Thaindian News

Panaji, July 7 (IANS) If the tourism department has its way, you would soon be able to touch down in Goa on a seaplane and then whiz around the beach paradise in a helicopter or hover above the beaches in hot air balloons.

Helicopter tourism and seaplane taxis were just some of the initiatives being taken by the Goa tourism department to diversify the Goa bouquet of experiences as well as to attract high spending tourists to the state, Swapnil Naik, tourism director, said.

“We have already received proposals in this regard. There are already two helipads in Goa and we are trying to add more to facilitate this kind of tourism,” he said.

The Goa government would not be spending on these tourism projects, which would be funded 100 per cent by the private sector, he said.

“The government will only play the role of a facilitator. We are trying to work out a single window clearance for these kind of projects,” Naik said.

“We are already in talks (with the Indian navy) for clearances to promote hot air balloon tourism,” he added.

Naik said a golf course in north Goa was also on the agenda and that the Goa government had already asked an interested hospitality sector player to submit a project report on it.

– Indo Asian News Service
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