“Sri Lanka Tourism is branding each global fair based on the platform ‘An Island of Thousand Treasures’ so that we start developing a footprint globally,” said Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau Chairman Dr. Rohantha Athukorala.
“ATM in Dubai took the Sri Lankan Wildlife theme, ITB in Berlin took the theme Sri Lankan Beaches, KOTFA took the proposition Sri Lankan Festivals and Moscow Travel Fair was themed Sri Lankan Tea and the Guinness Book of Records Attempt, which are all coming under the positioning ‘Sri Lanka – An Island of Thousand Treasures,” said Athukorala.  Next week Sri Lankan Tourism will theme the next wave of global trade fairs in line with the aspirations of the targeted traveller, he said. Starting from JATA in Japan where the theme will be ‘World’s oldest Festival – Esala Perahera,’ the key Scandinavian fair will take the proposition ‘Sri Lanka, the Sapphire Capital of the World,’ whilst the famous Italian TTG fair will be taking the proposition ‘The Cultural Focus Country – Sri Lanka’,” said the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau in a communique.

Sri Lanka taking the ‘Cultural Focus Country’ of TTG Incontri 2015, the key Italian exhibition and in the top five in Europe for the tourist trade, will be staged at Rimini Fiera Italy. Sri Lanka, whose cultural tourism has been acclaimed by international tourist trade members and is attracting increasing market attention, has a dynamic attractive proposal for international tourism, said a fair organiser from Remini.  This can be seen for example by data of Master Card clients, which show Sri Lanka as the first country in which digital cash transaction have increased. The island’s capital, Colombo, with an increase of 21%, beats Chengdu, the capital of the Chinese province of Sichuan and Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, in third place as far as growth is concerned.

Sri Lanka registered 21,000 arrivals from Italy to Sri Lanka last year and is targeting 40,000 this year. Athukorala said: “We are more interested in attracting the $250 plus traveller than just pushing visitor arrivals. Italy is one of the country’s seven most important incoming markets, in ranking topped by China, followed by India, France and Germany.” “The number of tourists visiting the country is increasing given that as at end August 2015 the numbers record 17.1%, crossing the 1.1 million number, which proves that the destinations and services offered are increasingly popular. This success is due to the country’s peace and beauty: Sri Lanka is often described as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. The facilities offered range from immense beaches to parks, but attention is focussed above all on the country’s historical and cultural wonders,” said the conference organisers in a weekly press release.

For nature lovers, particularly fans of water sports such as windsurfing, Sri Lanka is also an increasingly popular destination, as it is for those looking for great emotions, in contact with the wilder parts of the country, which also has the world’s highest concentration of leopards.  Numerous initiatives are also offered by the Ministry of Tourism and the possibilities of accommodation are increasingly suited to Western and international tourists’ requirements, not to mention the spiritual dimension and the possibility Sri Lanka offers for discovering oneself, the release stated. From 8 to 10 October, Rimini Fiera will also host the 52nd TTG Incontri, 64thSIA GUEST major International Hospitality exhibition and 33rd SUN, the key international exhibition for the outdoor world.