The first cruise ship Cordelia Empress arrived at Mormugao harbour cruise terminal on Friday afternoon from Mumbai. A total of 785 domestic passengers arrived in Goa to a grand welcome from the Headland Sada locals keeping in tune with Atithi Devo Bhava (guest is akin to god).
After a prolonged gap of two years in tourism-related activities due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the tourism season received a massive kickstart with the arrival of the Empress, which docked at the Mormugao Port, near the cruise terminal, on Friday afternoon.
On the occasion, a taxi counter Murgaocha Raja Tourist Taxi Union’s counter was inaugurated at the hands of the first domestic tourist couple that had arrived from Maharashtra to Goa to enjoy their weekend.
During the inaugural function, Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar, taxi union leader Balan Chodankar and others were present. MLA Amonkar later told the media that this counter would give business opportunities to the local taxi operators and they in turn would be able to give better services to the passengers.
Meanwhile, A V Ramana, Mormugao Port Authority Chairman, expressed joy over the arrival of the cruise ship as it would boost tourism. The arrival of more passenger cruise ships will create employment opportunities and generate revenue for the state. He hinted that more domestic ships are likely to come to Goa.
Shedding more light on the cruise ship's arrival, Chairman Ramana said that from November international cruise ships having capacity of 3000 pax will arrive at Mormugao harbour. This, he said, will give a boost to Goa’s economy and all tourism-related stakeholders in Goa.
He also mentioned that the aim should be to provide quality services to tourists who come to Goa so that they keep coming here in large numbers.
Earlier, there was some conflict among the taxi operators, regarding the sharing of the taxi fare at the cruise terminal. However, on Friday it was learnt that the taxi operators would have set fare rates, and they will be providing the finest service to passengers. All these taxi operators are residents of Headland Sada and Vasco areas.
After the ship docked at the port, tourists were shown the taxi rate cards, and they were provided with the taxi service systematically.
Later, when gomantaktimes.com asked a few tourists about their plans to spend quality time in Goa, most of them said that they would be part of the short cruise on the Sunset in Panjim and would be checking out some beachside bars and restaurants.
Some of them said that they would be visiting heritage structures, temples, etc to know more about the rich culture and history of the people of Goa. The Cordelia Empress Cruise ship will be leaving for Mumbai on Friday evening.