Goa Tourism bags Destination Leadership Award at the 6thedition of the WTTCII-HOTELIVATE STATE RANKING SURVEY 2019 

Owing to consistent efforts by the Department of Tourism and Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) in turning Goa into a premium tourism destination during the last 4-5 years, Goa Tourism has received a huge laurel at the 6thedition of the WTTCII-HOTELIVATE STATE RANKING SURVEY 2019 having bagged the Destination Leadership Award 2019- State with the overall best performance in 2019The official release of the 2019 India State Ranking Survey took place on Thursday, 12 December 2019 at The Lalit, New Delhi. The 6th edition of the WTTCII-HOTELIVATE, State Ranking Survey 2019 was launched in the presence of Shri. Prahlad Singh Patel, Hon’ble Minister of State for Tourism and Culture, and other dignitaries. On the occasion of the launch, and based on the findings of the 2019 report, WTTCII and Hotelivate also hosted an Award Ceremony to felicitate the best-performing States.

The State Ranking Survey, a Biennial publication, was first published in 2009 followed by subsequent editions in 2011, 2013, 2015 & 2017. It employs 11 key parameters: Taxation, State Expenditure on Tourism, Tourist Arrivals, Infrastructure, Marketing Efforts, GSDP Per Capita etc. to evaluate States performance on Tourism. This is a one of a kind event, where the Private Sector comes together, to laud and acknowledge the Governments at the States and Union Territories, for their contribution to Tourism.Mr. Deepak Narvekar, Senior Manager Marketing/PRO Goa Tourism Development Corporation accepted the prestigious award on behalf of Goa Tourism at the hands of Mr. Prahlad Singh Patel, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Tourism and Culture in the presence of Mr Manav Thadani, Founder Chairman, Hotelivate ,Mr. Ajay Singh, Chairman, WTTCII & Chairman and Managing Director, SpiceJet ,Mr. Prahlad Singh Patel, Hon’ble Minister of State for Tourism and Culture ,Dr Jyotsna Suri, Chairman & Managing Director, The Bharat Hotels Limited ,Mr Rajeev Talwar, Immediate Past Chairman WTTCII & Chief Executive Officer, DLF and Mr Sunder Advani, Chairman and Managing Director, Advani Hotels and Resorts(India) Ltd.

On receiving the Destination Leadership Award , the Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Tourism, Govt. of Goa, Mr. Manohar Ajgaonkar said, “It is truly an honor for Goa to receive such a prestigious award at the 6thedition of the WTTCII-HOTELIVATE STATE RANKING SURVEY 2019. I am extremely happy that Goa is bagging several prestigious awards in different sphere’s of tourism be it for its facets, infrastructure development and comprehensive tourism development. I thank Hon’ble Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant, for his wholehearted support to the tourism industry in the State. This award which comes at the close of yet another year will motivate us to work more aggressively in the new year 2020. Goa will surely continue to shine on national and international platforms with the support of all its stakeholders and the State governments support.While speaking about the Awards, Mr. Dayanand Sopte, Chairman of Goa Tourism Development Corporation said, “We are extremely honored to receive such a prestigious award that takes the tourism industry of Goa to higher levels. The Destination Leadership Award is a feather in our cap and will encourage the GTDC to launch new and innovative activities. I thank the Hon’ble Chief Minister, Dr. Pramod Sawant, for steering the tourism industry in Goa owing to which Goa is gaining popularity as a tourism destination par excellence. In the year 2019 alone, we have achieved several milestones initiated projects, tourism activities and have received major support from the Central Government. We are confident that Goa Tourism will continue to perform and progress as a tourism destination in 2020 and will continue to bag prestigious awards on various platforms.