in hotel booking cancellations in Goa, threatening to upend a recovery in the tourism sector.
In the wake of the rise in COVID-19 cases, tourists have started cancelling their visit to the state, Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) president Nilesh Shah said.
Goa's tourism industry is currently seeing 15 to 20 per cent cancellations in hotel bookings. "The hotel booking cancellations are between 15 and 20 per cent as people are avoiding travel these days due to COVID-19-related restrictions," he said.
Shah said the tourism industry is adhering to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) expect the situation to improve by next month. "Experts have predicted that the COVID-19 numbers will peak in the next seven to ten days and then come down," he said.
Just last week, many people from various parts of the country had descended to Goa to celebrate to take part in the new year celebration. However, Shah feels that the present surge in COVID-19 cases "should not be solely attributed to the rush in Goa for the New Year celebrations" as the rise in viral infections is also being witnessed in other parts of the country.
The state on Tuesday reported 592 fresh cases of COVID-19, with the positivity rate remaining high at 13.89 per cent.