IndiGo flight disruptions set off fears amid Goa’s peak tourist season: ‘Guests are cancelling…’

“The Free Independent Traveller (FIT) segment will be impacted,” said Sukhija.

The disruption in flight operations comes during the peak tourist season, as the coastal state – already singed by a barrage of criticism on social media over the past year – is fighting a perception battle to attract tourists, especially foreigners. Data shows that while there has been a steady increase in domestic tourist arrivals in the past few years, the foreign tourist arrivals are far from the pre-Covid mark.

According to figures from the state tourism department, Goa recorded 71.27 lakh domestic and 9.37 lakh international tourists in 2019. Between January and June in 2025, 51.83 lakh domestic tourists and 2.71 lakh foreign tourists visited Goa.

In 2024, a record 99.41 lakh domestic tourists and 4.67 lakh foreign tourists visited the state, while in the previous year, 81.75 lakh domestic tourists and 4.52 lakh foreign tourists arrived. In 2022, 70.18 lakh domestic tourists and 1.69 lakh foreign tourists visited Goa, while in 2021 – when international travel almost came to a halt due to the pandemic – 33.08 lakh domestic tourists and only 22,128 foreign tourists visited the state.

Industry stakeholders said airlines are also profiteering by “price gouging” and charging excessively high fares due to the widespread disruption, as passengers scramble to secure flight tickets for travel.

“We are getting reports of guests cancelling trips due to uncertainty regarding flight schedules and skyrocketing fares. These disruptions are coinciding with the peak tourist season, when a lot of people also travel to Goa for weddings. Some events and weddings may face cancellations. In the coming days, there will be restrictions on music and liquor due to the upcoming zila panchayat elections. So, all this may have a ripple effect, and the tourist footfall will be impacted if the flight disruptions continue for long,” said Santosh Sangam Divkar, president of the Small and Medium Hoteliers Association, Goa.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation on Saturday stepped in to regulate non-business class airfares for all airlines by prescribing fare caps. The Ministry said it has invoked its regulatory powers “to ensure fair and reasonable fares across all affected routes” to protect passengers from “any form of opportunistic pricing”.

Kedar Naik, Director of Tourism, said it is too soon to comment on the potential fallout. “We do not know how the situation will unfold in the coming days. If flight operations stabilise in two-three days, I don’t think there will be a major impact on tourism. Only if the delays continue, there could be an impact.”