Sri Lanka to attract more tourists from France and Belgium
The number of tourists arriving in Sri Lanka from France and Belgium are expected to increase following the conclusion of a mega public relations (PR) exercise involving a delegation of 20 leading journalists from these two European markets.
The PR exercise was initiated by Chairman and Managing Director of Connaissance de Ceylan and Theme Resorts and Spas Chandra Wickramasinghe. The event was organised in collaboration with Salaün Holidays, which is a leading tour operator in France.
Accordingly, 20 journalists from print, magazines, radio and TV from France and Belgium were flown in to spend four days in Sri Lanka to get a first-hand experience of Sri Lanka.
The local media has reported that having been an ardent promoter of Sri Lanka for 15 years, Salaün Holidays President Michel Salanu has stated that his company annually has been bringing over 2,000 tourists mostly from France and to a lesser degree from Belgium, and following the familiarisation tour of journalists the numbers will increase.
Chandra Wickremesinghe has been quoted as saying that the initiative is likely to result in tourists arranged by Salaün to double to 4,000 this year or by next year.
According to Connaissance, the follow up publicity in French and Belgian media is expected to be worth Rs. 350 million after the journalists had savoured Sri Lanka for four days enjoying some of the best tourism sights including a tour to Sigiriya by air and experiences such as tuk tuk and train rides, authentic Sri Lankan cuisine etc.
Sri Lanka's tourism industry is on a continuous growth path and is one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the country. Tourist arrivals to the country are on the increase along with foreign investments to the industry. Sri Lanka continues to be listed as a must visit destination by globally renowned travel publications resulting in many foreign tourists booking visits to the island. All these have resulted in the expansion of business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka's tourism industry.