Goa aims for revamped image as tourist destination

PANAJI: The new Goa Tourism Masterplan and Tourism Policy 2020, has nature-based tourism and cultural tourism as one of the many pillars for Goa to reinvent itself as a tourist destination. The policy, which got the cabinet green light on Wednesday, calls for creation of high-quality infrastructure and facilities which can help attract high-end tourists to Goa’s hinterland.
The policy calls for nature clusters comprising key natural or cultural assets to be set up in Goa’s ecologically sensitive areas.Ecologically sustainable and environmentally sound practices would be adopted in development of nature-based tourism, the masterplan states.
Cultural and nature-based tourism can increase the number of high-end tourists visiting the state and also increase the duration of their stay in Goa.
Though Goa already has river cruises, the policy recommends that Goa’s entire inland waterway network be explored, albeit with an emphasis on eco-friendly operations for hinterland exploration.
Given the state’s rich past, culture and heritage tourism need to be promoted in a better way. “Conservation, regeneration and promotion of Goan culture and heritage is one of the key initiatives. Goa Tourism board would identify essential infrastructure and public amenity requirements for identified tourism assets of historical and cultural importance,” the policy says.
The masterplan and policy seek to encourage tourists to visit Goan villages, especially to explore traditional Goan houses. The Goa Tourism Board would have to designate villages conducive for development as tourism villages, which could have a focus on old Goan houses, handicraft and Goan cuisine.
Mangrove swamps, freshwater crocodiles, adventure and sports tourism, spice plantations and agro farms need to be encouraged in order to give the state’s tourism sector a much needed fillip, the document recommends.