Priyanka Saxena Ray
Sri Lanka Tourism continues to expand its Bilateral and Cultural ties with its Indian counterparts by venturing into a series of Road Shows in key Indian cities from September 26 – 30, 2022. The first road show was held at the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi followed by one at St. Regis Hotel in Mumbai and closing with the Hyderabad Roadshow at Taj Krishna Hotel. The main purpose of hosting these roadshows was to promote Sri Lanka as an attractive tourism destination across India, as it is one of Sri Lanka’s key source markets and has been extremely supportive in Sri Lanka regaining lost momentum both post pandemic and the recent economic downturn.
After the economic meltdown, things have started to get back on track with Sri Lanka and the country is now witnessing a considerable increase in tourist arrivals with India leading the way and securing the number one position. “Sri Lanka in the last few months has garnered a lot of negative news, much of which was blown out of proportion. However, we are here to assure that things are back on track in our country – the fuel supple is back, services have resumed and the country is now waiting for its tourists to come back. We are a very small economy but we have everything that a tourist wants – casinos, shopping, food, adventure and more. Going forward, we would be typing with many principles of tourism providers and form partnerships to promote our country to the world. We are participating in the WTM London and are planning roadshows there too. We will float special packages in collaboration with IndiGo and are also trying to promote Sri Lanka during the time of FIFA. Come December, we will have a very different Sri Lanka waiting for you,” shared Hon. Harin Fernando in an exclusive chat with media.
The event was also focussed on promoting a myriad of tourism experiences while focusing on converting potential travellers to make booking and highlight the positive message that Sri Lanka is open for Leisure, Business and MICE tourism. The target audience at these roadshows included Tour Operators, Media, Key Influencers, Corporates and Trade Associations and key Tourism Industry stakeholders in India, who have the ability to take the message that Sri Lanka is not only one of the most beautiful countries but is also safe and secure; adhering to all the necessary health and safety guidelines.
Each roadshow also included B2B Sessions facilitating numerous discussions followed by an Evening Networking event which was aimed at showcasing the cultural side of Sri Lanka and also improve business partnerships. A touch of glamour was added to these events with the participation of celebrities such as Sanath Jayasuriya and Yohani De Silva.
India has generated over 80,000 tourist arrivals to the country so far and it is expected to double these numbers by 2023. Thus, these roadshows definitely added more value to create a positive mindset regarding Sri Lanka and its diversity of attractions, cultural value and travel opportunities, enabling Indian tourist arrivals to the destination.
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