Panaji: The Manohar International Airport at Mopa has seen a higher foreign tourist footfall in recent times when compared to the Dabolim International Airport, according to the data of the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation.
In reply to a question asked by Goa’s Rajya Sabha MP Sadanand Shet Tanavade, Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol tabled a year-wise data of the international tourist arrivals at the Dabolim and Mopa airports in Goa from January 2024.
According to the reply, the January 2026 data indicates that 62,317 foreign tourists landed at the Mopa airport, while the Dabolim airport saw 24,174 international tourists arrive in the month.
The number of international tourists who landed at the Mopa airport in the year 2025 was 3,89,988, while the Dabolim airport saw 2,06,046 international tourists arrive in the state in that year, according to the reply. In 2024, the international tourist footfall at the Dabolim airport was 3,02,130 while that at the Mopa airport was 2,46,319.
Mohol stated in his reply that Goa is available as a point of call for various countries. Goa has also been included among the 18 tourist destinations in India from where Indian carriers as well as carriers from the ASEAN and SAARC countries (excluding Pakistan and Afghanistan), are permitted to operate unlimited air services.
The central ministry clarified that the Union government provides an enabling environment for growth of the civil aviation sector but does not interfere in the operational plans of airlines. However, the start of direct international flights from any point in India is purely a commercial decision of the scheduled airlines on the basis of passenger demand, availability of slots, economic viability of the route and other associated factors, the minister said in his reply.
