EVENT : SRI LANKA TOURISM TO HOLD ROAD SHOW IN KOLKATA TOMORROW

BY DEBAJYOTI CHAKRABORTY

KOLKATA, 24 SEPTEMBER 2023:

In a boost to uplift the tourism in the island country in the eastern part of the country, the Sri Lanka Tourism has organised a Roadshow at a prominent hotel in the City of Joy on Monday.

There will be a B2B Networking session with the stakeholders of Sri Lanka Tourism and travel agents in the cultural capital of India.

There will be speeches from the key persons of the Sri lanka Tourism Promotion Board, who will provide details about the latest updates and new attractions in the island country.

Which will be followed by a cultural proramme and networking dinner.

India has remained the biggest resource market for Sri Lanka Tourism in 2022. About 7,19,978 people visited Sri lanka in 2022. Wheras in this year, there has been a significant growth in tourism in Sri Lanka as till June about 6,24,874 people have already visited.

Tourism in Sri lanka has bounced back after the two years of covid -19 pandemic and every month more than one lakhs people are visiting the pictuesque island country.

This is due to the continuous promotional activities of SLTPB, in collaboration with the SLTDA and SLCB who have given their tremendous support. Up to end of May 2023 Sri Lanka Tourism has generated an income of USD752 mn , thereby actively contributing to the Economy.

Sriu lanka Tourism has been also taking help of bloggers, celebrities, influencers and journalists beside taking part in various travel marts and organising roadhsows throughout the world.

Sri Lanka also won several international accolades this year, becoming one of the best 23 places to visit in 2023 by Forbes magazine , one of the Top 10 Most Instagrammable Places in the world for 2023 recommended by Big 7 travel, and 10 best countries to travel in Asia, by Japan web magazine.

With Sri lankan Airlines planning to increase its number of direct flights from various Indian Cities to Colombo in the days to come, it seems that will further improve the connectivity between the two neighbouring countries.

Sri Lanka has also hosted the 67 th annual convention of Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) this year. Cruise tourism from India to Sri lanka is also becoming immensely popular.

About :

Tourism in Sri Lanka is growing rapidly. For centuries, Sri Lanka has been a popular place of attraction for foreign travelers. The Chinese traveler Fa-Hien visited Sri Lanka as early as the 410’s AD/CE, and in the twelfth century, Italian explorer Marco Polo claimed Sri Lanka to be the “best island of its size in the world”

Sri Lanka possesses nearly 1,600 km coastlines with tropical beaches which are popular among both local and foreign tourists. Most of the coastlines of the country are studded with varying coastal features such as bays, lagoons, sandbanks, and rocky headlands. Marine recreation activities, such as sea bathing and swimming, surfing, boating, snorkelling, deep-sea fishing, underwater photography, and scuba diving, can be seen at most of these beaches and related resort areas.

Beaches at Tangalle, Beruwala, Mirissa, Bentota, Unawatuna, Arugam Bay, Pasikudah, Hikkaduwa, Uppuveli and Negombo are considered as famous tourist beaches in the country.Coconut Tree Hill is a popular tourist attraction in Mirissa Beach and one of the most Instagrammed locations in Sri Lanka.

Despite its small size, Sri Lanka possesses a high level of biodiversity and wildlife resources and is rated among the 34 biodiversity hotspots in the world. Many species of flora and fauna are indigenous to Sri Lanka. This has made the island a country with the highest rates of biological endemism in the world.

Forbes ranked Sri Lanka as one of top wildlife safaris outside of Africa due to the actual presence of five charismatic megafauna (The Big Five) and the relative ease of seeing them during a single tour itinerary. The Leopard, the Asian elephant and Sloth Bear are found in several national parks. The Yala National Park has one of the highest concentrations of leopards in the world. Wildlife photographer and author Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne has shown that Sri Lanka is the best place in the world to spot Blue whales. A narrow continental shelf off Mirissa, Sri Lanka allows Blue and Sperm whales to swim close to the shore. Seasonally, the largest gathering of Asian elephants numbering 200-300 or higher takes place at the Minneriya National Park.

Heritage tourism involves visiting historical sites. Sri Lanka is very rich in pre-historic, proto-historic, and historic monuments, which bespeak its ancient civilization and culture. Mainly Buddhism has influenced in the moulding of the cultural heritage of the country. The historic period of Sri Lanka proper starts circa 236 B.C. with the introduction of Buddhism to the country by the missionaries sent by the Indian empire Asoka.

The UNESCO has declared six archaeological and two ecological World Heritage Sites in the country. Beside the world heritage sites the government of Sri Lanka has declared a number of archaeological protected sites and monuments within the country.