Viranga Bandara Assistant Director/Marketing (India)
Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau organised a travel-trade interaction in Kolkata recently. The objective of this event was to highlight and boom Sri Lanka as a leading leisure and MICE destination. Top of the line travel professionals attended the event as well as interacted with the SLTPB team, to understand the unique offerings for Indian travellers in Sri Lanka.
SLTPB expects more than 26% growth in the footfall this year and aims for about 450,000 Indian tourist, to discover the beautiful destination in 2017. Sri Lanka is growing as, ‘a destination for all seasons’! The year 2016 saw approximately 356,729 Indian tourists visiting Sri Lanka compared to around 316,247 in 2015. In 2016 destination Sri Lanka, saw a growth of 12.8% in Indian arrival over last year. The country is a top-notch tourist destination and known as the Wonder of Asia for its long preserved culture and heritage. Witnessing the growth and potential from India, SLTPB has taken a step forward in consolidating their presence in the Indian market.
Viranga Bandara, Assistant Director/Marketing (India) on his visit to India conversed with the travel fraternity to promote Sri Lanka as the exotic destination among niche travellers and holiday makers. He quotes, “Sri Lanka has gained immense popularity in India and has experienced a consistent growth over the period. We have come first to Kolkata to explore this beautiful landmark of joyful people and tap the travel agents to increase the flow of business. We will also be participating at the travel fairs in Kolkata & other cities of India to enhance destination visibility among travel trade & consumers, to further consolidate Sri Lanka’s position as preferred destination for Indian travellers. We are confident that in 2017 a lot of more Indians will choose Sri Lanka as their preferred holiday destination. Sri Lanka wholeheartedly welcomes Indians. Sri Lankan airlines recently launched its operations from three more cities of India; Hyderabad, Coimbatore & Visakhapatnam.
