ROYAL TRAVELS NEWS.

Goa urgently needs to take corrective steps to stop the slide in quality tourist arrivals as the tourism industry in the state is going through a troubled phase, said Victor Albuquerque, chairman of the Alcon Victor Group, who is also the honorary consul of the Russian Federation in Goa.

Speaking to mediapersons at the recent launch of Radisson Resort at Candolim, Albuquerque said, "The tourism industry is going through a bad patch. Those days when we used to see a large number of charter tourists from England and other European countries are gone. It will not be the same scenario in the days to come. We must pull up our sleeves, work harder, and provide better products and services so that we attract tourists from Western countries."

He added that Goa also needs to grapple with the "sleaze menace". "There is talk of Goa turning in to another Bangkok. We have to address the situation immediately before Goa gets a bad name. The entire tourism industry has to work hard to promote healthy, upmarket tourism," he said.