Goa’s tourism economy hits record high on strong domestic demand

Goa crossed the one-crore tourist mark in 2025, driven by strong domestic travel. While overall tourism has recovered post-pandemic, international arrivals, charter flights and foreign cruise tourism remain well below pre-pandemic levels despite improved connectivity.

Goa has surpassed a major milestone by recording over one crore tourist arrivals, driven overwhelmingly by a surge in domestic travel. According to data released by the state tourism department, total visitor numbers reached an all-time high of nearly 1.1 crore in 2025. This growth has firmly established domestic tourists as the backbone of Goa’s tourism economy, enabling a strong post-pandemic recovery.

Indian travellers account for almost all of this expansion. In 2017, Goa welcomed around 68.9 lakh domestic tourists. By 2025, this figure had risen to over one crore.

In contrast, international tourism remains significantly below pre-pandemic levels. Foreign tourist arrivals fell from about 8.9 lakh in 2017 to roughly 5.2 lakh in 2025, marking a decline of nearly 42%. This shortfall is particularly important because international tourists typically spend more and play a crucial role in supporting winter tourism, beach resorts, and globally oriented hospitality businesses.

The sharpest decline has been seen in charter flight traffic, once the cornerstone of Goa’s winter tourism. Charter flights dropped from 1,024 in 2017—bringing in nearly 2.5 lakh foreign tourists—to just 189 flights carrying about 40,300 passengers in 2025. Even after the commissioning of Manohar International Airport at Mopa, combined charter traffic through Mopa and Dabolim airports has continued to shrink.

Scheduled international flights have performed relatively better but are still below earlier peaks. Foreign arrivals via scheduled flights declined from nearly 3.4 lakh in 2017 to about 2.4 lakh in 2025. 

Mopa has emerged as the primary international gateway, handling 1,141 international flights in 2025 compared with 643 at Dabolim.

Cruise tourism has also shifted. Foreign cruise passengers fell sharply from over 40,800 in 2017 to just 10,086 in 2025. Total cruise passengers stood at 51,510 in 2025, with Indian travellers now forming the majority, indicating a clear demographic shift.

Tourism director, Mr Kedar Naik said that the figures highlight a gradual post-pandemic recovery, with domestic tourism driving the momentum. He noted that better connectivity via Mopa and Dabolim airports, supported by improved infrastructure and destination management, has helped strengthen the tourism sector.