Home

Contact Us

Back to Current File
Previous File

Heritage villas to narrate Goa's Portuguese legacy

        Panaji: Goa will soon have more to offer to tourists, apart from its renowned golden beaches and swaying palms. The former Portuguese colony is dotted with villas of its colonial era and plans are afoot to convert them into heritage hotels. The authorities here believe that such hotels would go a long way in revealing the coastal state's heritage and also be attraction to tourists wanting to be a part of that legacy. "As far as we are concerned, we want to encourage it (converting heritage houses to hotels) because I know that they can sell. There are different types of tourists," the state's tourism minister, Mathany Saldhana, said. "We have to cater to tourists...tourism industry is not only see and sell. All sorts of tourists, intellectual tourists, tourists with interests in architecture, tourists interested in heritage...that is called planned tourism and I would like to go in that direction," Saldhana added. According to a survey, around 3500 houses in the state can be converted into heritage hotels, showcasing Portuguese art and culture. The concept itself has been borrowed from Rajasthan, where exquisite palaces of former Rajput rulers have been converted into heritage hotels.
-Aug 11, 2004

                                            Previous File                                    Go to Top